July/August 2003
If your company has a truck, it could face an expensive, even fatal rollover accident. This review offers knowledge to help prevent such incidents.
By Jim Fowler
Rollovers by the Numbers
In the 16-month period from June 2001 through September 2002, truck rollovers accounted for 4 percent of the total number of claims in the ISRI-sponsored RecycleGuardsm insurance program. Of the 50 claims, 38 involved damage to the insured’s vehicle, 11 involved property-damage liability (damage to property not belonging to the insured, including any cleanup costs for which the insured was liable), and only one involved bodily injury to a third party.
Though the frequency of rollover claims isn’t huge, such claims represented 19 percent of the total dollar value of ReMA claims in the 16-month period and the average cost of such claims—about $17,000—was high compared with the average cost of other claims, says Monica McNally of RecycleGuard.
Truck rollovers may not be the most prevalent kind of automotive accident in the scrap industry, but they can still be deadly and costly, particularly if other vehicles are involved. As one scrap processor states, “Our risk manager goes crazy just thinking about the potential exposure if one of our trucks should roll over on another vehicle.” Fortunately, rollovers are also one of the most preventable types of truck accident—if your drivers have a solid grasp of rollover factors and put this knowledge into practice.
Basic Training
Without a doubt, driver education and training is the crucial factor in preventing truck rollovers since the driver is the one in control of the rig and its load, says Mike Mattia, ISRI’s director of risk management.
As one processor relates, “we’ve had three rollovers in the past eight years and each of them was under totally different circumstances, each involved driver error, and each could have been avoided. You don’t know when they’re going to happen. You just have to train your drivers to be aware of the potential for a rollover and try to instill in them the vigilance required to prevent them.”
Before drivers can prevent rollovers, however, they need to know the factors that can cause them. As one safety manager reasons, when drivers understand what causes their rigs to tip over, they’ll know how to keep them upright.
To help with driver training, ReMA recently released a video titled Working Safe and Smart—Preventing Truck Rollover, which explains the concept of a vehicle’s center of gravity and offers basic suggestions on preventing rollovers.
In simplistic terms, a vehicle’s center of gravity is the point at which its weight is balanced on its wheelbase. Drivers must first understand that trucks have a higher center of gravity than passenger vehicles, which makes them
more susceptible to roll over, says Mattia, who produced the ReMA video. It’s also important to know that a truck’s center of gravity can change depending on the load in its trailer.
Load. Load, in fact, is one of four main factors that can contribute to a truck rollover, according to the ReMA video. While rollovers can occur when a truck is empty, Mattia notes, a truck hauling a load faces additional dangers because the load affects its center of gravity. As the weight of the load increases, for instance, so does the weight of the truck’s center of gravity. As the height of the load increases, the truck’s center of gravity can be raised as well. And the higher the center of gravity, the greater the potential that the center of gravity can shift away from the wheelbase, causing a rollover. Other important load considerations include uneven loads or loads containing items that could shift in transit—with potentially fatal consequences.
In one example, a Midwestern processor sent a driver to pick up a trailer at a supplier’s facility. The driver made the mistake of not inspecting what was in the trailer. As he drove onto a highway entrance ramp at 10 to 15 mph—well below the posted limit and verified by several eyewitnesses—something shifted in the load, causing the tractor and trailer to roll over and killing the driver.
Had the driver inspected his load before driving off, he would have seen that the supplier had placed a 9-ton lathe on top of 6 to12 inches of plate-and-sheet steel scrap in the trailer. The lathe wasn’t secured. Though the driver was moving at a slow speed on the entrance ramp, the shift of the 9-ton lathe was enough to cause the rollover. “Speed is often cited as the main cause of rollovers,” this processor says, “but our driver probably couldn’t have gone slow enough to prevent an unsecured 9-ton lathe from shifting. It’s all relative, I guess, and in this case it was fatal.”
Two additional factors contributed to the tragic outcome of this accident. First, the driver was not wearing his seatbelt. And second, though the scrap company had a policy prohibiting any modification to its cabs, the driver broke that rule by installing a radio in the roof of his cab. This radio crushed his head when the cab rolled and he flew against the radio because he wasn’t wearing his seatbelt.
Aside from the load factor, the other three major factors that can contribute to a truck rollover are:
Speed. The vehicle’s speed is the major cause of rollovers in the scrap industry, says Robert Griffin of RecycleGuardsm, the ISRI-sponsored property/casualty insurance program. In general, the safe speed for a truck is lower—at least 10 mph lower, the ReMA video suggests—than the safe speed for a passenger car. Also, a truck’s safe speed decreases as its load increases, the road topography changes, and road conditions worsen.
In one speed-related rollover, a new driver was hauling a full load of scrap and “only going 60 mph,” though the speed limit was 50 mph. The driver came to what was described as a “gentle corner,” and the truck’s speed and load caused it to roll as it rounded the corner. While the driver wasn’t injured, he was dismissed over the accident.
Turns/Curves. Almost any change in the direction or topography of a road can contribute to a potential rollover, notes the ReMA video. Of particular concern are downward-sloping roads followed by turns. That’s because trucks can gain momentum going downhill and enter a turn at an unsafe speed. As the truck takes the turn, centrifugal force causes its center of gravity to continue in the original direction, possibly toppling the truck. Roads with uneven surfaces are another concern because they could cause a truck’s center of gravity to tilt away from the wheelbase.
In one turn-related rollover, an experienced driver was pulling a new trailer with a higher center of gravity than the firm’s other trailers. When the driver took a turn at what he thought was a safe speed, the rig rolled. In this case, the scrap firm had wanted a truck with more capacity, which meant higher sides and, thus, a higher center of gravity. The driver (who survived thanks to his seatbelt) didn’t understand that his previous speed with a smaller trailer was too fast around a turn for a bigger, taller trailer.
Road/Driving Conditions. While rollovers can occur under any road/driving conditions, rain, ice, snow, fog, and sleet can pose additional hazards and increase rollover risks. If a truck skids on a rain-slicked road, for instance, its center of gravity can shift off-center, causing a rollover. A good general rule to remember is: As road/driving conditions decline, a truck’s safe speed also declines. ISRI’s rollover video says truck drivers should reduce their speed by at least a third in wet conditions, at least a half in snowy conditions, and to a crawl or stop in icy situations.
The Unloading Issue
While many truck rollovers occur on the road, scrap recyclers know all too well that rollovers can also happen when unloading material in the yard or at a consumer’s facility.
One processor recounts that the first of his firm’s three rollovers occurred at a mill that had unstable, soft ground in the unloading area. No one was hurt in the incident, but the tractor suffered $15,000 of damage and the trailer sustained $1,200 of damage.
John Schneider of E. Schneider & Sons Inc. (Allentown, Pa.) can relate to such incidents because his firm has rolled over four or five dump trailers at mills (fortunately with no injuries).
Some of Schneider’s rollover problems while dumping were due to the design of the trailer itself. In particular, his firm had problems with the fifth-wheel plate on its frameless trailers. As he explains, a frameless dump trailer has a plate in front where it attaches to the tractor. On that plate, there are arms attached that run back to the middle of the body. The cylinders are also attached to the same plate so that, when the truck goes to dump, it dumps like an inch-worm. The wheelbase shortens up, and the tractor crawls underneath the trailer when the trailer is up in the air.
Unfortunately, the pivot point—where the cylinder and draft arms are attached to the fifth-wheel plate in the front—was not well-constructed, and the components were falling apart. As a result, the trailer would go up in the air and a gust of wind could lay the trailer on its side (fortunately, the tractors were unharmed). In this case, the trailer maker rectified the problem by retrofitting all of the trailers and even repairing the damage caused by the rollovers.
Other rollovers during dumping can be attributed to the poor condition of the unloading area at a scrap yard or mill. In short, if the ground isn’t firm and level, there’s always the risk of a rollover, Schneider says. As he notes, the tractor must move forward as it dumps its load—a path some 40 feet long. If there’s an 8-inch pothole, for example, and one tire drops in, the trailer can roll over and, depending on the weight in the trailer, could take the tractor with it. To prevent such occurrences, many facilities have hard-surfaced their scrap-unloading areas—a major improvement, Schneider says.
While the problem of rollovers during dumping is common, it doesn’t have to be. “Some say it’s the nature of the beast—I say the beast doesn’t have to be that way,” states Schneider. “This is a unique problem for the scrap industry, and one we need to address.”
Schneider, in fact, has done just that, developing a few innovative approaches to address the problem. For starters, he took a lesson from his recreational vehicle experience and outfitted his trailers with a vehicle level that the driver can see from the cab. The company simply tack-welds a bracket to the front of the trailer, then bolts the level to the bracket. With a glance over his shoulder, the driver can then determine if the trailer is level from left to right before beginning to unload. According to Schneider, it “probably costs us less than $50 to add this feature,” including $15 for the level itself, which can be purchased at an RV store or online.
Schneider’s drivers also prevent rollovers by conducting a “test dump.” This procedure, which takes about 45 seconds, is done on a truck scale or other level spot. With the tailgate closed, the driver raises the trailer 5 to 8 feet (the load will not shift at that low angle) then lowers the trailer. If the trailer comes down straight, the load is level. If it comes down at an angle, the load is uneven and is driving the trailer to one side or the other, Schneider explains.
Such load imbalances are particularly common with turnings, especially if they’re dumped into a trailer with a front-end loader. “If the bucket-loader operator doesn’t hit right in the middle of the trailer, the load will be uneven,” Schneider says. From his experience, 65 to 70 percent of trailerloads of turnings are unbalanced. “That’s why the test dump is important,” he says. “You discover if the load is uneven and can correct the situation before leaving for the mill.”
Tips From the Truck Trenches
Whether on the highway, in the scrap plant, at a supplier’s facility, or at a consuming operation, much of the responsibility for preventing rollovers rests with the driver. Recognizing that fact, here are some driver-related tips and other advice from industry veterans:
• Hire safe, sensible, experienced drivers. This may seem obvious, but it must be stated. One processor who has had truck rollovers notes, “We’re doing much more extensive prescreening of drivers. We’re much more careful about whom we hire—we want to get the right driver.” The company also has its dispatcher ride with new divers for a few days to make sure they have all the right skills and sensibilities.
• Drivers should inspect all loads prior to hauling, looking particularly for uneven distribution of material, too much material, and unsecured items that could shift in transit.
“We get complacent picking up containers every day that someone else has loaded,” states Ted Davis of Carolinas Recycling Group L.L.C. (Lyman, S.C.). “We don’t know what our customers put in them, and we don’t look at that or take it seriously enough. We accept that responsibility when we pick the load up—that’s our business. We have to do the training and be responsible for that. Our drivers should look at the load to see if there’s anything strange.”
If items must be secured for transport, encourage drivers to check the load en route to make sure the chains or straps haven’t loosened or that the load hasn’t shifted.
• Require drivers to wear their seatbelt and encourage them to drive conservatively. “They need to be driving defensively with the realization that their truck could roll over at anytime,” Davis says.
n Drivers should be familiar with the route they’re driving to prevent any sudden and potentially unsafe turns or actions en route.
• Prohibit drivers from modifying their cabs since such modifications can pose safety hazards in the event of a rollover. Then make sure you enforce the rules, including aggressive inspections of truck cabs and warnings that any modifications could lead to discharge.
• Never allow drivers to dump trailers next to each other because, if one rolls over, it could take the others with it in an unfortunate “domino effect,” notes Schneider.
Aside from these driver-related issues, make sure your trucks are in good operating order. According to Robert Griffin of RecycleGuard, rollovers can be caused by maintenance-related factors such as the brakes, steering mechanism, springs, air compressor, and wheel bearings.
Offering some final words of advice, Griffin states, “The scrap industry must wake up. The solution rests with each owner taking a personal interest in how their employees are trained.”
Specifically, he asks scrap plant owners to reaffirm their commitment to safety, asking them to consider the following questions: “If safety matters to you, how are you showing that to your employees? When was the last time you attended a driver safety meeting? When was the last time you rode with a driver?”
So, while the driver may have the immediate responsibility for preventing rollovers, it seems that owners have the ultimate responsibility of seeing that their drivers are trained, capable, and motivated to drive safely and prevent rollovers.
Rollover Causes and Contributing Factors
Many factors can cause or serve as contributing factors in a truck rollover. Here’s a list of some factors developed by Triodyne Inc., Niles, Ohio-based mechanical engineering consulting firm.
Driver Factors to Consider
• Not aware of tractor/trailer limitations
• Entered curve at excessive speed
• Didn’t anticipate sharpness of curve
• Accelerated through curve
• Steered truck onto soft shoulder
• Drifted off road and abruptly countersteered
• Didn’t comply with speed advisory
• Inexperienced transporting loads with high center of gravity
• Steered abruptly, perhaps during avoidance maneuvers
• Was impaired by fatigue, drowsiness, alcohol, drugs, or poor eyesight
• Was reckless, angry, emotional, or otherwise upset
Vehicle/Load Factors to Consider
• Unusually top-heavy load
• Potentially shifting load
• Uneven load distribution
• Collapsed suspension
• Underinflated tires
• Poor brake performance prior to entering curve
Highway Factors to Consider
• Speed advisory for curve
• Super elevation (banking)
• Transition curvature
• Shoulder condition
To contact Triodyne Inc., call 847/677-4730, or visit www.triodyne.com.
Editor’s Note—ISRI and RecycleGuard offer several resources that can help scrap recyclers prevent truck rollovers. One such resource is the new ReMA video Working Safe and Smart—Preventing Truck Rollover. All ReMA members received a complimentary copy of this video. Additional copies can be ordered for $75 (members) or $150 (nonmembers) by calling 202/737-1770 or ordering through the ReMA Bookstore at www.isri.org. RecycleGuard, meanwhile, offers an Internet Defensive Driving Program as well as a 1-800-How’s My Driving Program, both of which are provided free to RecycleGuard policyholders. For more information, contact Shannon White at 888/225-4725.
Jim Fowler is retired publisher and editorial director of Scrap.
If your company has a truck, it could face an expensive, even fatal rollover accident. This review offers knowledge to help prevent such incidents.