- Location
- Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
- Main postcode districts
- CB5, CB22 and CB24
- Nearby (straight line)
- Royston (12 miles), St Ives (12 miles) and Newmarket (13 miles)
- Survey and quote
- Free, with a fixed written quote
A loading house is an insulated steel structure built against the outside wall of a building, containing a dock leveller and usually a shelter or seal at its front. The building door closes at the wall line, while trailers dock against the house. Loading houses suit buildings whose floor is at dock height but which have no room inside for a leveller pit.
Is this right for your site in Cambridge?
Manufacturing businesses around Cambridge adding a dock to an existing building often find a loading house less disruptive than breaking out the slab inside. Chilled stores near Cambridge sometimes favour loading houses because the building door closes at the wall line, keeping the cold envelope sealed when no trailer is docked.
Developers bringing forward industrial units in Cambridge can specify loading houses at design stage, keeping the internal slab clear for whichever tenant takes the unit.
For loading houses in Cambridge, we begin with a free site survey and a fixed written quote, so you know the scope and cost before committing. We take responsibility for managing the job, and specialist installation engineers carry it out under our supervision. Bays are taken out of use in a planned sequence so the rest of the dock keeps working, and evening or weekend work can be arranged. Each item is tested at handover and the documentation is left with you.
How much does a loading house cost?
A loading house typically costs £14,500 to £32,000 per house, supplied and installed, excluding VAT. That covers the insulated structure with its leveller and shelter or seal; the figure for your site depends on size, layout and what has to happen to the building and yard.
What moves the price:
- Size and layout: straight houses are simpler than angled ones, and larger houses use more steel and panel.
- Leveller type: telescopic-lip levellers cost more than swing-lip.
- Front sealing: inflatable shelters cost more than retractable shelters or foam seals.
- Foundations: ground conditions and buried services decide the size of pads or footings.
- Building works: forming or enlarging the wall opening, and a new insulated door if needed.
- Electrics and access: supply to the leveller and lights, crane access and any out-of-hours working.
These are guide budgets. After a free site survey we send a written quote that is the fixed price. VAT is added at the standard rate.
Does a loading house need planning permission or building approval?
A loading house can need planning permission, because it is a new external structure, so we check this at survey rather than assuming it is not needed. The answer depends on the site, the size of the house and any planning conditions already on the building.
Forming a new opening in the building wall is a structural alteration that may need approval. In England and Wales that means Building Regulations approval, in Scotland a building warrant, and in Northern Ireland building control approval.
Energy rules can also apply to the door in the building wall. In England, Approved Document L (2021) Volume 2 sets a limiting U-value of 1.3 W/m²K for vehicle access and similar large doors in new and replacement work. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own energy rules, and we confirm the figure that applies to your nation and project.
The leveller inside the house is specified to BS EN 1398:2009, the dock leveller safety standard. Our guide to loading houses explained goes through the approvals in more detail.
The same published guide range applies across England; access, out-of-hours working and site conditions are confirmed at the free survey.
Survey checklist for your dock
- Traffic routes for vehicles and separation of pedestrians
- Access for deliveries, cranes or lifting equipment during installation
- Drainage on recessed or sloping dock approaches
- Control positions, isolators and any existing interlocks
- Lighting inside trailers and at the dock face
- Escape routes and pedestrian doors close to the bay
Options to discuss
Straight loading house
Set square to the building wall, the simplest layout where the yard has room for trailers to reverse straight in. Usually the most economical arrangement for one or more bays.
Leveller choice
A hydraulic swing-lip leveller for general trailer loading, or a telescopic-lip leveller for precise placement, end-loading and trailers that cannot be reversed tight to the dock.
What do the rules in England mean for the work?
Workplace safety in England is regulated by HSE. For a loading bay in Cambridge, that means doors meeting regulation 18 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, equipment maintained under PUWER and suitable safeguards against vehicles driving away too early. We check what applies at survey and design the bay accordingly.
Questions about loading houses in Cambridge
How do you price loading houses for a site in Cambridge?
Guide budgets for supply and fit are £14,500 to £32,000 per house, excluding VAT. The figure moves with size, insulation, the operator, electrics, access, any pit or groundworks and out-of-hours working. Where levellers are involved, the guide assumes an existing, sound pit. After the free survey you receive a fixed written quote, and that is the price for the agreed scope.
Can you work outside our normal operating hours in Cambridge?
Yes, by arrangement. Evening, night and weekend working can be planned so the installation causes as little disruption as possible to your loading schedule. Out-of-hours work can affect the price, so mention it at the survey and we will include it in the written quote. The agreed times are confirmed in the programme before the job starts.
Is VAT included in your guide prices for loading houses?
No. Our customers are businesses, so guide prices exclude VAT, which is added at the standard rate. The same guide range applies in Cambridgeshire as everywhere else: for loading houses, it is £14,500 to £32,000 per house, excluding VAT. It covers supply and fit for a typical installation. Your fixed written quote after the free survey shows the net price, the VAT and exactly what is included.
How long does a loading house take to install?
The programme depends mainly on foundation works and manufacturing lead times, and we set it out in writing with the quote. On site, foundations must cure before the frame goes up, and the rest of the work follows in sequence. We agree dates with you so other bays can keep working.
Does a loading house need planning permission?
A loading house can need planning permission because it is a new external structure, and we check this at survey for every project. Forming a new opening in the wall may also need Building Regulations approval, a building warrant in Scotland or building control approval in Northern Ireland, depending on where the site is.
Loading houses near Cambridge
The same survey, quote and repair service is available in towns around Cambridge, such as Royston (12 miles), St Ives (12 miles) and Newmarket (13 miles).
Other loading bay services in Cambridge
Full guide to loading houses · Everything we do in Cambridge
Get in touch about loading bay doors and dock equipment in Cambridge: call, email or use the quote tool.