Carbis Solutions has held the position of US market leader in fall prevention equipment at loading racks for more than 40 years, manufacturing gangways, safety cages, and loading arms from a single 250-person facility in Florence, South Carolina. The company is the only manufacturer in North America that engineers and produces both loading arms and fall prevention equipment under one roof.
Company Overview
Sam Carbis Solutions Group, LLC traces its origins to the early twentieth century, when founder Sam Carbis developed an aluminium fire ladder that became the basis for a series of industrial access products. Over four generations of family ownership, the business evolved from ladder manufacturing into a specialist supplier of fall protection and fluid transfer equipment for bulk liquid terminals, chemical plants, food processing facilities, and aviation fuelling operations.
The Florence, South Carolina manufacturing facility employs more than 250 personnel and handles design, fabrication, and testing in-house. This integrated model allows Carbis Solutions to offer engineered-to-order configurations across its full product range — an advantage in sectors where terminal geometry, product type, and regulatory requirements vary substantially between sites.
Carbis Solutions serves customers across oil and gas, chemical, food processing, agriculture, and aviation. In the terminal sector, its products appear at truck loading racks, rail loading facilities, marine berths, and pipeline transfer stations across North America and internationally.
Products & Terminal Safety Solutions
The core product range covers four categories: fall protection gangways, loading arms, safety enclosures, and marine access equipment. In fall protection, Carbis Solutions offers flat ramp gangways, telescoping gangways, track-mounted systems, and wide-format configurations suited to multi-bay rack layouts. Safety cages, loading rack enclosures, and unit train enclosures complete the access and fall prevention portfolio.
Loading arms are manufactured for road tanker, rail car, marine, and chemical transfer applications. The in-house manufacturing capability — shared with the fall protection line — allows Carbis Solutions to design integrated loading rack systems where the gangway and loading arm work as a coordinated unit rather than separately sourced components. This matters at high-throughput terminals where alignment between access equipment and fluid transfer hardware directly affects cycle time and operator safety.
Additional product lines include flatbed fall protection systems for tanker top-loading operations and overhead tarping systems for open-top rail cars. The breadth of the range positions Carbis Solutions as a single-source supplier for the access and transfer equipment segment of a terminal’s loading infrastructure. Buyers comparing options can review the top loading arm manufacturers for a ranked overview of the global competitive landscape.
Marine & Terminal Applications
Carbis Solutions’ marine product range covers ship-to-shore gangway access for tankers, barges, and bulk carriers. The SGW series, GW100, and GW500 gangways are fabricated in marine-grade aluminium and designed for the corrosive environment of waterfront terminal operations. These systems provide safe personnel access between vessel and shore across a range of freeboard heights and tidal conditions.
At bulk liquid terminals, the company’s gangways are used on both road and rail loading racks, where OSHA requirements for fall protection at heights above four feet create a compliance driver for engineered access solutions. Carbis Solutions’ 40-year presence in this segment means its equipment appears at many of the largest independent terminal networks in the US.
Terminal operators evaluating access equipment procurement can also consider OPW Engineered Systems, which covers loading arm and fluid transfer hardware across a complementary product set. Both companies are profiled in the Top 10 Tank Equipment Manufacturers 2026 ranking.
Carbis Solutions in 2026
Carbis Solutions maintains a formal partnership with Carbis Loadtec Group Ltd, a UK-based entity that has held exclusive representation rights for 22 years and has since been formalised as a separate operating company. Carbis Loadtec handles European and international distribution of loading arm and gangway products, extending the Florence manufacturing base into markets where local representation and service support are required for competitive procurement.
The company’s focus in 2026 remains on engineered-to-order solutions for bulk liquid terminal operators and chemical producers requiring integrated fall protection and fluid transfer capability. The combination of fourth-generation family ownership, in-house manufacturing, and a dedicated marine gangway range gives Carbis Solutions a differentiated position in a segment dominated by either pure-play loading arm specialists or safety equipment generalists.
Company Snapshot
| Headquarters | Florence, South Carolina, USA |
|---|---|
| Founded | Early twentieth century |
| Employees | 250+ |
| Ownership | Fourth-generation family business |
| Core Products | Fall protection gangways, loading arms, safety cages, marine gangways, unit train enclosures |
| Markets Served | Oil & gas, chemical, food processing, agriculture, aviation |
| International Partner | Carbis Loadtec Group Ltd (UK) — 22-year exclusive relationship |
| Website | carbissolutions.com |
What does Carbis Solutions specialise in?
Carbis Solutions specialises in fall protection gangways and loading arms for bulk liquid terminals, rail car loading facilities, and marine berths. The company manufactures both product categories from its Florence, South Carolina facility — the only operation in North America to do so under one roof.
Where are Carbis Solutions products used in tank terminals?
Carbis Solutions gangways and safety cages are installed at truck loading racks, rail loading facilities, and marine access points across bulk liquid terminals in oil and gas, chemical, and food processing sectors. The company has supplied the US terminal market for more than 40 years.
What marine safety equipment does Carbis Solutions manufacture?
Carbis Solutions manufactures ship-to-shore gangways in marine-grade aluminium, including the SGW series, GW100, and GW500. These systems provide personnel access between shore and tankers, barges, or bulk carriers across variable freeboard heights and tidal conditions.
How does Carbis Solutions differ from Carbis Loadtec?
Carbis Solutions is the US-based manufacturing entity, headquartered in Florence, South Carolina. Carbis Loadtec Group Ltd is a UK-based company that holds exclusive representation rights for international markets and has operated in that role for 22 years. The two entities are legally separate but commercially aligned through their long-standing partnership.
What loading arm products does Carbis Solutions offer?
Carbis Solutions manufactures loading arms for road tanker, rail car, marine, and chemical transfer applications. These are designed and fabricated at the same Florence, South Carolina facility as the fall protection range, allowing integrated rack systems where gangway and loading arm are engineered as a unit.