A cargo lashing belt is designed to bear heavy loads and transfer them safely. It is used to fasten the cargo during the process of transportation, in a way that minimizes its movement in a transport unit, be it ships, flat racks, containers, or rail cars. With continuation innovation by cargo lashing manufacturers in India, lashing is one of the most effective ways to keep a cargo from shifting, given the continuous motion of the ship combined with the volatility of the weather.
Used as an umbrella term to represent all the on-board practices for securing, lashing includes wires, ropes, bottle screws, webbings, bandings, strappings, or chains, apart from the other tensioning devices mostly seen on container ships. With the help of tensioned chains, tie-down straps, or heavy-duty strapping, tie-downs are used to secure heavy loads to vehicles. Among the most common types of cargo lashing are chain lashing, web lashing and fixed winches.
- Chain Lashing – A more formidable substitute for ratchet lashing belts, lashing chains are made using alloy steel. Cargo lashing chains, which consist of several components including a steel chain, are used during the direct or diagonal lashing of heavy loads. With hooks at one or both ends, or with a hook on one end and an elephant foot on the other, lashing chains come in several different types.
- Web Lashing – Made of high-strength polyester yarn, hooks and steel ratchets, web lashings are a strong, flexible and durable option with high standard tensioning force, that are suitable for trailers, pickups and roof-racks.
- Fixed Winches – As part of a mechanical device, a winch is used to shift heavy objects/items by either pulling in, letting out, or just adjusting the tension of a rope, wire rope or cable. A simple winch usually constitutes a drum or a spool fixed to a hand crank, to wind in and store the line. It is common for boats and ships to make use of multiple winches to handle halyards, sheets, along with anchor or mooring lines.