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Lifts and loading houses · Redruth

Loading houses in Redruth

This page explains how we handle loading houses for sites in Redruth: what we look at, how the work is organised and what to send us to get things moving.

Guide £14,500–£32,000 per house ex VATFree site surveyTR15
Book a free survey0800 088 6248
Location
Redruth, Cornwall
Main postcode district
TR15
Nearby (straight line)
Camborne (4 miles), Truro (8 miles) and Falmouth (9 miles)
Survey and quote
Free, with a fixed written quote
Loading houses, in short

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.

What should sites in Redruth consider?

Units in Redruth with floors at dock height but no room for an internal leveller pit are typical candidates for an external loading house. Developers bringing forward industrial units in Redruth can specify loading houses at design stage, keeping the internal slab clear for whichever tenant takes the unit.

Manufacturing businesses around Redruth adding a dock to an existing building often find a loading house less disruptive than breaking out the slab inside.

It starts with a free site survey in Redruth, where we measure the openings, check the dock and talk through how the bay is used. You then receive a fixed written quote. Once you accept, we manage the job: specialist installation engineers carry out the work under our management, planned around your deliveries, and out-of-hours working can be arranged. At handover we test everything with you and leave the documentation.

What is a loading house made of?

A loading house is a steel frame clad in insulated composite panels, with a dock leveller built into its floor and a shelter or seal across its front. It is made to suit your building, trailers and yard rather than bought off the shelf.

  • Frame: galvanised or painted steel, supported on legs or a sub-frame that sits on concrete foundations.
  • Walls and roof: insulated composite panels, usually colour-matched to the building cladding, with guttering to carry rainwater away.
  • Floor and leveller: a steel deck with a hydraulic swing-lip or telescopic-lip leveller set into it.
  • Front: a retractable or inflatable shelter or a foam seal, with bumpers below to take trailer impact.
  • Building door: an insulated sectional door in the original wall opening, closing the building when no trailer is docked.
  • Extras: internal lighting, dock lights and traffic lights as required.

The insulated envelope reduces the heat or chill lost around the trailer compared with an open dock.

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.

Guide price, Redruth
£14,500–£32,000 per house, ex VAT

The same published guide range applies across England; access, out-of-hours working and site conditions are confirmed at the free survey.

What does the free survey cover?

  • Power supply at each bay, including three-phase availability
  • Asbestos register and any other site hazard information
  • Bumper position and wear or damage on the dock face
  • Lighting inside trailers and at the dock face
  • Access for deliveries, cranes or lifting equipment during installation
  • Clear opening width and height for each door

Options to discuss

Angled loading house

Set at an angle to the wall so trailers approach on a diagonal, useful on narrow yards and sometimes allowing more bays to fit along a single elevation.

Shelter or seal front

A retractable or inflatable shelter, or a foam dock seal, across the front of the house, chosen to suit your trailers and how tightly the bay needs to seal.

Regulations and approvals in England

In England, Approved Document L (2021) sets a limiting U-value of 1.3 W/m²K for vehicle access and similar large doors in new and replacement work. That shapes door specification for sites in Redruth, so we confirm the requirement for your project and check what applies at survey before recommending a door.

Questions about loading houses in Redruth

What details do you need from us to quote for loading houses?

To get started, send the site address in Redruth, the number of bays or openings, approximate sizes, and photos of the dock from inside and outside. Tell us what vehicles you load, what goods you handle and any temperature requirements. Drawings help on new builds. We then arrange the free survey and confirm the details before the written quote is issued.

Will you deal with building control and planning for a project in Redruth?

We check at survey whether the work is likely to need approval. Forming a new opening or dock pit may need Building Regulations approval, a building warrant or building control approval, depending on the nation, and external structures such as loading houses can need planning permission. Where approval is needed, we explain what is involved, work with your designer or agent, and build it into the programme.

Is the site survey in Redruth free?

Yes. For new installations, replacements, upgrades, conversions and complete bays, the site survey and written quote are free and come with no obligation. The survey lets us measure the openings, check the dock and structure, and understand how the bay is used, so the quote reflects your site. Repair and servicing visits are different: they are chargeable, with the price agreed before anyone attends.

Is a loading house cheaper than forming an internal pit?

Not always. A loading house includes a whole steel structure, so the equipment cost is higher, but it avoids breaking out the slab and losing internal floor space. The best comparison is made at survey, taking account of racking, services under the floor and how the building will be used.

Can a loading house be moved later?

Loading houses are bolted steel structures rather than masonry, so in principle they can be dismantled and moved if your needs change. In practice, relocation needs new foundations and an opening at the new position, so it is usually considered only where a house is fairly new and the new position suits it.

Loading houses near Redruth

Distances are measured from Redruth. Nearby towns we cover include Camborne (4 miles), Truro (8 miles) and Falmouth (9 miles), and other towns in the area are covered too.

Other loading bay services in Redruth

Full guide to loading houses · Everything we do in Redruth

If a loading bay in Redruth needs attention, call us or send photos and details online.

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