Which Dock Fender Best Suits Your Facility?

Protecting the outside of your facility is as important as the safety within. When there is high vehicle traffic that must run efficiently, ensuring that the outside of your building is protected is vital. Installing the correct property protection helps maintain the safety of the structure of the building as well as incoming vehicles that may not be familiar with your dock/loading layout.

There are 2 different types of rubber guards that are commonly used in warehouse and delivery/loading dock situations. These are Extruded Rubber Dock Fender and D Type Moulded Rubber Dock Bumper. Although it’s thought that these 2 dock/wall bumpers look the same, they have different purposes and often mistaken and installed for the incorrect use.

Extruded Rubber Dock Fender

This dock fender is suitable for docks where the truck will commonly/frequently bump into the dock. The Extruded Rubber Dock Fender is designed to withstand frequent hits and bumps by incoming vehicles that are reversing and pulling up to a facilities dock. They are generally used in busy freight depots and large logistic warehouses where frequent and high traffic is expected. The dock fender is manufactured from tough and durable EDPM rubber that can withstand harsh environments, with a wall thickness of 19.5mm.

D Type Moulded Rubber Dock Bumper

This style of dock bumper has been manufactured from a non-flexible moulded rubber. It has been designed to protect your building/facility from occasional and accidental hits and bumps from vehicles. They are generally used in retail loading docks, and smaller/low traffic loading docks. It is important to note that the D Type Moulded Rubber Dock Bumper will protect your building, however, they may need replacing when they have been hit or bumped. If there was no bumper at all and a vehicle was to hit straight into the building and crack the concrete, the cost of repairs would be quite high. This damage could also create a risk of damaging the structural integrity of the dock area. The cost associated with replacing the bumper when hit is only a fraction of the cost of structural damage to your building.

When considering the protection of your loading dock and warehouse facilities, it is important to understand what type activities and incidents occur that your building needs protection from. Choosing the incorrect fender/bumper could become costly if it isn’t correctly protecting your building and incoming vehicles.