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By moving to a larger trailer that will handle the most demanding jobs, you will actually get longer life. "Even though you might invest a little more money up front, you will get the return back with the service out of that product," says Ladner.

Trailer weight is not as critical as load capacity. "For example, a lot of people will buy our 20-ton tag trailer, but will only be putting from 10 to 15 tons on it," says McClure. "They can probably put only 17 tons on it legally before they are exceeding legal requirements of the tandem on the trailer."

The same trend occurs with lowboy trailers. "People will buy our 50-ton trailer, but they will put anywhere from 70,000 to 100,000 lbs. on it," says McClure. "They will have multiple pieces of equipment, and they buy the slightly bigger trailer just to have a trailer that could handle anything."

Deck materials expand
Oak and Apitong are traditional deck materials. "Oak is still the most common, replenishable wood you can put on it," says McClure. "Apitong is a significant upgrade. It is pre-dried and it doesn't warp."

But there are advancements taking place in alternate materials. "We are trying to get into some different kinds of decking for trailers," says Odegaard. "One is called Rumber; it is a rubber compound decking. Hopefully, with tracked equipment, the decks will last a little bit longer."