Used Yard Spotter Kentucky - Tow tractors, sometimes call towing tractors or tow tugs, are vehicles used in transporting loads horizontally in warehouses, manufacturing plants, airports, arenas and other large facilities. Tow tractors are responsible for moving multiple trailers in a train. Some are designed specifically to tow large aircraft in order to position them into and out of airport terminals and hangers.
The tractive effort concept is how loads move from place to place. Tractive effort is the amount of traction a unit has on the ground. The heavier the load is, the more tractive effort is needed. The unit works by lifting a part of the load while it is towing; however, the load’s wheels stay on the ground. The hydraulic mast on the tow tractor is responsible for lifting the load. It produces downforce on the drive wheel underneath to increase the tractive effort. The tow tractor is capable of transporting very heavy and large loads thanks to the traction it provides.
Types of Tow Tractors
There are two basic types of tow tractors:
1. Load carriers; and
2. Heavy-duty tow tractors;
Load Carriers
Industries such as e-commerce, manufacturing, and airport baggage and parcel systems must regularly move many individual and varying sized items to or from a single location. Load carrier tow tractors or tow tugs are especially useful for these types of applications because they allow the single items to be gathered and stacked on the wheeled platforms, ready to be attached for tow and transport by the tow tractor.
Load carrier tow tractor models are categorized in the material handling equipment that covers cranes, forklifts and pallet jacks. Load carrier tow tugs transport loads at ground level only, rather than lifting or lowering off the ground or from shelving or other hard to reach areas. This means that the load has already been on wheels or placed on a wheeled platform before transport. Bogies, skates and trollies are other names for wheeled platforms. The tow tug is attached to the trolly similar to train cars being attached to a locomotive. Usually, the tow tug has a male-end steel coupling that couples to the female-end fixed to the front of the trolly. The back of the trolly has a male-end steel coupling that can then be used to attach multiple trollies onto a single tow tug, transporting all the trollies in a train-like formation.
Tow tractors are capable of moving many machines in a variety of conditions. Different trolly types are on the market to facilitate better transportation customization. Many trollies can be connected since they are compatible with one another. This means several different types of trollies can be used in a single train allowing greater flexibility for operations.
A key benefit of using a load carrier tow tractor is that operators can enjoy a clear view instead of relying on forklifts. Load carrier tow tractors transport trollies in a forward direction which decreases the safety concerns common with reverse forklift operations. These safety considerations are of special importance in busy areas such as manufacturing floors and airports.
Towing solutions are a good alternative to traditional forklifts to handle many single items. They are safe and easy to maneuver. One benefit of these tow tugs is that an operator usually does not require a license. No license is necessary since these units do not lift loads up from the ground like cranes, and forklifts that require licensing.
There are three kinds of load carrier tow tractor units to choose from; pedestrian, stand-in and rider-seated.
Pedestrian Tow Tractors
Pedestrian tow tractors go by many names including electric tow tractor, electric tug, or electric tugger. These units are walk-behind models that move wheeled loads. These machines are simple to use, extremely maneuverable and very compact.
Stand-in Tow Tractors
The most common design for businesses that rely on horizontal manufacturing transport and order picking are stand-in tow tractors. Stand-in tow tractors feature a tinier footprint compared to rider-seated editions and they offer a safe driver platform.
Rider-Seated Tow Tractors
Similar to stand-in tow tractors, rider-seated units have a seated operator platform. These types of load carrier tow tractors are popular where loads are transported over longer distances, such as airport baggage systems where checked baggage is transported from the check-in counter at the front of an airport to the aircraft at the terminal, often a great distance from one another. Rider fatigue is decreased with sit-down units for more efficiency and productivity.
Heavy Duty Tow Tractors
Aviation relies on the pushback concept for moving big passenger and cargo aircraft. Pushback refers to the process of pushing an aircraft back from an airport terminal by some means other than the aircraft’s own power. Pushback is achieved by employing pushback tugs or pushback tractors.
Pushback tractors are designed with a low profile design to enable them to move under the aircraft's nose in order to attach to the aircraft. Enough ground friction is required to move the weighted aircraft, so these models need to be heavy themselves. Large aircraft tractors can weigh as much as fifty-four tons. These models have a driver’s cab that has the option of being raised or lowered during reverse for better visibility.
While the vehicle is referred to as a pushback tug or pushback tow tractor, it is also used to tow aircraft in areas where taxiing the aircraft is not practical or safe, such as moving large aircraft in and out of maintenance hangars.
There are two subtypes of pushback tow tractors:
1. Conventional; and
2. Towbarless.
Conventional Pushback Tow Tractors
These units use a tow bar to attach the tug to the nose landing gear on the aircraft. Laterally attached to the nose landing gear, the tow tractor can make certain slight vertical height adjustments if needed. The tow bar that attaches to the tug can pivot vertically and laterally. In this manner, the tow bar acts as a large lever to rotate the nose landing gear. Each aircraft type has a unique tow fitting so the towbar also acts as an adapter between the standard-sized tow pin on the tug and the type-specific fitting on the aircraft's landing gear. Heavy-duty towbars required for sizeable aircraft ride on their own wheels when they are disconnected from the machine. The wheels are attached to a hydraulic jacking mechanism which can lift the towbar to the correct height to mate to both the airplane and the tug, and once this is accomplished the same mechanism is used in reverse to raise the tow bar wheels from the ground during the pushback process. The towbar is capable of being connected at the tractor’s rear or front, depending on if the machine needs to be pulled or pushed. Depending on whether the aircraft needs to be pushed or pulled, the towbar can be attached to the front or rear of the tractor.
Towbarless Pushback Tow Tractors
Towbarless tractors, as their name suggests, don’t rely on a towbar. Instead, these machines scoop up the nose landing gear to lift it off of the ground so the tug can move the plane. This design facilitates higher speeds greater aircraft control and can eliminate the necessity of having a worker inside of the cockpit to apply the brakes. Simplicity is the main advantage of the towbarless tugs since it is not necessary to maintain a variety of towbars. Greater control and responsiveness while moving the aircraft is achieved with this direct connection of the tug to the landing gear.
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