Are you interested in securing your valuable cargo? Lashing rings are one of the unsung heroes that can achieve this goal, ensuring your cargo transports are as safe and efficient as possible. If you are keen to understand everything you need to know about lashing rings, including what types of lashing rings best suit your needs, the laws and regulations surrounding lashing rings, and how to extend the life-span of your lashing rings as much as possible, this is the guide for you!
What are Lashing Rings? A General Overview
Cargo that is not properly secured on a commercial vehicle can move around when in transport. Not only can this damage the goods, incurring your business heavy costs, but can also cause accidents to arise if the cargo falls off the vehicle.
You often see commercial vehicles using load restraints or ratchet straps to “tie down” cargo; but, what good are load restraints if they don’t have anything secure enough for the ends to attach too? - That’s where lashing rings come into play.
Lashing rings are d-shaped, often steel-based, rings that are usually bolted or welded to the ground of your commercial vehicle. Attaching a load restraint to the lashing ring and tightening the restraint clamps the cargo to the floor of your vehicle, securely holding your cargo in place and preventing your cargo from moving completely.
As stated, lashing rings are used to secure loads on commercial vehicles; however, the most prevalent vehicles you can find lashing rings being used for are on trucks, trailers and horseboxes.
Legal Advice on Lashing Rings
Before we establish the types of lashing rings and the specific uses for each of them, it’s important to go over the legal advice on using lashing rings. The UK government are as adamant on safety as you probably are when restraining cargo to your vehicles. For a comprehensive overview on securing loads on commercial vehicles, please refer to the governments article on security loads for HGV and Goods Vehicle. However, the most relevant information on the governments article goes over friction and securing forces.
In some instances, one load restraint attached to two lashing rings is not enough to completely secure the load. The UK government asks for cargo transport companies to determine the Calculation of securing forces when deciding if you have used enough lashings. Failing to act on this can incur your business hefty fines.
The calculation of securing forces has many parameters including:
- The cargo’s mass
- Cargo arrangement in the vehicle
- The specifications of the securing equipment used, including the lashing ring, load restraints and any other equipment used
- The friction factor (coefficient of friction)
The coefficient of friction is the frictional force that determines how easy it is for two surfaces to slide against each other.
Confused? We don’t blame you. This is simply the rough basics to secure cargo transport. So, if you need any help calculating securing forces for your projects, feel free to contact Albert Jagger with questions or advice you need on this!
What are the Types of Lashing Rings?
There are a multitude of different lashing rings that you can use on your commercial vehicles. To simplify this topic, here are the different types of lashing rings, alongside the different duties available for lashing rings to best fit your requirements.
Underfloor or Recessed Lashing Rings
Underfloor or recessed lashing rings are recessed or mounted into the floor of your commercial vehicle. As the ring is placed within the floor, this creates a flat surface that prevents the risk of tripping or catching on the ring when it is not in use. Therefore, underfloor or recessed lashing rings are great for securing loads and protecting the safety of yourself or your employees, making them one of the best lashing rings on the market.
Pivotal or Fold Over Lashing Rings
Pivotal or fold over lashing rings provide greater flexibility and versatility when securing your cargo. Fold over lashing rings can “fold over” to improve safety and to accommodate for awkwardly angled loads of cargo. Pivotal lashing rings offer the highest level of flexibility, as they can pivot and rotate to adapt to awkwardly angled and/or irregularly shaped loads of cargo.
Lashing Ring and Cleat: For Boating and Shipping
A lashing ring and cleat is heavy-duty lashing ring typically used to secure boats or shipping to a surface. Due to the difference in application these lashing rings have compared to other lashing rings, the government impose new requirements on ensuring the safety of using these lashing rings: BS EN 29367-2. Albert Jagger have ensured we have a lashing ring and cleat available that conforms to these requirements.
Heavy-duty Lashing Ring
Heavy-duty lashing rings offer the highest safe working load to secure your cargo. They can restrain loads of 2000-12,000kg.
Medium-duty Lashing Ring
Medium-duty lashing rings offer a decent safe working load that can safely handle the majority of your projects. They can restrain loads of 500-1500kg.
Lightweight Lashing Ring
Lightweight lashing rings are best used for small, light cargo that needs to be transported. They are best used for low-weight deliveries that don’t require a lot of weight to prevent the cargo from moving.
Lashing Ring Maintenance
Now that you understand the different types in lashing rings, it’s time to discuss lashing ring maintenance. Below we have laid out a general maintenance plan you should integrate in order to ensure your lashing ring will work properly and will last a long time:
Daily inspections
– A brief inspection of your lashing ring to check for any signs of damage or tear. Ensure the lashing rings are also free of debris, dirt and rust
Monthly checks
– Conducting a more thorough inspection of your lashing rings, checking all parts of the lashing ring aren’t corroded, cracked or deformed
Annual checks
– Hiring a qualified professional to assess the overall condition and structural integrity of your lashing rings
Lashing Rings by Albert Jagger
There are plenty of lashing rings suppliers on the market. It can be difficult to determine which supplier can best match your needs. We here at Albert Jagger are a leading supplier in various vehicle components including lashing rings. Since our inception in 1887, Albert Jagger Limited has been linked with innovation, good service, and the finest quality. Therefore, if you are considering on purchasing some lashing rings for your projects, we strongly recommend you view our selection of lashing rings.
If you have any additional questions, feel free to contact Albert Jagger, reach out through email: [email protected] or via telephone: +44(0) 1922 471000