From Tillamook, Oregon, Hallco Industries has since expanded its manufacturing facilities in the US and Europe, with distribution facilities in Oregon, Ohio, North Carolina as well as Belgium, England, Brazil and Australia.
Hallco Industries has the capability to service the world with lightweight moving floor systems to large high strength systems from either of its production facilities.
“Our globally located distribution facilities give us the ability to be fully global and truly local with service and product specifications for every region,” said Luke Almond, CEO Global of Hallco Industries. “We are able to provide both high volume production capabilities and individual special project/boutique to service every customers’ specific needs. The technical knowledge of our team allows for service in the field, training dealers, as well as end-users on the proper care and maintenance of the systems. Also, dealers stock new trailers with Hallco systems, spare components and parts; they also have trained technicians to make any necessary repairs or upgrades.”
Meet Luke Almond – Hallco Industries CEO Global
Born and raised in New South Wales, Australia, Almond came from a trucking family background where he worked in the family business from sweeping the floor as a kid to labouring during school and university holidays. He would go on to managing the company trucking fleet before joining the Hallco team.
“So, I was an end user before getting into manufacturing,” he said. “I try to continually feel and understand what the customer wants and needs and bring that through our production process and service needs. Downtime is a word we try and never have our customers say.”
Almond has also spent the last 12 years living overseas working in various industries in Asia, Europe, South/Central America and the last seven years before Covid in the US.
“This has given me a broad global understanding of different business practices and cultures,” he said. “Accommodating to the truly diverse markets and the way business is conducted has been helped by living in such varied cultures all over the world.”
A look at the NEXUS and other state-of-the-art drive units
To best support the market segments that Hallco Industries is in, the moving floor specialist has developed the NEXUS drive unit in Europe. Mindful of providing equipment that is user friendly, the manufacturer also provides its Hallco HMI interface.
NEXUS is fully metric in all aspects as opposed to some of Hallco’s US-focused products where imperial is necessary.
NEXUS is a three-cylinder drive with a 40,000kg capacity. it is the lightest drive unit available for its intended market operation, meaning Hallco can give back net weight to the trailer manufacturer and payload for the end user.
This drive, according to Almond, is very efficient.
“By managing turbulence of the hydraulic oil in our system through our Hallco design HDS control valve and large direct ports within our hydraulic power unit we can manage temperature,” he said. “This means NEXUS runs cooler and lowers its residual temperature faster than other equivalent systems. Temperature management is very important for system reliability, uptime and operating life.”
The HDS control valve within NEXUS, which controls the floor switching, start/stop and load/unload operations is very modular in design and allows for easy adaptation to change the valves operating function from a manual, electric/manual [hybrid] or full electric depending on the trailer builder or end user’s specific needs.
“Actually it is a very simple four-bolt fixing that allows this fast conversion which helps for retro fitting as well,” Almond added.
For hybrid and electric control NEXUS has a Hallco designed HMI system that interfaces very easily with the HDS valve and provides a very instinctive user experience.
“The main base HMI function buttons are surface mounted on the enclosure, the function buttons are colour and symbol identified and illuminate when the function is operating,” said Almond. “Furthermore, our remote options (wired & wireless) fully integrate into the HMI to provide the same user experience. This is very important with our remote operation because full synchronisation with the main base HMI allows the operator to directly operate the system either from the remote or simultaneously with the main base HMI. It makes for a far safer and easier system operation. As you can see, user experience is important to Hallco.”
Meanwhile, the aluminium I-4MAX Beast drive has been built for weight savings, strength and corrosion resistance.
The new Brute drive features streamlined design and a powerful 40-tonne drive system, which pulls the drive out from under the trailer and puts it on the nose for easier maintainability.
Also, new electronic controls are expected to make the transition to electric vehicles in the future simpler especially with the inclusion of some automation capabilities.
More than just a moving floor system provider
Hallco Industries, according to Almond, doesn’t just make hydraulics and floor systems.
“We help customers problem solve, so whatever the challenge, we work with our customers closely to deliver a solution that fits for them,” he said. “This ranges from diverse product types for hauling to trailer specifications and stationary bin applications.”
Industry, in general, seeks change what with evolving technological, economic and environmental factors. The team at Hallco continue to innovate as a result.
“A prime example we have seen is the need for more leakproof applications as tighter restrictions and EPA laws increase,” said Almond. “Hallco has developed the new Brute leakproof drive with its streamlined design and powerful 40-tonne drive system which pulls the drive out from under the trailer and puts it on the nose for a leak proof pan to stop any spillage or dripping on the roads.”
The systems that Hallco Industries provide allow for increased volume over tipping/end dump trailers and are generally safer to unload at a farm or site that has uneven ground.
“Tippers need even level ground to tip safely, they also have to be careful with overhead objects which can come into contact with the tipping body when unloading, this is not an issue with moving floor trailers,” said Almond. “Moving floor trailer have further operational advantages as they can accommodate palletised return loads by running the floor in a ‘load function’ or if the floor has been adapted correctly at build, forklift trucks can drive directly into the trailer all of which increases trailer utilisation.”
Why Hallco stands out in the market
The team at Hallco Industries have the ability to manufacture across a full spectrum of moving floor needs.
“We offer systems from 3,500 kg for smaller needs to 40,000-plus kilograms for large heavy duty applications, basic manual configuration to fully electric and hybrid integration,” said Almond – adding that Hallco also provide both three-cylinder and true six-cylinder drive units for a balanced push-pull configuration. “We have traditional undermount hydraulics and our famous Brute front mount systems for leakproof operations.”
Hallco’s patented ACCELERATOR technology enables a floor system to switch from a three-step cycle to a two-step cycle at the push of a button and on the fly which allows the system to unload a number of loaded products 30 per cent faster.
Specific customer designs can also be manufactured from hydraulic pack and size, frame and housing components, floor style and material to suit any application.
“Our 1”x2” (25mm x 50mm) subdeck when welded into a trailer creates a stronger overall trailer to help prevent longitude twist in the chassis as the trailers moves around corners and in landfills,” said Almond. “The wide subdeck also improves overall impact protection by offering a wider surface area for our slats to lay on. Furthermore, the slats glide easily in a horizontal fashion without twisting and binding.”
Hallco drive units are also manufactured in a way to create the shortest path to travel for hydraulic oil.
“This means that the oil will stay cooler,” Almond said, “which results in not needing a larger oil reservoir saving much needed weight for payload.”
Accommodating international requirements
Hallco Industries’ products are used in all manner of industries, climates and cultures worldwide from Europe to North America to Asia down to Australia and Chile/Argentina.
“Our products and aftersales service are available across the world,” said Almond. “With manufacturing facilities in both the US and Europe. This is combined with distribution facilities strategically placed to cover all continents including Brazil, England, Australia servicing Australasia and Europe servicing Africa.”
Every continent, Almond said, has vast differences ranging from legal to cultural in terms of how its moving floor systems are used.
There is left- and right-hand drive; legal trailer widths, lengths and max load weights which often differ per country and state; preference for electronic versus manual control; variations in trailer design particularly due to the freight task; and the factor of distance for hauling loads.
“With these considerations in mind,” Almond said, “Hallco Industries must design and produce moving floor systems accordingly.”
