Rates are crashing and fuel to the moon!

Cargo Securement would be one of them.
Jumping on the bandwagon of the elitarian segment / or aspiring to is inevitable, therefore it is better to accept it and come to terms with it. Providing threads or YouTube instructional videos would be a way to respond to the situation. Maybe they exist already, I don't know, I am personally not vested nor interested but the main point is that a more thought-out transition would be a better solution for public safety.

 

You already have a cargo securement manual. It's sections 393.100 through 393.136 of the DOT regulations. If you need a more condensed version, you can pick up the J.J. Keller book, Cargo Securement Handbook for Drivers, which by the way, also instructs Van drivers as well, but they might not think they need it.

 

That's a great place to start but there's so many other things to consider too that you really only gain knowledge of when being trained or learning the hard way.

Little things like how to handle dunnage on a long straight piece of pipe with a trailer that has a high arch. Handle that wrong and that dunnage is flying off and your cargo is no longer secure because all your straps are now several inches too loose.

 

It’s almost as if you need to be a forward thinking problem solver to be in the open deck segment.

 

And have proper shoes and ppe when showing up to a jobsite... although some van and reefer drivers like to wear that dang safety vest like they won it as a prize

 

I had to use 15 straps on my van load today. Can I pull flatbed now?

 

It is not such a bad idea to have different equipment types and use them accordingly. When the dry van freight is dry and the flatbed rates are decent then having the capability of switching to flatbed should be a good thing. There is a cargo securement aspect but for beginners, perhaps it is better to take simple loads at first.
This only shows that here we deal with connected vessel phenomena - despite the different shapes of the vessels, the fluid will find the same level eventually.

 

Depending on where you live and what you want to do it’s common for guys to have multiple trailers, or “access” to different trailer types depending on the season. In the Midwest it’s common for guys to haul cattle when it’s busy, then switch to liquid fertilizer, maybe pull a flatbed here and there. Growing up my dad and grandpa had cattle trailers, grain trailers, a flatbed, a belly dump, plus grandpa pulled a gas tank for a company he would trip lease to.

 

Only if those straps had a minimum WLL of 5400lb each.

 

Absolutely. Lots of improvising and getting creative.