Overseas Versus Local Manufacturing: Industrial and Manufacturing Blogs

Ute stands for utility, and, for the majority of Australians, this is the reason why they buy such a vehicle in the first place. There are many choices available in the marketplace, and each truck is configured differently in its own way, but the challenge remains – how you can make the best use of the space that you have in the back, whether you have bought the vehicle for commercial or leisure purposes. As you are not necessarily stuck with what you've got, what changes can you make to improve your enjoyment of the truck?

Needing an Upgrade

In order to protect the vehicle against the harsh Australian conditions, a typical ute is fitted with a steel tray on its flatbed. This is always a sturdy part of the vehicle and for many people will be perfectly acceptable. In fact, if you tend to carry a lot of particularly heavy weight, steel ute trays may be just the thing that you need.

Making Your Choice

However, you may be looking for a degree of flexibility and may want to carry a larger load that can be spread across the entire tray. In this case, you could select something that's been made from aluminium, as this is going to give additional capacity versus steel. This is because aluminium is significantly lighter than steel and you can utilise this difference to add tools or machinery to the tray and still come underneath your recommended carrying capacity. Nevertheless, always make sure that you check with the manufacturer guidelines to determine exactly how much extra weight you are allowed to put in there.

If you live near to the coast, then you will have one eye on potential corrosion as moist, sea air tends to do a number on steel. If this is the case, you may want to choose an aluminium option here as it may extend the durability of your vehicle and help to avoid that 'red' look.

Deciding the Configuration

Once you've made your choice between steel and aluminium, both of which are good in certain circumstances, you can then opt to configure the tray to your specific requirements. Typically, you'll be able to customise it with different attachments, latches, tubs and containers and you can usually pick a tray that will match the overall look of the host vehicle.

Dialling in Your Choices

Get in touch with your supplier to see what will work best for you, so that you can make the most of your utility vehicle.