by Ned Stoller Ned Stoller

Almost every hands-on job requires the use of a trailer to haul supplies, materials, equipment or commodities at some point or another.  Carpenters haul lumber and demolition waste, farmers haul feed, veterinarians haul livestock equipment, welder/fabrication shops pick up and deliver products, mechanics trailer cars, grounds keepers haul bark mulch, homeowners carry yard waste or compost, and the possibilities go on.

The challenge is that workers with arm, shoulder, back or leg impairments have difficulty hitching and unhitching trailers from vehicles.  Workers with torn rotator cuff injuries can not crank a manual jack, workers with back impairments can not lift or “man-handle” smaller trailers onto the ball hitch, workers with leg impairments such as paralysis, stroke or amputation can not easily walk from the driver seat to the ball hitch.  Thankfully, there are many tools available to help workers with disabilities to hitch trailers.

An electrical 12V trailer jack stand enables a worker with arm or back impairment to effortlessly raise and lower his trailer. When hitching or unhitching a standard trailer, the worker must either lift the trailer hitch off the ball, or manually crank a handle. The 12V implement jack can raise or lower a trailer in 30 seconds, up to 18 inch stroke and 3500 pounds. Great for farmers, construction workers, groundskeepers, and anyone who needs to hitch a trailer.

A worker with difficulty climbing can hitch a trailer to his truck on the first try. As the truck backs into the trailer, the ball hitch guide pushes the trailer sideways so it is directly above the ball when the truck stops. The worker then lowers the trailer onto the ball and is hitched. Without a guide, he may need to climb out of his truck three or four times before the trailer is properly aligned with the ball.

The Flexpoint Tractor Ball Hitch System will allow the worker to hitch and unhitch the trailers without ever leaving the driver seat, thus making it possible for them to complete the necessary task. Functional limitation served: Leg and mobility impairments. Never leave the driver seat to move trailers around the farm, landscape or construction site, yard, marina or truck yard by using a tractor 3-point hitch.

Moving trailers around a worksite requires backing a truck accurately to the trailer ball hitch. Then the worker must climb out of the driver seat and walk to the back of the truck to check if the ball hitch is properly aligned. If it is not, it is back to the driver seat to adjust. When hitching and unhitching numerous times per day as may be necessary on a construction worksite, farm, landscaping job, boat marina, etc… a person with leg or mobility impairment would have a very difficult and tiring job climbing in and out of the driver seat.