- Location
- Tonbridge, Kent
- Main postcode district
- TN9
- Nearby (straight line)
- Royal Tunbridge Wells (4 miles), Sevenoaks (6 miles) and Crowborough (10 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.
Why do sites in Tonbridge choose this?
Manufacturing businesses around Tonbridge adding a dock to an existing building often find a loading house less disruptive than breaking out the slab inside. Racked warehouses around Tonbridge that cannot spare internal floor space for a dock can move the leveller outside the wall into a loading house instead.
For older buildings in Tonbridge with a raised floor and little internal space by the wall, an external house can provide a modern hydraulic dock without major alterations.
If you are planning loading houses for a site in Tonbridge, expect four stages. A free survey and fixed written quote come first. We then agree a programme with you, including any out-of-hours work. Specialist installation engineers carry out the installation under our management, with us as your single point of contact. Finally, the equipment is tested, your staff are shown how it works and everything is handed over with its documentation.
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.
When is a loading house better than an internal dock?
A loading house is usually the better option when the building floor is already at dock height but there is no practical way to form a leveller pit inside. It moves the whole dock outside the wall, leaving the internal floor clear.
- No room inside: racking, production lines or mezzanines sit right up to the wall.
- Difficult slab: the floor slab carries services or is unsuited to breaking out for a pit.
- Thermal control: the building door closes at the wall line, so the leveller sits outside the heated or chilled space when no trailer is docked.
- Security: the building can be closed at the wall line while the house itself stays open to the yard.
- Narrow yards: an angled house lets trailers approach on a diagonal and can fit more bays along one wall.
Where the building floor is at yard level, a loading house alone will not solve the height difference, and a recessed approach or lift table is usually needed instead.
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
- Lighting inside trailers and at the dock face
- Traffic routes for vehicles and separation of pedestrians
- Yard gradient and the slope of the approach to the dock
- Headroom above the opening and which track type will suit it
- Escape routes and pedestrian doors close to the bay
- Dock height and the mix of trailers you load
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.
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.
Which rules apply in England?
Sites in Tonbridge fall under the rules for England. Structural changes such as forming a new opening or a dock leveller pit may need Building Regulations approval, and external structures such as loading houses, canopies or new dock approaches can need planning permission from the local planning authority. We check what applies at survey and build any approvals into the plan.
Questions about loading houses in Tonbridge
How long does installation take at a site in Tonbridge?
It depends on the equipment, the number of bays, the condition of the dock and whether any building or electrical work is needed. We agree a programme with you after the survey, setting out which bays are out of use and when. Larger jobs are usually phased so that part of the dock stays open, and out-of-hours working can be arranged.
Do you remove and dispose of the old equipment?
Yes, where it is part of the scope. When we replace doors, levellers, shelters or seals at a site in Tonbridge, removal and disposal of the old equipment can be included and is itemised in the quote, so it is clear what is covered. If anything should be kept, such as a frame or motor that is still serviceable, we agree that at survey.
Can you work outside our normal operating hours in Tonbridge?
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 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.
What door is used with a loading house?
The building wall behind a loading house usually has an insulated sectional door, which closes the building at the wall line when no trailer is docked. An existing door can sometimes be kept if it is in good condition. In England, replacement doors need to meet the Approved Document L limiting U-value for large doors.
Loading houses near Tonbridge
If your site is not in Tonbridge itself, it may be near one of these: Royal Tunbridge Wells (4 miles), Sevenoaks (6 miles) and Crowborough (10 miles). Pick the closest.
Other loading bay services in Tonbridge
Full guide to loading houses · Everything we do in Tonbridge
Use the quote tool to tell us about the doors, levellers or shelters at your Tonbridge site, and we will be in touch to arrange the next step.