The hookloader is a fairly specialist truck that is often used to load waste containers. They are sometimes found on car transporters and can be used to pull on different types of truck bodies. They are most often found in the demolition, recycling, scrap, and waste industries, where they are normally used with tilt frame bodies. The hookloader uses a number of hydraulic rams to hook onto the chosen container and then hoist it onto its own chassis.
The lift capacities of the hookloader are normally between 3.5 and 30 tonnes. These limits are most often the same for both lifting and lowering onto the ground, but this can change when the hookloader is of a short wheelbase configuration. The load capacity is also a function of the ratio between the length of the chassis and the length of the container being hoisted. This will decide the angle of loading operations.
The hookloader manufacturer will typically recommend a difference in container and body lengths of around 1 to 1.5 meters. If the container body is much shorter than these recommendations, then the load angle becomes steeper and the maximum allowable weight is reduced. The height of the hookloader chassis is also important in this regard.
