Sidelifter

A sidelifter is a specialised vehicle or semi-trailer used to hoist and transport ISO standard intermodal containers over longer distances.

The sidelifter loads and unloads containers via a pair of hydraulic powered cranes mounted at each end of the vehicle chassis.

As the Sidelifter is suitable for travelling on general roads for large distances and able to quickly load and unload without additional equipment, it is often used for delivering and picking up shipping containers from within a commercial district.

Steelbro in New Zealand bought the Klaus Transport business and further developed the Sidelifter,[3] resulting in reduced tare weight and allowing freight companies to legally carry higher payload.

[5] The principal alternative to the costly machinery of the sidelifter is the use of swap body containers, which are too light to be stacked but can be unloaded from a truck by means of foldable legs.