For Ben E. Keith (BEK) Beverage, the largest privately owned Budweiser distributor, safety is a constant concern. The Dallas distributor sees inbound and outbound traffic from 6:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., when nearly 60 truckloads of beer and other beverages arrive at their docks. Crews load trucks late into the night for shipments to stores throughout Texas the next day.

Having trucks positioned securely for all this traffic is crucial to safety. BEK Beverage once relied on rubber wheel chocks placed in front of the wheels to keep the trucks stable.

“That didn’t work well enough,” says facilities manager Johnny Jones. “We had a truck that crept away from the dock as the brakes leaked. We’ve worked hard to reduce that risk and prevent that from happening again.”

BEK Beverage equipped 14 remodeled dock positions with 45,000-pound capacity hydraulic dock levelers, in-ground wheel restraints, and dock seals.

BEK management had seen the restraints at a nearby facility and liked how the flush, in-ground mounting didn’t interfere with driveway traffic. Also, restraints can handle any truck that pulls up to their dock.

The hydraulically operated restraints have a 16-inch high wheel chock that engages the rear tire of the trailer and provides continuous restraining force. By capturing the rear tire, the restraint is able to reduce the probability of landing gear collapse, trailer creep or trailer walk. Once activated, the system seeks the tire and automatically adjusts the amount of power applied to the wheel, while a LED light system communicates to the dock attendant and truck driver. The LED lights also ensure a clear view of the dock status regardless of the weather.

The control provides added safety by sequencing dock equipment and operation. It also consolidates individual control boxes, reducing the number of conduits and lowering installation and maintenance costs.

Serco Company 800-933-4834