- Location
- Sevenoaks, Kent
- Main postcode district
- TN13
- Nearby (straight line)
- Tonbridge (6 miles), Royal Tunbridge Wells (10 miles) and Caterham (12 miles)
- Survey and quote
- Free, with a fixed written quote
A scissor lift table, often called a dock lift, is a powered platform raised and lowered by a hydraulic scissor mechanism to move goods between two levels. At a loading bay it lifts pallets and pallet trucks from ground level to the height of a trailer bed, making it a practical alternative to a raised dock where forming one is not possible.
What matters for scissor lift tables in Sevenoaks?
Split-level buildings near Sevenoaks sometimes use scissor lift tables internally to move pallets between floor levels without relying on forklifts and ramps. Businesses in Sevenoaks receiving both vans and articulated trailers through one doorway can use a lift table to serve every bed height from the same opening.
Town-centre and retail sites around Sevenoaks with little yard space often choose a dock lift because a recessed approach ramp would take up too much room.
If you are planning scissor lift tables for a site in Sevenoaks, 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 scissor lift table cost?
A scissor lift table for a loading bay typically costs £9,500 to £28,000 per lift, supplied and installed, excluding VAT. Smaller surface-mounted lifts sit towards the lower end; large, high-capacity pit lifts with gates and bridge plates sit towards the top.
What moves the price:
- Capacity: dock lifts are typically rated somewhere between 2,000 and 6,000 kg, and heavier ratings need a stronger mechanism.
- Platform size and travel: larger platforms and greater lift heights cost more.
- Mounting: pit-mounted or surface-mounted with a ramp.
- Safety equipment: bellows or skirts, toe guards, rails, gates and bridge plates.
- Electrics and access: supply to the power pack, delivery access and out-of-hours working.
Forming a pit, drainage and other groundworks are priced separately after survey. Following a free site survey, the written quote is the fixed price. VAT is added at the standard rate.
What safety features should a loading bay lift table have?
A loading bay lift table should protect people from the scissor mechanism, stop if anything is trapped under the platform, and stop people or loads falling from the edges. Lift tables are specified to BS EN 1570-1:2024, and common features include:
- Toe guards: trip bars or sensitive edges around the platform underside that stop the lift descending on contact.
- Safety bellows or skirts: a flexible enclosure that keeps hands, feet and debris out of shear and crush points.
- Guard rails and gates: on open sides, sized to how people and pallet trucks move on and off.
- Bridge plate: a hinged plate that rests on the trailer bed to bridge the gap.
- Hold-to-run controls: the lift only moves while the button is held, with a stop button within reach.
- Hydraulic protection: valves that stop the platform dropping if a hose fails.
- Maintenance props: supports that hold the platform up safely during servicing.
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
- Yard gradient and the slope of the approach to the dock
- Control positions, isolators and any existing interlocks
- Access for deliveries, cranes or lifting equipment during installation
- Working hours, shift patterns and windows for out-of-hours work
- Drainage on recessed or sloping dock approaches
- Condition of any existing leveller pit, kerb angles and pit drainage
Options to discuss
Guard rails and gates
Fixed rails and gated sides around the platform, arranged to suit the goods and how operators and pallet trucks move on and off the lift.
Pit-mounted dock lift
Set in a concrete pit so the platform lowers flush with the yard, letting pallet trucks drive straight on. The best choice for frequent, heavy loading at a fixed door.
What do the rules in England mean for the work?
Lift tables and dock lifts in Sevenoaks 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 scissor lift tables in Sevenoaks
Will you deal with building control and planning for a project in Sevenoaks?
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.
Can you work alongside our main contractor on a new build in Sevenoaks?
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.
How long does installation take at a site in Sevenoaks?
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.
Can people ride on a dock lift?
Some lift tables are designed to carry an operator with the load, and others are for goods only. If the lift carries people, LOLER thorough examinations are typically needed every 6 months rather than every 12, unless a written examination scheme sets a different interval. Your insurer or competent person will confirm.
What capacity of dock lift do I need?
A dock lift needs a capacity above the heaviest combined load it will carry, including the goods, the pallet truck and an operator if they ride on it. Loading bay lifts are typically rated somewhere between 2,000 and 6,000 kg. We work out the right rating from your loads at survey.
Scissor lift tables near Sevenoaks
Sites close to Sevenoaks get the same service, including those in Tonbridge (6 miles), Royal Tunbridge Wells (10 miles) and Caterham (12 miles), with every job run the same way.
Other loading bay services in Sevenoaks
Full guide to scissor lift tables · Everything we do in Sevenoaks
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