A ballast tractor is a specially weighted tractor unit of a heavy hauler combination. It is designed to utilize a drawbar to pull or push heavy or exceptionally large trailer loads which are loaded in a hydraulic modular trailer. When feasible, lowboy-style semi-trailers are used to minimize a load's center of gravity. Typical drivetrains are 6×4 and

6×6 Six-wheel drive (6WD or 6×6) is an all-wheel drive drivetrain configuration of three axles with at least two wheels on each axle capable of being driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. Unlike four-wheel drive drivetrains, the configurat ...

but also available in 8×6 and 8×8. Typical ballast tractor loads include oil rig modules, bridge sections, buildings, ship sections, and industrial machinery such as generators and turbines. Only a handful of manufacturers produce dedicated ballast tractors. Extra-heavy-duty chassis versions of mass-production tractor units are fitted with drawbar hitches and a separate ballast box as an alternative. These units are classified as N3 Category of Large goods vehicle. Ballast tractors can be traced back to the 1940s when heavy haulers from the UK started employing purpose-built Scammell Showtracs a short wheelbase 4x2 ballast tractor. Increasingly, remote-controlled, self-propelled modular transporters (SPMT) are being employed in traditional ballast tractor/trailer roles.

Description

Rawcliffe Ballast Tractor & Trannsformer

The ballast tractor's name derives from the nautical term “ sailing ballast” describing heavy material added to a vessel to improve stability. For a ballast tractor, ballast is added over the driving wheels to maximize traction. The additional weight increases the friction between the tyres and the road surface, allowing the tractor to overcome the

inertia Inertia is the idea that an object will continue its current motion until some force causes its speed or direction to change. The term is properly understood as shorthand for "the principle of inertia" as described by Newton in his first law o ...

and friction of moving a heavy trailed load. Without it, there would be unproductive wheelspin. With a semi-trailer, ballast is added in the form of the weight of the attached trailer pressing down upon the tractor's fifth wheel. Since the load is separate from a ballast tractor, it provides no ballast: the drawbar only transmits a horizontal force. High inertia is encountered when starting to move a heavy load. To overcome this, ballast tractors tend to have high-powered, low geared engines that provide substantial

torque In physics and mechanics, torque is the rotational equivalent of linear force. It is also referred to as the moment of force (also abbreviated to moment). It represents the capability of a force to produce change in the rotational motion of t ...

, especially at low speeds. Additionally, ballast tractors are often fitted with heavy-duty hub reduction

axle An axle or axletree is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to the vehicle, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, beari ...

s, a combination resulting in exceptionally low maximum speeds. A strong

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpa ...

is required to both support the extra ballast weight and pulling forces transmitted by the drawbar. A reinforced chassis also allows multiple tractors to be coupled together to maximize power and traction. Heavy-duty versions of commercial tractor units may be fitted with a ballast box and suitable drawgear, or a ballast tractor may be purpose-built. Ballast is placed above the driving axle, or spread out over multiple driving axles to maximize traction on each and evenly distribute its load. Conversion from a regular tractor to a ballast tractor may require some modifications like chassis alteration, extra axle, larger tires, ballast box, and a heavy-duty gearbox so that it can handle the extra weight. The heavy-duty tractors which are usually converted into ballast tractors have 6x4, 8x6 axle configuration, hub reduction, better suspension and a powerful engine ranging from 300 to 1000hp. A purpose built ballast tractor tends to be the heaviest class of on-road trucks. In some cases, its kerb weight can be greater than their axle configuration's legal Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) permits, requiring special permission to use public roads. Some nations have categorized these tractors in a different category than conventional tractors because of higher GVW permits and HMT configuration. In 2015 Scania R580 was registered as first ballast tractor with GVW of 200 tons when coupled with suitable hydraulic modular trailer configuration in India by

Automotive Research Association of India Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) is co-operative industrial research association by the automotive industry with the Ministry of Industries, Government Of India The objectives of the Association are Research and Development in auto ...

certification. Automotive Research Association has categorized ballast tractors as puller in India. Typical ballast tractor configurations employ an independent drawbar trailer, hydraulic modular trailer, or dolly trailer. An advantage of using ballast tractors is the ability to push-steer a trailer around a corner. A girder trailer, for example, is double-articulated, so the front tractor can pull the load around a corner while the rear tractor pushes it through, thereby making the load more maneuverable than a simple towing configuration. Use of a following tractor also can increase control and brake force descending an incline.

Equipment

Ballast box

The ballast box is a metal box installed on the rear chassis of the tractor instead of the fifth wheel coupling. Earlier heavy haulers unmounted the fifth wheel and used merely a piece or two of heavy

rocks In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's ...

, stones or concrete blocks which weighted enough to avoid wheel spin, later builders and heavy haulers developed metal boxes of different designs to match the tractor layout. These boxes were filled with

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most ...

or steel to increase the weight of the tractor. The problem with ballast tractors was the weight of ballast itself weighted over 10, 20 or even 40 tons in some scenario. Other designs also included sleeping cabins in the ballast for the drivers and the crew for longer journeys and harsh weather conditions, this made the height of the tractors increase significantly these units are still used today in the gulf area due to extreme heat. Some units have factory fitted ballast box with appropriate weight to meet with the regional guidelines, these tractors units do not have fifth wheel and drive out from the factory with a ballast box. Heavy haul operators convert heavy-duty tractors to ballast tractors with an aftermarket ballast box built by a builder or by themselves. New age power boosters which are external engine an accessory of hydraulic modular trailer can also be mounted on the tractor chassis to act as a ballast, saving a lot of space on the trailer itself for the loads and most important avoid application of extra tractors.

Mammoet Mammoet (, Dutch for Mammoth) is a privately held Dutch company specializing in engineered heavy lifting and transport of oversized and heavy objects. History Mammoet’s history started on 13 May 1807 in the Netherlands, when Dutch entr ...

and Scheuerle (Member of the TII Group) have proved this configuration in 2019 on a difficult terrain in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. Almost all HMT manufacturers have their own variant of power booster.

Drawbar coupling

Drawbar coupling is a special tow hitch mounted on the front end or rear end of the tractor, sometimes both, it connects the HMT to the ballast tractor. Earlier coupling consisted of in house made metal hitch which had loops to lock drawbar eyes with a pin. Later fifth wheel manufacturers like Jost Rockinger and Ringfeder developed heavy-duty drawbar couplings with a 50 mm loop, drawbars and drawbar eyes which were built with higher quality and standards this increase the safety significantly. These couplings can be mounted on both ends of the tractor for push or pull applications. Some manufacturers also provide tractors with drawbar coupling fitted from the factory.

Manufacturers

Only a handful of manufacturers produce dedicated ballast tractors. Most high-volume manufacturers offer heavy-duty chassis versions of certain tractor units, which enable a ballast box to be fitted. In Europe, manufacturers tend to send some of their products to another company (owned by the parent) to be converted into a special heavy-duty version. ;Belarus * Volat ;Belgium * MOL ;Canada *

Hayes Hayes may refer to: * Hayes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th president of the United States * Hayes (given name) Businesses * Hayes Brake, an American designer and manufacturer of disc brakes * Ha ...

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

;Czech Republic * Tatra ;France * Nicolas Tractomas 8×8 and 10×10 ultra-heavy-duty tractors * PRP * Willème ;Germany * Tadano Faun GmbH * MAN / ÖAF *

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquarter ...

(Titan) ;India * Volvo Trucks India * Scania India ;Italy * Astra-SIVI (Iveco) ;Netherlands *

DAF Daf ( fa, دف) also known as Dâyere and Riq is a Middle Eastern (mainly Iranian) frame drum musical instrument, used in popular and classical music in South and Central Asia. It is also used in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Iran, Uzbe ...

(GINAF) ;Russia (formerly Soviet Union) * MAZ *

NAMI Nami ( ar, نامي, ja, 波 ('wave'), ('regular'), etc.) may refer to: Given name * Nami (, , , , ), Japanese feminine given name * Nami Akimoto (born 1968), Japanese manga artist * , Japanese film director, screenwriter and editor *, Japane ...

;Spain *

TBO Trabosa TBO may refer to: * TBO (comics), a long-running Spanish comic book magazine * IATA airport code for Tabora Airport * Time between overhaul, a measure of an aircraft engine's overall economics * Total benefits of ownership * Operation Assistance Fo ...

* TMU ;Switzerland * NAW ;UK * AEC * Atkinson Vehicles * ERF * Foden Trucks * Rotinoff Motors – 35 heavy haulage tractors were built by the company between 1952 and 1959, of which 11 are known to survive. * Scammell – Many early examples, now used and seen as showman's vehicles, originally served with the army. *

Thornycroft Thornycroft was an English vehicle manufacturer which built coaches, buses, and trucks from 1896 until 1977. History In 1896, naval engineer John Isaac Thornycroft formed the Thornycroft Steam Carriage and Van Company which built its fir ...

-such as Thornycroft Antar * Unipower ;USA * Diamond T - Ex-army Diamond T M20 tank transports were popular post World War II with heavy hauliers in the UK. * Kenworth * Mack *

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

* Oshkosh Corporation * RPM Tech

Operators

Most heavy haulage and heavy lift engineering firms employ heavy duty tractor-unit models that can accommodate a ballast box. Countries where modernization is taking place, such as regions of the Middle East and South Africa and Asia, operate larger number of ballast tractors due to the greater frequency of heavy loads (such as power station components) and infrastructure projects. Apart from being used by fairgrounds as a direct replacement for the steam-powered showman's engine, specialist moving and haulage companies use ballast tractors. These include: *

Alstom Alstom SA is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer operating worldwide in rail transport markets, active in the fields of passenger transportation, signalling, and locomotives, with products including the AGV, TGV, Eurostar, Av ...

* Pickfords *

Sarens Sarens is a Belgian multinational company headquartered in Wolvertem, Belgium. Its business includes, heavy lift, engineered transport, and crane rental services. It produces a variety of equipment including cranes, transportation, gantries, jack ...

Gallery

File:0133 2019-03 Goldhofer FTV 300.jpg, Mercedes-Benz Actros Ballast Tractor pulling Goldhofer hydraulic modular trailer with FTV 300 blade lifer carrying a

Windmill A windmill is a structure that converts wind power into rotational energy using vanes called sails or blades, specifically to mill grain (gristmills), but the term is also extended to windpumps, wind turbines, and other applications, in so ...

blade. File:0145 2019-03 Goldhofer »FAKTOR« 5.jpg, Ballast Tractor Pushing Goldhofer hydraulic modular trailer with Faktor 5 girder bridge. File:Pickfords.jpg, Scammell Contractor ballast tractor pulling specialist trailer at a fair File:Atkinson Ballast Tractor - fairground livery lookalike.jpg, Atkinson ballast tractor File:Scammell Ballast Tractor - fairground livery.jpg, Scammell ballast tractor. Note the front drawbar coupling for pushing heavy loads File:RotinofF5-2947.jpg, Three of the 11 surviving Rotinoff Atlantic ballast tractors File:Scheuerle Fahrzeugfabrik Schwerlastmodul InterCombi.jpg, Two MAN ballast tractors pulling load on TII hydraulic modular trailer. File:Rotran Set Nicolas Tractomas.jpg, TII Nicolas Tractomas ballast tractor. File:Abnormal Vehicle. Rotran Set headed by a Nicolas Tractomas Truck, 2 International Pacifics (Ex SAR) with a Girder Beam on two Multi Axle Nicolas Trailers (21442866448).jpg, TII Nicolas Tractomas ballast tractors pulling hydraulic modular trailer with girder bridge. File:Oversize transport towards BASF.jpg, MAN ballat tractor pushing hydraulic modular trailer with bolster configuration. File:Abnormal Load 360 Tons. Ale Near Hendrina. (12035617625).jpg, ALE Faun custom ballast tractor. File:ALE Abnormal load in Kincardine (4514127619).jpg, ALE Trojan ballast tractor pushing hydraulic modular trailer with girder bridge configuration. File:MAN 41-603 tractor unit, Abnormal Load Engineering, London E5. 22 March 2009.jpg, ALE MAN ballast tractor with drawbar connected to a hydraulic modular trailer. File:Overweight load transport.JPEG, MAN ballast tractor pulling hydraulic modular trailer.

References

External links

Extremely large collection of heavy haulage photos
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballast Tractor Trucks Heavy haulage