Hauling Steel Around Chicago & Gary: A Flatbed Securement Guide

If you run flatbed freight around Chicago, Northwest Indiana, or the broader Great Lakes region, chances are steel is going to show up on your trailer sooner or later.

Gary, Indiana remains a major steel-producing and flatbed freight market, with facilities such as Gary Works generating significant outbound freight for the region. Between Chicago, Gary, Joliet, South Chicago, and the industrial areas running through Northwest Indiana, steel coils, plate, beams, fabricated steel, and machinery are part of everyday flatbed trucking.

But steel is not the type of load where you throw a couple straps over the top, slap the trailer and say, "That isn't going anywhere."

Steel is heavy, hard, often sharp, and unforgiving when it moves.

Here are some of the biggest things flatbed drivers should keep in mind when hauling steel around Chicago and Gary.

1. Start With the Load, Not the Securement Gear

Before pulling out chains and binders, understand exactly what you're hauling.

Steel freight can include:

• Steel coils

• Sheet and plate steel

• Structural beams

• Pipe

• Fabricated steel

• Machinery and equipment

• Bundled steel products

Each presents a different securement challenge.

A 40,000-pound coil requires a completely different setup than several bundles of structural steel. The shape of the cargo, weight distribution, sharp edges, ability to roll, and placement on the trailer all affect how the load should be secured.

FMCSA cargo securement regulations require cargo to be firmly immobilized or secured using appropriate vehicle structures, dunnage, blocking, bracing, tiedowns, or a combination of these methods.

That means securement starts while the trailer is being loaded, not once everything is already sitting on the deck.

2. Understand Working Load Limit

One of the most important numbers on any piece of cargo control equipment is its Working Load Limit, or WLL.

Breaking strength and working load limit are not the same thing.

The number that matters when calculating your securement system is the WLL.

Under FMCSA's general cargo securement rules, the aggregate working load limit of the securement system must generally equal at least 50% of the weight of the cargo being secured.

So if you're securing a 20,000-pound piece of cargo, your securement system must provide the required aggregate WLL based on the way each tiedown is attached.

There is an important point here:

The weakest component matters.

A heavy-duty chain does not magically increase the rating of a lower-rated binder, hook, anchor point, or another component in the system.

Know the ratings of your equipment and make sure the components you're using are suitable for the load.

For example, the TarpHaus 3/8" x 20' Grade 70 transport chain has a Working Load Limit of 6,600 lbs and is designed specifically for transportation securement applications.

3. Steel Coils Have Their Own Securement Rules

Steel coils deserve special attention.

FMCSA has commodity-specific requirements for transporting metal coils when one or more coils, individually or grouped together, weigh 5,000 pounds or more.

These rules fall under 49 CFR §393.120.

The proper securement method depends heavily on the orientation of the coil.

Coils may be transported:

• Eye vertical

• Eye crosswise

• Eye lengthwise

FMCSA specifies different securement arrangements depending on how the coil is positioned.

For coils that can roll, proper blocking, chocks, wedges, cradles, or other approved methods may also be necessary to prevent movement.

Drivers hauling coils regularly should be familiar with §393.120 rather than relying on something they saw another driver do at the mill.

"The guy next to me does it this way" has never been a particularly impressive defense during an inspection.

4. Chains and Binders Are Standard Equipment for a Reason

For heavy steel and machinery loads, Grade 70 transport chain is commonly used because it provides high working load limits while allowing the driver to secure heavy cargo directly to the trailer.

Chains are typically paired with load binders to tension the securement system.

Before every load, check your equipment.

Look for:

• Bent or stretched chain links

• Excessive wear

• Damaged hooks

• Cracks

• Bent binder handles

• Damaged ratchet mechanisms

• Significant corrosion

• Missing or damaged components

FMCSA requires cargo securement devices and systems to be in proper working order, without damaged or weakened components that could negatively affect their performance.

If a chain looks like it spent the last ten years at the bottom of Lake Michigan, it might be time to retire it.

A good steel-hauling setup should include chains and binders with clearly understood working load limits and sizes appropriate for the loads you regularly haul.

5. Protect Chains and Straps From Sharp Steel Edges

Steel and sharp edges are obviously not a great combination with webbing.

FMCSA requires edge protection whenever a tiedown could be subject to cutting or abrasion where it contacts the cargo. The edge protection itself must be capable of resisting abrasion, cutting, and crushing.

Even when you're using chains, corner protection can help protect both the load and your securement equipment.

For steel, machinery, and coil applications, heavy-duty steel corner protectors are useful because they help distribute pressure while reducing direct contact between the securement device and the cargo edge.

TarpHaus carries 12-gauge galvanized steel corner protectors designed specifically for hauling steel, machinery, and coils.

A small corner protector costs a whole lot less than damaged cargo, destroyed securement equipment, or explaining to somebody why your load moved.

6. Blocking and Dunnage Matter Just as Much as Chains

Chains keep cargo secured.

Dunnage and blocking help keep it where it was supposed to be in the first place.

Good dunnage helps:

• Support the load

• Distribute weight

• Create space for loading and unloading

• Prevent direct steel-to-deck contact

• Reduce movement

• Allow securement to work correctly

Cargo that can roll requires particular attention.

FMCSA regulations state that articles likely to roll must be restrained using chocks, wedges, cradles, or an equivalent method. The device used to prevent rolling cannot be capable of becoming unintentionally loose during transit.

With steel coils, proper coil bunks, lumber, blocking, friction material, and securement all work together.

Don't think of the chain as the entire securement system.

Think of the trailer, cargo placement, dunnage, blocking, chains, binders, edge protection, and anchor points as one system.

7. Watch Your Weight Distribution

Forty thousand pounds of steel sitting on your trailer does not leave much room for guessing.

Where the shipper places the load affects:

• Tractor axle weight

• Trailer axle weight

• Gross vehicle weight

• Trailer handling

• Securement geometry

Pay attention while the load is being positioned.

If something doesn't look right, deal with it before leaving the facility.

Moving a steel coil six inches at the mill is easier than trying to fix an axle-weight problem after you've already left Gary and found yourself looking for somewhere to turn a loaded 70-foot combination around.

8. Tarps Need Protection Too

Steel loads and tarps have a complicated relationship.

The customer wants clean, dry steel.

The steel wants to destroy your tarp.

Sharp corners, rough edges, protrusions, and concentrated pressure can quickly wear through vinyl if the tarp is placed directly against the load.

Before tarping steel, look for potential abrasion points and cover sharp areas with appropriate padding or protection.

Moving blankets, padding, corner protectors, and other protective materials can create a barrier between the steel and your tarp.

That little bit of preparation can extend the life of an expensive lumber or steel tarp considerably.

And considering how much fun wrestling a heavy tarp around a steel load in January wind near Chicago already is, buying replacements more often than necessary probably isn't high on anyone's bucket list.

9. Recheck the Load After You Start Moving

Your securement inspection is not finished when you pull out of the shipper.

Under federal regulations, drivers generally must inspect their cargo and securement devices within the first 50 miles after beginning a trip.

After that, cargo and securement must be reexamined when:

• The driver changes duty status

• The vehicle has been driven for three hours

• The vehicle has been driven for 150 miles

whichever occurs first. Certain exceptions apply, such as some sealed or impracticable-to-inspect loads.

This matters with heavy steel.

Cargo can settle. Chains can require adjustment. Dunnage can move. The securement system may behave differently once the trailer has experienced braking, acceleration, vibration, and Chicago-area roads doing what Chicago-area roads do best.

Take the recheck seriously.

10. Carry More Securement Gear Than the Minimum

Experienced flatbed drivers rarely want to arrive at a shipper with exactly enough equipment for the load they expected.

Loads change.

Weights change.

Shippers change the configuration.

A broker description might say one thing and the freight sitting in front of you might say something completely different.

A properly equipped steel-hauling flatbed should typically have a good selection of:

• Grade 70 transport chains

• Ratchet or lever binders

• Winch straps

• Ratchet straps

• Steel corner protectors

• Webbing edge protectors

• Dunnage

• Coil-related blocking equipment when required

• Tarps

• Tarp padding or moving blankets

• Replacement securement equipment

Having extra equipment gives you options when the load does not arrive exactly as expected.

Hauling Steel Around Chicago and Gary

Steel freight has been part of the Chicago and Northwest Indiana trucking economy for generations, and the region continues to be an important flatbed market. Gary in particular remains closely connected to steel production and outbound flatbed freight.

For flatbed drivers, steel can be good freight, but it demands the right equipment and a solid understanding of cargo securement.

Know your load.

Know your Working Load Limits.

Use the right chains, binders, blocking, and edge protection.

Protect your tarps.

And check everything again once the truck starts moving.

At TarpHaus, we work with flatbed drivers and fleets across Chicago and throughout the United States, supplying the everyday cargo control equipment used for steel, machinery, lumber, and general flatbed freight.

From Grade 70 transport chains and load binders to corner protectors, tarps, straps, and cargo control accessories, we stock equipment built for working trucks.

Need to upgrade your flatbed setup? Check out our cargo control equipment online at TarpHaus.com or stop by our Chicago-area facility.

This article is intended as general information and is not a substitute for current FMCSA regulations, applicable state requirements, carrier procedures, shipper requirements, or proper cargo-securement training. Drivers and motor carriers are responsible for ensuring each individual load is secured in accordance with applicable requirements.