Has anyone experience of the supporting legs of a road tanker failing. 28,000liter road tanker, standing on reinforced concrete. Its the integrity of the legs that we query. Any ideas? If a Standard or Code of Practice for the parking of empty and full bulk road tankers, where would we access it? Cheers

Larry, Scottie has provided some helpful information for you. I would like if I may to add some more that you may wish to consider. The questions that you need to ask are: 1) was the SWL of the leg correct for the weight of the tanker - there are a number of different SWLs, 2) Was is a failure the leg mechanism itself or was it the support structure (frame), or the mounting bolts, 3) Observe the activity of coupling and assess if tankers are coupled at a cranked angle - this can increase the forces on the leg/frame and lead to failure, 4) Is the maintenance regime adequate, 5) Are tugs with hydraulic liftiing 5th wheels used and if so are tankers routinely 'dumped' onto their legs - causing stress that can lead to failure, 6) When you inspect the leg, does it look like its grounded at any time - then is this a one off, or do you observe drivers routinely driving with legs only partly raised. There may be other reasons but this should be a good starter for you. I hope this helps. Steve Clark, Chair IOSH Retail & Distribution Group

Never experienced it but we assessed that it was a likely event (per some other posts). Our practice was always to fit an 'A' Frame under the tanker any time it was not connected to the tractor unit - so we always had a second line of defence in place should the legs fail. I don't know if there was a standard or Code of Practice but this was our company practice.

Supports are relevant for road barrels - they are often dropped at load points to be tipped/back loaded whilst the tractor/shunter is carrying out other duties. I have seen a multi pot barrel tipped on its nose due to incorrect distribution of load and for all barrels, the support provides a safeguard against leg collapse. At my previous employment, a support was a requirement if the tractor was not hitched to the barrel during all filling/emptying operations. Haven';t seen legs fail, but have seen them in very poor condition - cracked, warped, bent etc. and reported back to Haulier. Saying this, your DGSA should have in place an inspection regime for incoming barrels.