Every driver, if they have driven on the highway more than once, has undoubtedly been faced with a dangerous design. It is one that is sometimes can be anticipated, but if it isn’t and hits a driver unexpectedly (like it often does), it can be deadly. The design to which I am referring is the semi-trucks that pull trailers with stainless steel surfaces.
Stainless steel is a strong metal, perfect when making trailers that are to be used for supporting and carrying large loads. Furthermore, it is easy to clean out; therefore, it is often used when fabricating tank trailers that carry liquid.
Design-wise, a stainless steel surface is generally visually appealing and implies cleanliness. As a further bonus to having a stainless steel surfaced trailer, it is also easier and less expensive in production to not have to paint or apply another surface on top of the steel which it is already made out of. For companies, it’s more efficient financially and the quantity sold is the same either way, so there is little incentive to spend money and time on paint. It is obvious why stainless steel is often a big design element when making semi-truck trailers to carry cargo.
These surfaces, however, are some of semi-trucks biggest design flaws. When driving down the highway at any point in the day, but especially as the sun is rising and setting, the glare that presents itself from the surface of the trailers can be and often is completely blinding. Of course this wasn’t an intentional consequence, but it is a consequence of a lack of common sense that could easily be corrected. Having drivers on the highway unable to see is the most ridiculous danger because it is one of the easiest things to fix. A simple coat of paint or a canvas cover would make all the difference.
The danger is a result of its large scale. Normally cars have just their bumpers in such a reflective metal. With these trailers, though, whether it’s the entire trailer or just the back doors, it is a threat to drivers because the glare is much bigger and more difficult to avoid.
Image from http://usedsemitrailers.com/
It is one thing to have a stainless steel bumper like many cars and trucks, but to have the entire trailer be stainless steel is unnecessary and dangerous. That’s all there is to it.
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