Trailer, Multiaxle

Trailer, Multiaxle 

a motorless wheeled vehicle designed for the transportation of heavy loads that cannot be divided up. A multiaxle trailer has a low step frame, three to six axles, and six to eight wheels on each axle; the large number of axles and wheels reduces the load per wheel on the roadway. For stowing the load, a platform without sideboards is mounted on the frame of a multiaxle trailer; the platform has a metal floor, lateral beams, and hinged ramps to facilitate loading and unloading. Some trailers have loading and unloading mechanisms, for example, winches driven by the engine of the tractor truck. The freight-carrying capacity of a multiaxle trailer ranges from 20 to 60 tons; trailers with a freight-carrying capacity of 100 tons or more are built for the transportation of certain loads, for example, parts of high-power electric generators and turbines.