New guidelines for lashing equipment, wheel chocks and vehicles

the revised VDI 2700 defines the state of the art, which will be of considerable relevance, not least for police checks and court hearings. The load securing specialist SpanSet invited experts to an information event at the beginning of June. There was a large crowd and a great demand for information. "VDI guidelines are put to the test every five years," reported Simon Jäckel, Senior Project Manager at the Association of German Engineers (VDI). "Then there are three options: confirm, revise or withdraw."

When the revision of VDI 2700 was due in 2017, it quickly became clear that a thorough update was required. It would take several years. "The state of the art in load securing technology has developed considerably and the vehicles on the loading area have also changed," says Jäckel. Just think of SUVs with their enormously large tires or heavy electric cars.

A committee with representatives from industry, testing companies and supervisory authorities was set up to revise VDI 2700. The first step was to clarify what the committee needed to focus on. The result: the transport vehicle, the load securing aids and, last but not least, the vehicles to be transported had to be taken into account. "We described these components precisely in order to subsequently derive comprehensible and practicable load securing methods," said committee chairman Hans-Josef Neunfinger, talking about the early phase of the project.

How much may the roadway sheet be deformed?

Then the precision work began: how must lashing equipment be designed, what specifications must roadway elements meet, how stable must the body of the vehicle transporter be? "There were hundreds of tests with a manufacturer-independent test vehicle," explained Thorsten Ludwig, Head of Load Securing at TÜV Süd. "Just the question of how much deformation caused by hooks is permissible on the road surface kept us busy for several weeks."

Thorsten Ludwig emphasized that the soon to be published VDI 2700 (Sheet 8 ff.) is not a theoretical and detailed result of the committee's work. He pointed out that it will have an impact on everyday loading operations. "As soon as it is published, the directive will apply to all vehicles on German roads, regardless of how old they are." Whether the goods being transported are ordinary cars and trucks or classic cars, caravans and motorhomes is irrelevant. Anyone transporting a vehicle privately must also comply with VDI 2700.

The TÜV man issued a warning to practitioners: "Freight forwarders and carriers should not rely on their clients to load the vehicles even if they cannot prove the conformity of their equipment in accordance with the VDI. Along the lines of: they need us so that someone will transport their cars and trucks."

Because the case law is clear: the shipper is also in the boat. In the event of a violation, they face the same consequences as the driver. Ludwig therefore dared to make a prediction that caused many members of the audience to nod their heads: "You won't find any logistics managers at OEMs who voluntarily accept points on their personal Flensburg account just because they let a van leave the yard with inadequate securing."

Does the equipment comply with the VDI guideline?

What you shouldn't do, however, according to Thorsten Ludwig: "Buy hooks or lashing straps like crazy now." First of all, vehicle owners should make sure that the equipment they have been using up to now complies with the directive. In most cases, this should be the case, as the directive reflects the state of the art. This means that the technology is available. Whether this applies to the specific individual case is another matter.

And when will the new version of VDI 2700 definitely come into force? "One hour before the start of the event, I gave the go-ahead for the white print," said Neunfinger. That was on June 4. The white print is the final version. If nothing unexpected comes up, the directive will be published on September 1, 2024. From then on, it will apply - without a transitional period.

"The fact that there is already a comprehensive event before the final version of the new guideline is published to inform experts and the trade press is something I have never experienced in my twelve years at the VDI," says Jäckel, praising the SpanSet initiative. "I think that's great."

Sliding friction coefficient

The term coefficient of sliding friction or coefficient of friction is commonly used in the field of load securing. It indicates the "micro-interlocking" (friction) between the loading surface and the load. For the new version of VDI 2700, the committee had to invent a new term: Sliding friction coefficient. Committee chairman Hans-Josef Neunfinger explains: "In the conventional determination of a coefficient of sliding friction, it is assumed that the load is standing on a homogeneous surface of whatever nature. In contrast, when cars or trucks are loaded onto vans, the tires stand on profiled metal sheets. This leads to interlocking and improves the conditions for securing the load. To make this clear, we have created the term coefficient of sliding friction."

VDI 2700 defines that manufacturers of road plates must prove that their products generate a coefficient of sliding friction of at least 0.4. Otherwise, they may not be used for loading cars and trucks onto transporters.

Individual tests

Vehicles that transport cars or trucks must have individual tests for the following equipment components in accordance with VDI 2700 (Sheet 8, 8.1 and 8.2):

• Track elements (mounting points for load securing aids and sliding friction coefficient)
• Wheel chocks in conjunction with roadway elements
• Lashing equipment
• Belt controller
• Body (stability of the vehicle transporter)