Blocks of snow and ice blowing off the roofs of trailers while they’re moving down the highway are common sights in winter, irking motorists and sometimes causing damage and accidents. Although laws in several states require owners to clean off the roofs before the vehicles head for the road, that’s easier decreed than done.

However, A. Duie Pyle, the old-line freight carrier operating in the Northeast, has found the answer in the “snow scraper” from Scraper Systems. The fleet has installed the equipment at 15 of its 17 terminals, and the other two should have them soon, says Randy Swart, the chief operating officer based at the company’s headquarters in West Chester, Pa., outside of Philadelphia.

The devices are built not far west from there, in Lancaster, by Quintin Machinery. A video on the company’s website shows how the plow-like device works on high-roof trailers or truck bodies.