AIRman Unveils Automated System for Trailer Landing Gear
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ATLANTA — AIRman Products has unveiled an automated cranking system that eliminates the manual labor required to raise and lower a trailer’s landing gear.
By activating a switch, drivers can use this product to deploy and retract landing gear more quickly and without the exertion and risk of injury associated with doing that work manually.
“What we’re bringing to the fleets is a faster solution that requires significantly less effort out of the driver,” said Jim Babbitt, vice president of sales.
AIRman introduced the patent-pending technology Feb. 25 at the American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council annual meeting. By moving to an automated system, fleets can boost driver productivity and satisfaction while preventing injuries and workers’ compensation claims, the company said.
Manually cranking to raise or lower landing gear can cause shoulder, lower back, neck and knee issues.
Those types of injuries can sideline drivers for months, and sometimes even end their careers, said Shane LaHousse, vice president of engineering.
The cranking system on the exhibit floor. (John Sommers II for Transport Topics)
“You do this tens of thousands of times over a lifetime of being a truck driver, and that’s going to cause problems,” he said. “Automation is the way to eliminate this problem.”
The electrically driven system weighs 15 pounds and can be installed by trailer makers or retrofitted in less than an hour.
The technology is compatible with all existing landing gear makes and models, the company said.
The product, which is expected to enter production in the third quarter, will come with a standard five-year warranty or a seven-year warranty available under a fleet agreement.
AIRman Products, based in Brighton, Mich., supplies pneumatic systems for the commercial transportation industry.
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