Road Plates
HERMEQ road plates give pedestrians and vehicles a temporary surface over open trenches and excavations on construction, utility and event sites. The steel road plates come in thicknesses up to 25mm and in four surfaces: plain, anti skid, anti slip and Safe Plate hi vis. Manufactured in the UK, they carry a lifting eye in each corner so they can be lifted, laid and repositioned by machine. Lighter composite and plastic covers, including the LowPro trench covers and driveway boards, are laid by hand for footways, domestic driveways and low speed traffic, and the modular composite road plate carries HGV traffic without lifting plant.
Steel or composite road plates
The decision turns on lifting plant and access as much as on load, since both materials bridge an open trench. Steel suits heavy and frequent traffic, plant crossings and the wider openings found in highway and civils work. A steel plate is far too heavy to handle manually, so it is laid, moved and recovered with an excavator, crane, HIAB or magnetic lifter. Composite suits crews who work without lifting plant, footway and driveway work for utility and telecom contractors, and paving or tarmac that cannot be drilled for fixings. The lighter material still carries heavy traffic: the modular composite road plate is tested to 44 tonnes over a trench and is laid by two people with no crane on site.
Steel road plates
The steel plates in the range differ in two ways, the surface finish that gives grip and the way the plate is lifted, and both follow from who and what crosses the plate.
Plain steel road plates
For site traffic, haul roads and plant crossings inside a secured site, the standard choice is a plate with no coating, where tyres and tracks run on a hard steel face. The plain steel road plates come in square and rectangular formats. On public roads and near homes, road plates with chamfered edges give wheels a sloped run onto the plate, which reduces impact and noise. For service trenching, steel trench cover plates come in a long rectangular format that follows the line of a narrow trench.
Anti skid road plates
A resin coating with bonded bauxite granules, the hard aggregate also used for high friction road surfacing, gives these plates their grip. The finish holds tyres when braking and turning in the wet, which makes anti skid road plates the usual choice for carriageways, junctions and site entrances where vehicles stop or turn on the plate.
Anti slip road plates
A coarse aggregate bonded to the steel gives these plates a textured surface that grips under boots as well as tyres. Anti slip road plates suit routes shared by pedestrians and vehicles, and site areas where mud and standing water are routine.
Safe Plate hi vis road plates
Painted high visibility lips around the edges and a fine aggregate anti slip finish make the edge of the plate easy to see for people on foot and for drivers. Safe Plate hi vis road plates are made for pedestrianised streets, pavement and driveway works, rail and tram maintenance zones and slow moving traffic.
Safe Lift road plate
A lifting point at the centre of the plate, as well as one at each corner, sets this anti skid steel plate apart. With its lifting adaptor and single leg chain, the Safe Lift road plate is lifted from one hook, which suits crews who lay and lift plates many times a day on highways and active work zones.
Composite and plastic road plates
Lightweight covers in GRP, composite and plastic are laid by hand and grouped by the traffic they are rated for, which is the first thing to match to the job.
Modular composite road plates for vehicle traffic
Interlocking inner and end sections make up the composite road plate, so a run is built to the length of the trench and carries vehicles up to HGV weight. Drop pins and rubber skirts lock the sections laterally and absorb noise. It is the lightweight choice for utility and highway crews who keep a road open over a trench without lifting plant.
Pedestrian trench covers and footway boards
Covers in this class are rated for foot traffic over narrow excavations on footways and crossings. The LowPro 11/11 pedestrian trench cover is a square GRP cover with a flexible edge that grips the surface and reduces the trip hazard, so it can be laid without anchoring on paving and tarmac where fixings are not allowed. The LowPro 12/8 trench cover is a lighter rectangular cover for the same work. The Tuff Tread footway board is made from HDPE and PVC, meets HAUC standards and is a single person lift. Wider openings that people cross on foot need trench bridges.
Driveway trench covers
A car or van wheel crossing a driveway or entrance is the load these covers carry while service work runs underneath. The driveway trench cover board is a GRP board with Flexi-edge grip that in most cases needs no bolting, and the driveway board is made from polyethylene and recycled PVC, with PVC skirts, fixing holes and slip resistance certified to BS 7976. The wider range of trench covers and foot ramps sits in the Ramps & Covers category.
Road plate sizes and thickness
Plates are specified by length, width and gauge, and the trade still orders the common format by its imperial name. An 8x4 road plate is eight feet by four feet, and the range carries it in metric as 2400 x 1200mm and 2500 x 1250mm. Square plates cover narrow trenches, footways and smaller excavations, and the largest rectangular plates cover wider openings in one piece. The gauge needed rises with the weight of the traffic and the width of the span. Whatever its size, a plate needs firm, level bearing on both sides of the opening, with the trench sides held by trench sheets or other support so the edges cannot give way under load.
Road plates on highways, footways and sites
Carriageways and street works
On a public road, a plate is fixed so it cannot creep under traffic, and its edges are let into the surface or ramped with a bituminous material so wheels meet no step, unless a chamfered plate already gives that transition. The Department for Transport's Traffic Advisory Leaflet 6/14, Using road plates at road works, sets out how plates on the highway are fixed, ramped and signed. Plates over a trench left open overnight are checked at the start and end of each working day, and the checks are recorded.
Footways, driveways and public crossings
Where the public walks, the edge of the cover is the main hazard, so visible edges, low or bevelled profiles and a grip surface matter more than load capacity. Covers sit flush with the surrounding paving, with no gap at the joints for a heel, a walking stick or a wheelchair wheel to catch. Work across private driveways needs a cover that takes a car wheel, leaves residents a usable access and avoids drilling into block paving.
Construction sites and utility works
Plant and delivery vehicles cross service trenches, drainage runs and excavations at site access points on plates that move as the work moves. Where plant tracks across soft ground with no open excavation, ground protection mats spread the load, and bog mats take cranes and the heaviest plant.
Lifting, securing and covering holes
How a plate will be lifted and held in place, and what shape of opening it covers, are worth settling before ordering, since the accessories follow from those answers.
Permanent magnetic lifters
Lifting a steel plate without rigging chains to its corners is the job of the permanent magnetic lifter, which grips the steel magnetically and needs no power supply. Lifters are certified to BS EN 13155 and come in rated capacities up to 2000kg, and the capacity is chosen against the heaviest plate on the job.
Road plate securing collars
Fitted through the corner lifting holes and bolted into the surface below, road plate securing collars stop a plate rocking, creeping or clattering under traffic. One collar at each corner is the usual set for a plate on a busy road or in a public area, and the collars are removed and reused on the next job.
Steel hole covers
Chambers, pits and small holes are better covered by square steel hole covers, where a full road plate would be larger and heavier than the opening needs.
Temporary manhole covers
An open manhole between service phases takes a temporary manhole cover, which drops into the opening and locks with a key so passing site vehicles cannot dislodge it. It is a one person lift, is load tested to BS EN 124 and suits reinstatement work, roadworks and site pads.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a road plate and a trench sheet?
A road plate lies flat across the top of a trench or excavation so that vehicles and pedestrians can pass over it. A trench sheet is driven vertically into the ground along the sides of an excavation to hold back the soil. They do different jobs and one cannot replace the other.
How are road plates laid along a long trench?
Steel plates are laid end to end along the line of the trench, with the joints butted tight so there is no gap or step for a wheel or a foot. Long trench cover plates reduce the number of joints in a run. The modular composite road plate is built from sections that interlock into one continuous cover.
What should you check before laying a road plate over a trench?
Check that the plate is the right size and gauge for the span and the traffic, and that its lifting eyes and surface finish are undamaged. Clear stones and spoil from the bearing area first, because debris under a steel plate makes it rock and clatter. Once the plate is down, it should sit flat with no movement when a vehicle crosses it.
Can road plates be used on event sites?
Yes. On event sites they cover trenches and excavations dug for temporary power, water and drainage on vehicle routes and walkways. Where the public walks across them, a plate with an anti slip finish and visible edges, or a composite pedestrian cover, gives a crossing that is easy to see and safe underfoot.
Are HERMEQ road plates made in the UK?
Yes. HERMEQ manufactures in the UK with in-house steel processing, and the steel road plates, steel hole covers and LowPro composite covers are made in the UK. They are held as permanent UK stock and can be bought online.