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Lifts and loading houses · Kendal

Loading houses in Kendal

If your site in Kendal needs loading houses, we can help, whether the dock serves a cold store, a parcel operation, a food factory or a trade counter.

Guide £14,500–£32,000 per house ex VATFree site surveyLA9
Book a free survey0800 088 6248
Location
Kendal, Cumbria
Main postcode district
LA9
Nearby (straight line)
Morecambe (18 miles), Lancaster (19 miles) and Heysham (20 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.

How does this suit sites in Kendal?

Racked warehouses around Kendal that cannot spare internal floor space for a dock can move the leveller outside the wall into a loading house instead. Where a yard in Kendal is narrow, an angled loading house lets trailers approach on a diagonal and can sometimes fit more bays along one wall.

Any loading house proposed in Kendal needs its planning and building control position checked, which we look at during the site survey before quoting.

Any project involving loading houses at a working site in Kendal takes planning. We survey free of charge, quote a fixed price in writing, and then agree a programme that keeps as much of the dock running as possible. Specialist installation engineers carry out the work under our management, out of hours if that suits you better. On completion we test each item, show your team how it operates and leave the documentation with you.

What happens on site when a loading house is installed?

Installing a loading house takes the bay out of use from the foundation works to commissioning, but the building can stay secure because the existing wall and door remain until late in the job.

  1. Foundations: concrete pads or footings are formed in the yard and left to cure.
  2. Erection: the steel frame is lifted into place, usually by crane, and fixed to the foundations and building.
  3. Cladding and equipment: panels, leveller, shelter or seal, bumpers and lights are fitted.
  4. Door and electrics: the building door is fitted or adapted and the leveller and lights connected.
  5. Commissioning: everything is tested with a trailer before handover.

We ask you to provide yard space for the crane and deliveries, any drawings of drains or buried services, a power supply, and clear arrangements for keeping vehicles and people away from the lifting zone. Neighbouring bays may need to close briefly while the crane is working.

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.

Guide price, Kendal
£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 we look at on site

  • Headroom above the opening and which track type will suit it
  • Wall and steel structure for door, shelter and bumper fixings
  • Dock height and the mix of trailers you load
  • Age and condition of the equipment already in place
  • How drivers are prevented from pulling away too early
  • Bumper position and wear or damage on the dock face

Options to discuss

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.

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.

Regulations and approvals in England

Lift tables and dock lifts in Kendal may fall under LOLER, with thorough examination at least every 12 months, or every 6 months where people are lifted. It depends on the equipment and how it is used, and your insurer or competent person will confirm. Dock levellers are usually treated as work equipment under PUWER. We check what applies at survey.

Questions about loading houses in Kendal

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

To get started, send the site address in Kendal, 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.

Can you work alongside our main contractor on a new build in Kendal?

Yes. For new warehouses and fit-outs, we can supply and install the dock package as part of a wider project, working to the main contractor's programme, site rules and permits. We will need drawings, dock levels and the programme, and we coordinate pit details, power supplies and door openings with the relevant trades before installation begins.

What warranty comes with new loading bay equipment?

New equipment comes with the manufacturer's warranty, which varies by product. Our workmanship terms are set out in writing in the quote for your Kendal site, so you can see what is covered before you commit. Check the warranty terms for any servicing conditions, and we can quote for planned maintenance once the installation is complete.

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 Kendal

Looking beyond Kendal? Our pages for Morecambe (18 miles), Lancaster (19 miles) and Heysham (20 miles) describe the same loading bay services and how to get in touch.

Other loading bay services in Kendal

Full guide to loading houses · Everything we do in Kendal

Call us or request a quote online to talk through loading bay work at your site in Kendal.

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