Equipment
Conestoga, Rolltite and curtainside trucking, no tarping
Fission Logistics runs 106 curtainside trailers out of Mississauga: 90 tandem Conestogas and 16 multi axle units. The cover slides open for the forklift or crane and closes over the load, so your freight rides dry and nobody climbs on the deck with a tarp.
What a Conestoga is
A Conestoga is a flatbed with a sliding cover on a frame. It loads like a flatbed and rides like a van. Rolltite is the brand of cover on our 53 ft tandems, and curtainside is the general name.
No one tarps, so no driver is up on a wet deck and your dock isn't held up while a tarp goes on. Coil, extrusions and palletized product arrive as dry as they left, and the receiver unloads from the side with a forklift.
The fleet
| Trailer | Count | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| 53 ft Conestoga, tandem | 90 | Steel coil, aluminum extrusions, building products, machinery and dies, in Canada and the US |
| 50 ft curtainside, multi axle | 16 | Heavy domestic loads a tandem can't legally carry. The 8 six axle units also run to Michigan, Ohio and Indiana |
| 53 ft open flatbed, tandem | 10 | Loads taller or wider than the Conestoga frame, and long steel the crane picks from the top |
| Step deck and double drop | 7 | Tall machinery and equipment. See step deck and double drop |
Every flatbed and Conestoga carries chains, straps, coil racks, timbers, edge protectors and dunnage.
Freight we run in Conestogas
- Steel coil is crane loaded through the open top and chained in racks, then the cover closes for the road.
- Aluminum extrusions ride clean under the cover, with no tarp rubbing the finish.
- Shingles and building products go on and come off by forklift from the side.
- Machinery and dies ride under the cover when they fit the frame and can't get wet.
- Lumber rides in a Conestoga when the customer wants it covered without a tarp.
When we send an open deck instead
The tandem Conestoga takes loads up to 102 inches high and 102 inches wide. When a load is bigger than that, dispatch sends an open flatbed, a step deck or a double drop, and tarps it if you want it covered. Our curtainside step decks take loads up to 120 inches high under the curtain.
For a step by step look at loading, read how a Conestoga works.
Questions shippers ask
What is the difference between a Conestoga and a Rolltite?
Nothing, for your freight. Conestoga is the trailer type, Rolltite is the brand of sliding cover on our tandems, and curtainside is the general name. All 3 mean the same trailer.
How is a Conestoga loaded?
The cover slides to one end. Forklifts load from either side, overhead cranes load from the top, and then the cover slides closed.
How much does a Conestoga carry?
Up to 45,000 lb on our 53 ft tandems at 80,000 lb gross, in Canada and the US. Our 50 ft multi axle curtainsides carry more: up to 86,000 lb on the 6 axle inside Ontario and into Michigan, and 76,000 lb into Ohio and Indiana.
What freight goes in a Conestoga?
Steel coil, aluminum extrusions, building products, shingles, machinery, dies and anything the shipper does not want tarped.
Related
Covered freight, no tarp
Send dispatch the dimensions and weight. If it fits a Conestoga, that's what we send. If it doesn't, we'll tell you and send the right deck.