Flatbed HIAB hire
The lorry with the lifting arm on the back
This is the vehicle most people picture when they ask for a HIAB. A flat open bed for the load, and a folding HIAB crane mounted behind the cab. The load travels on the bed and the arm lifts it off at the other end, which means the delivery finishes properly instead of finishing at your gate.
It is the most versatile lorry we run. An open flat will take a pallet, a drum, a beam, a pack of blocks, a machine or a pod, and none of them need a special trailer. Because the sides are open the arm can get to the load from whichever side the lorry is parked on, which matters far more on a tight site than people expect.
Every one goes out with our own driver. He brings it, works the lift, sets the load down level and leaves. You do not need a forklift, a telehandler or a machine of your own on standby, and nobody from your side has to touch the controls.
What goes on the flat
Loads we carry and unload ourselves
- Palletised goods placed where they are wanted, not left at the gate
- Cable drums in and out of compounds and substations
- Steel beams, columns and fabricated sections
- Packs of brick, block, kerbs and bagged materials
- Timber, fencing and sheet materials
- Machinery and industrial equipment between sites and depots
- Tanks, vessels and water storage set onto a base
- Pods, garden rooms and small modular units
- Site equipment, barriers and welfare kit for a build or a break
- Single items rather than a full load, when that is all there is
Loaded properly is half the job
An open bed shows you everything, including whether the load was put on and secured properly. Drums get chocked and chained. Steel gets strapped so it cannot shift on the brakes. Pallets get sheeted if the weather is against us. It takes a few minutes longer at the loading end and it saves the load arriving in a state.
Email us with what you have got, where it is coming from and where it is going, and tell us about the access at both ends. If a flat is the right lorry we will send one. If the job really wants an artic, a wagon and drag or a low loader, we will say so.
Common questions
Flatbed HIAB hire, answered
Is this the lorry with the lifting arm on the back?
Yes. A flat open bed for the load, and a HIAB crane mounted behind the cab that lifts the load off. It is the most useful lorry on the fleet because it carries almost anything and unloads itself.
Do I need a forklift or a telehandler on site?
No, and that is the whole reason people book one. The lifting equipment is already on the lorry. We arrive, set the outriggers down, lift the load off the bed and place it where you want it, and nothing of yours has to be there to help.
What sort of loads go on a flatbed?
Palletised goods, cable drums, steel beams and fabricated sections, packs of brick and block, timber, fencing, machinery, tanks, pods, site equipment and most one off awkward items. If it sits flat and it can be strapped or chained down, it goes on a flat.
Can you deliver to a site with no hard standing?
Often, yes, but tell us in advance. Soft ground under the outriggers is the thing most likely to stop a lift, and mud or a new build with no roads in changes which vehicle we send. It is a solvable problem if we know about it before the lorry sets off.
Can you place the load rather than just drop it at the gate?
Yes, within reach of where the lorry can stand. The HIAB reaches out and over, so pallets can go round the back of a building, drums can go into a compound and steel can go down next to where it is being fitted. Describe the spot when you email and we will tell you if we can get to it.
What if the load is longer or heavier than a flatbed takes?
Then it goes on something else. We run articulated HIABs, wagon and drag outfits, extendable trailers and low loaders for exactly that reason. Email us with the dimensions and we will put it on the right vehicle rather than the nearest one.
