Glass and Window Transport Racks
The most common way that glass and window replacement companies transport glass units is with aluminum or steel racks that are specially designed to transport glass. These racks are usually built to carry thousands of pounds and have rubber in all areas that the glass may come in contact with. Racks come in all different arrangements and sizes depending on the type of work most common to a specific glazing contractor. Some companies specialize in shower doors so their racks will be used primarily for thick glass units that can be oversized. Some glass companies work with common residential jobs like small broken windows and patio doors. These companies may use some racks that are built into the bed of a truck for these types of jobs and use their larger trucks for commercial and custom glass installations. A good example is Valleywide Glass in Phoenix, they provide a lot of small service jobs around the valley and transport patio doors, IGU’s and Laminated and Tempered glass for quick replacements.
Glass Trucks and Vans
All types of common pickup trucks can be fit with glass and window carrier racks. The only thing that differs is size. The bigger a truck or van is the bigger the rack that can fit and in turn they will be able to transport more jobsite product than a smaller vehicle. If you do a search on google images for glass racks and vans you will get many ideas on how to set it up.
Special Glass Carriers
If you are the owner of a glass company, glass manufacturer or window installer then you may want to get racks straight from the top providers. There are a few big companies in the rack industry. Unrush is a revamped website for Unruh Fab who has been making tons of equipment for new racks as well as replacement parts for old ones. Myglasstruck.com has a wide variety of glass transport racks and trailers available.
Modified Glass Trailers
A lot of the companies that make racks also offer different kinds of trailers. A trailer is nice because you don’t have to pay as much insurance and only use it when needed. You can keep a small truck with an internal bed glass rack and then have a special glazing trailer when you need to load up a bunch of replacement IGUs or Patio Doors for a special big job.
When it comes to transporting glass make sure you follow the proper safety procedures. Here is a good article that tackles the safety issues of moving heavy glass sheets around safely whether you are in a glass plant environment or a window installation professional.