Crane (machine)

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Diagram of a modern mobile crane with outriggers. The latticed boom is fitted with a jib.

Manual crane from the late 19th century used for unloading small loads (balls, crates, etc.) by
ships at the Port of Barcelona, Spain.

A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist rope, wire ropes or chains, and
sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It is
mainly used for lifting heavy things and transporting them to other places. The device uses one
or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the
normal capability of a human. Cranes are commonly employed in the transport industry for the
loading and unloading of freight, in the construction industry for the movement of materials, and
in the manufacturing industry for the assembling of heavy equipment.

The first known crane machine was the shadouf, a water-lifting device that was invented in
ancient Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) and then appeared in ancient Egyptian technology.
Construction cranes later appeared in ancient Greece, where they were powered by men or
animals (such as donkeys), and used for the construction of buildings. Larger cranes were later
developed in the Roman Empire, employing the use of human treadwheels, permitting the lifting
of heavier weights. In the High Middle Ages, harbour cranes were introduced to load and unload
ships and assist with their construction – some were built into stone towers for extra strength and
stability. The earliest cranes were constructed from wood, but cast iron, iron and steel took over
with the coming of the Industrial Revolution.

For many centuries, power was supplied by the physical exertion of men or animals, although
hoists in watermills and windmills could be driven by the harnessed natural power. The first
'mechanical' power was provided by steam engines, the earliest steam crane being introduced in
the 18th or 19th century, with many remaining in use well into the late 20th century.[1] Modern
cranes usually use internal combustion engines or electric motors and hydraulic systems to
provide a much greater lifting capability than was previously possible, although manual cranes
are still utilized where the provision of power would be uneconomic.

Cranes exist in an enormous variety of forms – each tailored to a specific use. Sizes range from
the smallest jib cranes, used inside workshops, to the tallest tower cranes, used for constructing
high buildings. Mini-cranes are also used for constructing high buildings, in order to facilitate
constructions by reaching tight spaces. Finally, we can find larger floating cranes, generally used
to build oil rigs and salvage sunken ships.

Some lifting machines do not strictly fit the above definition of a crane, but are generally known
as cranes, such as stacker cranes and loader cranes.

Etymology
Cranes were so called from the resemblance to the long neck of the bird, cf. Ancient Greek:
γέρανος, French grue.[2]

History
Ancient Near East

The first type of crane machine was the shadouf, which had a lever mechanism and was used to
lift water for irrigation.[3][4][5] It was invented in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) circa 3000 BC.[3][4]
The shadouf subsequently appeared in ancient Egyptian technology circa 2000 BC.[6][5]

Ancient Greece
Greco-Roman Trispastos ("Three-pulley-crane"), a simple crane type (150 kg load)

A crane for lifting heavy loads was developed by the Ancient Greeks in the late 6th century
BC.[7] The archaeological record shows that no later than c. 515 BC distinctive cuttings for both
lifting tongs and lewis irons begin to appear on stone blocks of Greek temples. Since these holes
point at the use of a lifting device, and since they are to be found either above the center of
gravity of the block, or in pairs equidistant from a point over the center of gravity, they are
regarded by archaeologists as the positive evidence required for the existence of the crane.[7]

The introduction of the winch and pulley hoist soon lead to a widespread replacement of ramps
as the main means of vertical motion. For the next 200 years, Greek building sites witnessed a
sharp reduction in the weights handled, as the new lifting technique made the use of several
smaller stones more practical than fewer larger ones. In contrast to the archaic period with its
pattern of ever-increasing block sizes, Greek temples of the classical age like the Parthenon
invariably featured stone blocks weighing less than 15–20 metric tons. Also, the practice of
erecting large monolithic columns was practically abandoned in favour of using several column
drums.[8]

Although the exact circumstances of the shift from the ramp to the crane technology remain
unclear, it has been argued that the volatile social and political conditions of Greece were more
suitable to the employment of small, professional construction teams than of large bodies of
unskilled labour, making the crane preferable to the Greek polis over the more labour-intensive
ramp which had been the norm in the autocratic societies of Egypt or Assyria.[8]

The first unequivocal literary evidence for the existence of the compound pulley system appears
in the Mechanical Problems (Mech. 18, 853a32–853b13) attributed to Aristotle (384–322 BC),
but perhaps composed at a slightly later date. Around the same time, block sizes at Greek
temples began to match their archaic predecessors again, indicating that the more sophisticated
compound pulley must have found its way to Greek construction sites by then.[9]

Roman Empire

See also: Treadwheel crane

Greco-Roman Pentaspastos ("Five-pulley-crane"), a medium-sized variant (c. 450 kg load)

Reconstruction of a 10.4 m high Roman Polyspastos powered by a treadwheel at Bonn, Germany

The heyday of the crane in ancient times came during the Roman Empire, when construction
activity soared and buildings reached enormous dimensions. The Romans adopted the Greek
crane and developed it further. We are relatively well informed about their lifting techniques,
thanks to rather lengthy accounts by the engineers Vitruvius (De Architectura 10.2, 1–10) and
Heron of Alexandria (Mechanica 3.2–5). There are also two surviving reliefs of Roman
treadwheel cranes, with the Haterii tombstone from the late first century AD being particularly
detailed.

The simplest Roman crane, the trispastos, consisted of a single-beam jib, a winch, a rope, and a
block containing three pulleys. Having thus a mechanical advantage of 3:1, it has been calculated
that a single man working the winch could raise 150 kg (3 pulleys x 50 kg = 150), assuming that
50 kg represent the maximum effort a man can exert over a longer time period. Heavier crane
types featured five pulleys (pentaspastos) or, in case of the largest one, a set of three by five
pulleys (Polyspastos) and came with two, three or four masts, depending on the maximum load.
The polyspastos, when worked by four men at both sides of the winch, could readily lift 3,000 kg
(3 ropes x 5 pulleys x 4 men x 50 kg = 3,000 kg). If the winch was replaced by a treadwheel, the
maximum load could be doubled to 6,000 kg at only half the crew, since the treadwheel
possesses a much bigger mechanical advantage due to its larger diameter. This meant that, in
comparison to the construction of the ancient Egyptian pyramids, where about 50 men were
needed to move a 2.5 ton stone block up the ramp (50 kg per person), the lifting capability of the
Roman polyspastos proved to be 60 times higher (3,000 kg per person).[10]
However, numerous extant Roman buildings which feature much heavier stone blocks than those
handled by the polyspastos indicate that the overall lifting capability of the Romans went far
beyond that of any single crane. At the temple of Jupiter at Baalbek, for instance, the architrave
blocks weigh up to 60 tons each, and one corner cornice block even over 100 tons, all of them
raised to a height of about 19 m.[9] In Rome, the capital block of Trajan's Column weighs 53.3
tons, which had to be lifted to a height of about 34 m (see construction of Trajan's Column).[11]

It is assumed that Roman engineers lifted these extraordinary weights by two measures (see
picture below for comparable Renaissance technique): First, as suggested by Heron, a lifting
tower was set up, whose four masts were arranged in the shape of a quadrangle with parallel
sides, not unlike a siege tower, but with the column in the middle of the structure (Mechanica
3.5).[12] Second, a multitude of capstans were placed on the ground around the tower, for,
although having a lower leverage ratio than treadwheels, capstans could be set up in higher
numbers and run by more men (and, moreover, by draught animals).[13] This use of multiple
capstans is also described by Ammianus Marcellinus (17.4.15) in connection with the lifting of
the Lateranense obelisk in the Circus Maximus (c. 357 AD). The maximum lifting capability of a
single capstan can be established by the number of lewis iron holes bored into the monolith. In
case of the Baalbek architrave blocks, which weigh between 55 and 60 tons, eight extant holes
suggest an allowance of 7.5 ton per lewis iron, that is per capstan.[14] Lifting such heavy weights
in a concerted action required a great amount of coordination between the work groups applying
the force to the capstans.

Medieval (15th century) port crane for mounting masts and lifting cargo in Gdańsk.[15]

Middle Ages

During the High Middle Ages, the treadwheel crane was reintroduced on a large scale after the
technology had fallen into disuse in western Europe with the demise of the Western Roman
Empire.[16] The earliest reference to a treadwheel (magna rota) reappears in archival literature in
France about 1225,[17] followed by an illuminated depiction in a manuscript of probably also
French origin dating to 1240.[18] In navigation, the earliest uses of harbor cranes are documented
for Utrecht in 1244, Antwerp in 1263, Brugge in 1288 and Hamburg in 1291,[19] while in
England the treadwheel is not recorded before 1331.[20]
Double treadwheel crane in Pieter Bruegel's The Tower of Babel

Generally, vertical transport could be done more safely and inexpensively by cranes than by
customary methods. Typical areas of application were harbors, mines, and, in particular, building
sites where the treadwheel crane played a pivotal role in the construction of the lofty Gothic
cathedrals. Nevertheless, both archival and pictorial sources of the time suggest that newly
introduced machines like treadwheels or wheelbarrows did not completely replace more labor-
intensive methods like ladders, hods and handbarrows. Rather, old and new machinery continued
to coexist on medieval construction sites[21] and harbors.[19]

Apart from treadwheels, medieval depictions also show cranes to be powered manually by
windlasses with radiating spokes, cranks and by the 15th century also by windlasses shaped like
a ship's wheel. To smooth out irregularities of impulse and get over 'dead-spots' in the lifting
process flywheels are known to be in use as early as 1123.[22]

The exact process by which the treadwheel crane was reintroduced is not recorded,[17] although
its return to construction sites has undoubtedly to be viewed in close connection with the
simultaneous rise of Gothic architecture. The reappearance of the treadwheel crane may have
resulted from a technological development of the windlass from which the treadwheel
structurally and mechanically evolved. Alternatively, the medieval treadwheel may represent a
deliberate reinvention of its Roman counterpart drawn from Vitruvius' De architectura which
was available in many monastic libraries. Its reintroduction may have been inspired, as well, by
the observation of the labor-saving qualities of the waterwheel with which early treadwheels
shared many structural similarities.[20]

Structure and placement

The medieval treadwheel was a large wooden wheel turning around a central shaft with a
treadway wide enough for two workers walking side by side. While the earlier 'compass-arm'
wheel had spokes directly driven into the central shaft, the more advanced 'clasp-arm' type
featured arms arranged as chords to the wheel rim,[23] giving the possibility of using a thinner
shaft and providing thus a greater mechanical advantage.[24]

Single treadwheel crane working from top of the building

Contrary to a popularly held belief, cranes on medieval building sites were neither placed on the
extremely lightweight scaffolding used at the time nor on the thin walls of the Gothic churches
which were incapable of supporting the weight of both hoisting machine and load. Rather, cranes
were placed in the initial stages of construction on the ground, often within the building. When a
new floor was completed, and massive tie beams of the roof connected the walls, the crane was
dismantled and reassembled on the roof beams from where it was moved from bay to bay during
construction of the vaults.[25] Thus, the crane 'grew' and 'wandered' with the building with the
result that today all extant construction cranes in England are found in church towers above the
vaulting and below the roof, where they remained after building construction for bringing
material for repairs aloft.[26]

Less frequently, medieval illuminations also show cranes mounted on the outside of walls with
the stand of the machine secured to putlogs.[27]

Mechanics and operation

Tower crane at the inland harbour of Trier from 1413.

In contrast to modern cranes, medieval cranes and hoists – much like their counterparts in Greece
and Rome[28] – were primarily capable of a vertical lift, and not used to move loads for a
considerable distance horizontally as well.[25] Accordingly, lifting work was organized at the
workplace in a different way than today. In building construction, for example, it is assumed that
the crane lifted the stone blocks either from the bottom directly into place,[25] or from a place
opposite the centre of the wall from where it could deliver the blocks for two teams working at
each end of the wall.[28] Additionally, the crane master who usually gave orders at the treadwheel
workers from outside the crane was able to manipulate the movement laterally by a small rope
attached to the load.[29] Slewing cranes which allowed a rotation of the load and were thus
particularly suited for dockside work appeared as early as 1340.[30] While ashlar blocks were
directly lifted by sling, lewis or devil's clamp (German Teufelskralle), other objects were placed
before in containers like pallets, baskets, wooden boxes or barrels.[31]

It is noteworthy that medieval cranes rarely featured ratchets or brakes to forestall the load from
running backward.[32] This curious absence is explained by the high friction force exercised by
medieval tread-wheels which normally prevented the wheel from accelerating beyond control.[29]

Harbour usage

See also: List of historical harbour cranes

A crane constructed in 1742, used for mounting masts to large sailing vessels. Copenhagen,
Denmark

According to the "present state of knowledge" unknown in antiquity, stationary harbor cranes are
considered a new development of the Middle Ages.[19] The typical harbor crane was a pivoting
structure equipped with double treadwheels. These cranes were placed docksides for the loading
and unloading of cargo where they replaced or complemented older lifting methods like see-
saws, winches and yards.[19]

Two different types of harbor cranes can be identified with a varying geographical distribution:
While gantry cranes which pivoted on a central vertical axle were commonly found at the
Flemish and Dutch coastside, German sea and inland harbors typically featured tower cranes
where the windlass and treadwheels were situated in a solid tower with only jib arm and roof
rotating.[15] Dockside cranes were not adopted in the Mediterranean region and the highly
developed Italian ports where authorities continued to rely on the more labor-intensive method of
unloading goods by ramps beyond the Middle Ages.[33]

Unlike construction cranes where the work speed was determined by the relatively slow progress
of the masons, harbor cranes usually featured double treadwheels to speed up loading. The two
treadwheels whose diameter is estimated to be 4 m or larger were attached to each side of the
axle and rotated together.[19] Their capacity was 2–3 tons which apparently corresponded to the
customary size of marine cargo.[19] Today, according to one survey, fifteen treadwheel harbor
cranes from pre-industrial times are still extant throughout Europe.[34] Some harbour cranes were
specialised at mounting masts to newly built sailing ships, such as in Gdańsk, Cologne and
Bremen.[15] Beside these stationary cranes, floating cranes which could be flexibly deployed in
the whole port basin came into use by the 14th century.[15]

Early modern age

Erection of the Vatican obelisk in 1586 by means of a lifting tower

An 1856 photo of Cologne Cathedral, then unfinished, with a 15th-century crane on south tower.

A lifting tower similar to that of the ancient Romans was used to great effect by the Renaissance
architect Domenico Fontana in 1586 to relocate the 361 t heavy Vatican obelisk in Rome.[35]
From his report, it becomes obvious that the coordination of the lift between the various pulling
teams required a considerable amount of concentration and discipline, since, if the force was not
applied evenly, the excessive stress on the ropes would make them rupture.[36]

Cranes were also used domestically during this period. The chimney or fireplace crane was used
to swing pots and kettles over the fire and the height was adjusted by a trammel.[37]

Industrial revolution
Sir William Armstrong, inventor of the hydraulic crane.

With the onset of the Industrial Revolution the first modern cranes were installed at harbours for
loading cargo. In 1838, the industrialist and businessman William Armstrong designed a
hydraulic water powered crane. His design used a ram in a closed cylinder that was forced down
by a pressurized fluid entering the cylinder – a valve regulated the amount of fluid intake relative
to the load on the crane.[38]

In 1845 a scheme was set in motion to provide piped water from distant reservoirs to the
households of Newcastle. Armstrong was involved in this scheme and he proposed to Newcastle
Corporation that the excess water pressure in the lower part of town could be used to power one
of his hydraulic cranes for the loading of coal onto barges at the Quayside. He claimed that his
invention would do the job faster and more cheaply than conventional cranes. The corporation
agreed to his suggestion, and the experiment proved so successful that three more hydraulic
cranes were installed on the Quayside.[39]

The success of his hydraulic crane led Armstrong to establish the Elswick works at Newcastle, to
produce his hydraulic machinery for cranes and bridges in 1847. His company soon received
orders for hydraulic cranes from Edinburgh and Northern Railways and from Liverpool Docks,
as well as for hydraulic machinery for dock gates in Grimsby. The company expanded from a
workforce of 300 and an annual production of 45 cranes in 1850, to almost 4,000 workers
producing over 100 cranes per year by the early 1860s.[39]

Armstrong spent the next few decades constantly improving his crane design – his most
significant innovation was the hydraulic accumulator. Where water pressure was not available on
site for the use of hydraulic cranes, Armstrong often built high water towers to provide a supply
of water at pressure. However, when supplying cranes for use at New Holland on the Humber
Estuary, he was unable to do this because the foundations consisted of sand. He eventually
produced the hydraulic accumulator, a cast-iron cylinder fitted with a plunger supporting a very
heavy weight. The plunger would slowly be raised, drawing in water, until the downward force
of the weight was sufficient to force the water below it into pipes at great pressure. This
invention allowed much larger quantities of water to be forced through pipes at a constant
pressure, thus increasing the crane's load capacity considerably.[40]
One of his cranes, commissioned by the Italian Navy in 1883 and in use until the mid-1950s, is
still standing in Venice, where it is now in a state of disrepair.[41]

Mechanical principles

Play media
Crane movements

Broken crane in Sermetal Shipyard, former Ishikawajima do Brasil – Rio de Janeiro. The cause
of the accident was a lack of maintenance and misuse of the equipment.

Cranes can mount many different utensils depending on load (left). Cranes can be remote-
controlled from the ground, allowing much more precise control, but without the view that a
position atop the crane provides (right).
There are three major considerations in the design of cranes. First, the crane must be able to lift
the weight of the load; second, the crane must not topple; third, the crane must not rupture.

Stability

For stability, the sum of all moments about the base of the crane must be close to zero so that the
crane does not overturn.[42] In practice, the magnitude of load that is permitted to be lifted (called
the "rated load" in the US) is some value less than the load that will cause the crane to tip, thus
providing a safety margin.

Under US standards for mobile cranes, the stability-limited rated load for a crawler crane is 75%
of the tipping load. The stability-limited rated load for a mobile crane supported on outriggers is
85% of the tipping load. These requirements, along with additional safety-related aspects of
crane design, are established by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers [1] in the
volume ASME B30.5-2018 Mobile and Locomotive Cranes.

Standards for cranes mounted on ships or offshore platforms are somewhat stricter because of the
dynamic load on the crane due to vessel motion. Additionally, the stability of the vessel or
platform must be considered.

For stationary pedestal or kingpost mounted cranes, the moment created by the boom, jib, and
load is resisted by the pedestal base or kingpost. Stress within the base must be less than the
yield stress of the material or the crane will fail.

Types
Mobile

Main article: Mobile crane

There are four principal types of mobile cranes: truck mounted, rough-terrain, crawler, and
floating.

Truck-mounted
Deployed 1562 Honda Lifter truck-mounted crane

A 1000 Liebherr Mobile truck-mounted crane

A truck-mounted crane has two parts: the carrier, often referred to as the lower, and the lifting
component which includes the boom, referred to as the upper. These are mated together through
a turntable, allowing the upper to swing from side to side. These modern hydraulic truck cranes
are usually single-engine machines, with the same engine powering the undercarriage and the
crane. The upper is usually powered via hydraulics run through the turntable from the pump
mounted on the lower. In older model designs of hydraulic truck cranes, there were two engines.
One in the lower pulled the crane down the road and ran a hydraulic pump for the outriggers and
jacks. The one in the upper ran the upper through a hydraulic pump of its own. Many older
operators favor the two-engine system due to leaking seals in the turntable of aging newer design
cranes. Hiab invented the world's first hydraulic truck mounted crane in 1947.[43] The name,
Hiab, comes from the commonly used abbreviation of Hydrauliska Industri AB, a company
founded in Hudiksvall, Sweden 1944 by Eric Sundin, a ski manufacturer who saw a way to
utilize a truck's engine to power loader cranes through the use of hydraulics.

Generally, these cranes are able to travel on highways, eliminating the need for special
equipment to transport the crane unless weight or other size constrictions are in place such as
local laws. If this is the case, most larger cranes are equipped with either special trailers to help
spread the load over more axles or are able to disassemble to meet requirements. An example is
counterweights. Often a crane will be followed by another truck hauling the counterweights that
are removed for travel. In addition some cranes are able to remove the entire upper. However,
this is usually only an issue in a large crane and mostly done with a conventional crane such as a
Link-Belt HC-238. When working on the job site, outriggers are extended horizontally from the
chassis then vertically to level and stabilize the crane while stationary and hoisting. Many truck
cranes have slow-travelling capability (a few miles per hour) while suspending a load. Great care
must be taken not to swing the load sideways from the direction of travel, as most anti-tipping
stability then lies in the stiffness of the chassis suspension. Most cranes of this type also have
moving counterweights for stabilization beyond that provided by the outriggers. Loads
suspended directly aft are the most stable, since most of the weight of the crane acts as a
counterweight. Factory-calculated charts (or electronic safeguards) are used by crane operators to
determine the maximum safe loads for stationary (outriggered) work as well as (on-rubber) loads
and travelling speeds.

Truck cranes range in lifting capacity from about 14.5 short tons (12.9 long tons; 13.2 t) to about
1,300 short tons (1,161 long tons; 1,179 t). Although most only rotate about 180 degrees, the
more expensive truck mounted cranes can turn a full 360 degrees.

Rough terrain

Rough terrain crane

A rough terrain crane has a boom mounted on an undercarriage atop four rubber tires that is
designed for off-road pick-and-carry operations. Outriggers are used to level and stabilize the
crane for hoisting.[44]

These telescopic cranes are single-engine machines, with the same engine powering the
undercarriage and the crane, similar to a crawler crane. The engine is usually mounted in the
undercarriage rather than in the upper, as with crawler crane. Most have 4 wheel drive and 4
wheel steering for traversing tighter and slicker terrain than a standard truck crane, with less site
prep.

Crawler

Crawler crane

A crawler crane has its boom mounted on an undercarriage fitted with a set of crawler tracks that
provide both stability and mobility. Crawler cranes range in lifting capacity from about 40 to
3,500 short tons (35.7 to 3,125.0 long tons; 36.3 to 3,175.1 t).
The main advantage of a crawler crane is its ready mobility and use, since the crane is able to
operate on sites with minimal improvement and stable on its tracks without outriggers. Wide
tracks spread the weight out over a great area and are far better than wheels at traversing soft
ground without sinking in. A crawler crane is also capable of traveling with a load. Its main
disadvantage is its weight, making it difficult and expensive to transport. Typically a large
crawler must be disassembled at least into boom and cab and moved by trucks, rail cars or ships
to its next location.[45]

Floating

Floating crane
Main article: Crane vessel

Floating cranes are used mainly in bridge building and port construction, but they are also used
for occasional loading and unloading of especially heavy or awkward loads on and off ships.
Some floating cranes are mounted on pontoons, others are specialized crane barges with a lifting
capacity exceeding 10,000 short tons (8,929 long tons; 9,072 t) and have been used to transport
entire bridge sections. Floating cranes have also been used to salvage sunken ships.

Crane vessels are often used in offshore construction. The largest revolving cranes can be found
on SSCV Thialf, which has two cranes with a capacity of 7,100 tonnes (7,826 short tons; 6,988
long tons) each. For 50 years, the largest such crane was "Herman the German" at the Long
Beach Naval Shipyard, one of three constructed by Hitler's Germany and captured in the war.
The crane was sold to the Panama Canal in 1996 where it is now known as Titan.[46]

Other types

All terrain

All terrain crane

An all-terrain crane is a hybrid combining the roadability of a truck-mounted and on-site
maneuverability of a rough-terrain crane. It can both travel at speed on public roads and
maneuver on rough terrain at the job site using all-wheel and crab steering.

AT's have 2-9 axles and are designed for lifting loads up to 1,200 tonnes (1,323 short tons; 1,181
long tons).[47]

Pick and carry

A pick and carry crane is similar to a mobile crane in that is designed to travel on public roads;
however, Pick and Carry cranes have no stabiliser legs or outriggers and are designed to lift the
load and carry it to its destination, within a small radius, then be able to drive to the next job.
Pick and Carry cranes are popular in Australia where large distances are encountered between
job sites. One popular manufacturer in Australia was Franna, who have since been bought by
Terex, and now all Pick and Carry cranes are commonly referred to as "Frannas" even though
they may be made by other manufacturers. Nearly every medium and large sized crane company
in Australia has at least one and many companies have fleets of these cranes. The capacity range
is between ten and forty tonnes as a maximum lift, although this is much less as the load gets
further from the front of the crane. Pick and Carry cranes have displaced the work usually
completed by smaller truck cranes as the set-up time is much quicker. Many steel fabrication
yards also use Pick and Carry cranes as they can "walk" with fabricated steel sections and place
these where required with relative ease.

Sidelifter

Sidelift crane

A sidelifter crane is a road-going truck or semi-trailer, able to hoist and transport ISO standard
containers. Container lift is done with parallel crane-like hoists, which can lift a container from
the ground or from a railway vehicle.

Carry deck

A carry deck crane is a small 4 wheel crane with a 360 degree rotating boom placed right in the
centre and an operators cab located at one end under this boom. The rear section houses the
engine and the area above the wheels is a flat deck. Very much an American invention the Carry
deck can hoist a load in a confined space and then load it on the deck space around the cab or
engine and subsequently move to another site. The Carry Deck principle is the American version
of the pick and carry crane and both allow the load to be moved by the crane over short
distances.

Telescopic handler

Telescopic handlers are like forklift trucks that have a telescoping extendable boom like a crane.
Early telescopic handlers only lifted in one direction and did not rotate;[48] however, several of
the manufacturers have designed telescopic handlers that rotate 360 degrees through a turntable
and these machines look almost identical to the Rough Terrain Crane. These new 360-degree
telescopic handler/crane models have outriggers or stabiliser legs that must be lowered before
lifting; however, their design has been simplified so that they can be more quickly deployed.
These machines are often used to handle pallets of bricks and install frame trusses on many new
building sites and they have eroded much of the work for small telescopic truck cranes. Many of
the world's armed forces have purchased telescopic handlers and some of these are the much
more expensive fully rotating types. Their off-road capability and their on site versatility to
unload pallets using forks, or lift like a crane make them a valuable piece of machinery.

Mobile container crane

Harbour

Dry bulk or container cranes usually in the bay areas or inland water ways.

Railroad

Rail crane
Main article: Crane (railroad)

A railroad crane has flanged wheels for use on railroads. The simplest form is a crane mounted
on a flatcar. More capable devices are purpose-built. Different types of crane are used for
maintenance work, recovery operations and freight loading in goods yards and scrap handling
facilities.
Aerial

Aerial crane

Aerial crane or 'Sky cranes' usually are helicopters designed to lift large loads. Helicopters are
able to travel to and lift in areas that are difficult to reach by conventional cranes. Helicopter
cranes are most commonly used to lift units/loads onto shopping centers and highrises. They can
lift anything within their lifting capacity, (cars, boats, swimming pools, etc.). They also perform
disaster relief after natural disasters for clean-up, and during wild-fires they are able to carry
huge buckets of water to extinguish fires.

Some aerial cranes, mostly concepts, have also used lighter-than air aircraft, such as airships.

Fixed

Exchanging mobility for the ability to carry greater loads and reach greater heights due to
increased stability, these types of cranes are characterised by the fact that their main structure
does not move during the period of use. However, many can still be assembled and
disassembled. The structures basically are fixed in one place.

Tower

Tower crane atop Mont Blanc

Tower cranes are a modern form of balance crane that consist of the same basic parts. Fixed to
the ground on a concrete slab (and sometimes attached to the sides of structures), tower cranes
often give the best combination of height and lifting capacity and are used in the construction of
tall buildings. The base is then attached to the mast which gives the crane its height. Further, the
mast is attached to the slewing unit (gear and motor) that allows the crane to rotate. On top of the
slewing unit there are three main parts which are: the long horizontal jib (working arm), shorter
counter-jib, and the operator's cab.

Optimization of tower crane location in the construction sites has an important effect on material
transportation costs of a project.[49]

Tower crane cabin

Tower crane with "luffing" jib

The long horizontal jib is the part of the crane that carries the load. The counter-jib carries a
counterweight, usually of concrete blocks, while the jib suspends the load to and from the center
of the crane. The crane operator either sits in a cab at the top of the tower or controls the crane by
radio remote control from the ground. In the first case the operator's cab is most usually located
at the top of the tower attached to the turntable, but can be mounted on the jib, or partway down
the tower. The lifting hook is operated by the crane operator using electric motors to manipulate
wire rope cables through a system of sheaves. The hook is located on the long horizontal arm to
lift the load which also contains its motor.

Play media
A tower crane rotates on its axis before lowering the lifting hook.

In order to hook and unhook the loads, the operator usually works in conjunction with a signaller
(known as a 'dogger', 'rigger' or 'swamper'). They are most often in radio contact, and always use
hand signals. The rigger or dogger directs the schedule of lifts for the crane, and is responsible
for the safety of the rigging and loads.

Components
Tower cranes are used extensively in construction and other industry to hoist and move
materials. There are many types of tower cranes. Although they are different in type, the main
parts are the same, as follows:

 Mast: the main supporting tower of the crane. It is made of steel trussed sections that are
connected together during installation.
 Slewing unit: the slewing unit sits at the top of the mast. This is the engine that enables
the crane to rotate.
 Operating cabin: on most tower cranes the operating cabin sits just above the slewing
unit. It contains the operating controls, load-movement indicator system (LMI), scale,
anemometer, etc.
 Jib: the jib, or operating arm, extends horizontally from the crane. A "luffing" jib is able
to move up and down; a fixed jib has a rolling trolley that runs along the underside to
move goods horizontally.
 Counter jib: holds counterweights, hoist motor, hoist drum and the electronics.[50]
 Hoist winch: the hoist winch assembly consists of the hoist winch itself (motor, gearbox,
hoist drum, hoist rope, and brakes), the hoist motor controller, and supporting
components such as the platform. Many tower cranes have transmissions with two or
more speeds.
 Hook: the hook (or hooks) is used to connect the material to the crane. It is suspended
from the hoist rope either at the tip, for luffing jib cranes, or in the hoist rope belly
underneath the trolley for hammerhead cranes.
 Weights: Large concrete counterweights are mounted toward the rear of the counterdeck,
to compensate for the weight of the goods lifted.[51]

This crane's main jib failed due to an overload.

Assembly

A tower crane is usually assembled by a telescopic jib (mobile) crane of greater reach (also see
"self-erecting crane" below) and in the case of tower cranes that have risen while constructing
very tall skyscrapers, a smaller crane (or derrick) will often be lifted to the roof of the completed
tower to dismantle the tower crane afterwards, which may be more difficult than the
installation.[52]

Tower cranes can be operated by remote control, removing the need for a cab for the crane
operator to work from.

Operation
Each model and distinctive style of tower crane has a predetermined lifting chart that can be
applied to any radii available depending on its configuration. Similar to a mobile crane, a tower
crane may lift an object of far greater mass closer to its center of rotation than at its maximum
radius. An operator manipulates several levers and pedals to control each function of the crane.

Self-erecting tower cranes

A self-erecting tower crane folds itself up at Erlangen, Germany.

Generally a type of pedestrian operated tower crane. Self erecting tower cranes are transported as
a single unit and can be assembled by a qualified technician without the assistance of a larger
mobile crane. They are bottom slewing cranes that stand on outriggers, have no counter jib, have
their counter weights and ballast at the base of the mast, can not climb themselves, have a
reduced capacity to standard tower cranes, and seldom have an operator's cabin.

In some cases, smaller self-erecting tower cranes may have axles permanently fitted to the tower
section to make maneuvering the crane onsite easier.

Tower cranes can also use a hydraulic powered jack frame to raise itself to add new tower
sections without any additional other cranes further assisting beyond the initial assembly stage.
This is how it can grow to nearly any height needed to build the tallest skyscrapers. For a video
of a crane getting taller, see here:[53]

For another animation of such a crane in use see this video:[54] (Here, the crane is used to erect a
scaffold which in turn contains a gantry to lift sections of a bridge spire.)

Telescopic
A telescopic mobile crane

A telescopic crane has a boom that consists of a number of tubes fitted one inside the other. A
hydraulic cylinder or other powered mechanism extends or retracts the tubes to increase or
decrease the total length of the boom. These types of booms are often used for short term
construction projects, rescue jobs, lifting boats in and out of the water, etc. The relative
compactness of telescopic booms makes them adaptable for many mobile applications.

Though not all telescopic cranes are mobile cranes, many of them are truck-mounted.

A telescopic tower crane has a telescopic mast and often a superstructure (jib) on top so that it
functions as a tower crane. Some telescopic tower cranes also have a telescopic jib.

Hammerhead

Hammerhead crane (Finnieston Crane)

The "hammerhead", or giant cantilever, crane is a fixed-jib crane consisting of a steel-braced

tower on which revolves a large, horizontal, double cantilever; the forward part of this cantilever
or jib carries the lifting trolley, the jib is extended backwards in order to form a support for the
machinery and counterbalancing weight. In addition to the motions of lifting and revolving, there
is provided a so-called "racking" motion, by which the lifting trolley, with the load suspended,
can be moved in and out along the jib without altering the level of the load. Such horizontal
movement of the load is a marked feature of later crane design. These cranes are generally
constructed in large sizes and can weigh up to 350 tons.

The design of Hammerkran evolved first in Germany around the turn of the 19th century and
was adopted and developed for use in British shipyards to support the battleship construction
program from 1904 to 1914. The ability of the hammerhead crane to lift heavy weights was
useful for installing large pieces of battleships such as armour plate and gun barrels. Giant
cantilever cranes were also installed in naval shipyards in Japan and in the United States. The
British government also installed a giant cantilever crane at the Singapore Naval Base (1938) and
later a copy of the crane was installed at Garden Island Naval Dockyard in Sydney (1951). These
cranes provided repair support for the battle fleet operating far from Great Britain.

In the British Empire, the engineering firm Sir William Arrol & Co Ltd was the principal
manufacturer of giant cantilever cranes; the company built a total of fourteen. Among the sixty
built in the world, few remain; seven in England and Scotland of about fifteen worldwide.[55]

The Titan Clydebank is one of the 4 Scottish cranes on the Clydebank and preserved as a tourist
attraction.

Level luffing

Main article: Level luffing crane

Level luffing crane

Normally a crane with a hinged jib will tend to have its hook also move up and down as the jib
moves (or luffs). A level luffing crane is a crane of this common design, but with an extra
mechanism to keep the hook level when luffing.

Overhead
An overhead crane being used in typical machine shop. The hoist is operated via a wired
pushbutton station to move system and the load in any direction
Main article: Overhead crane

An overhead crane, also known as a bridge crane, is a type of crane where the hook-and-line
mechanism runs along a horizontal beam that itself runs along two widely separated rails. Often
it is in a long factory building and runs along rails along the building's two long walls. It is
similar to a gantry crane. Overhead cranes typically consist of either a single beam or a double
beam construction. These can be built using typical steel beams or a more complex box girder
type. Pictured on the right is a single bridge box girder crane with the hoist and system operated
with a control pendant. Double girder bridge are more typical when needing heavier capacity
systems from 10 tons and above. The advantage of the box girder type configuration results in a
system that has a lower deadweight yet a stronger overall system integrity. Also included would
be a hoist to lift the items, the bridge, which spans the area covered by the crane, and a trolley to
move along the bridge.

The most common overhead crane use is in the steel industry. At every step of the manufacturing
process, until it leaves a factory as a finished product, steel is handled by an overhead crane. Raw
materials are poured into a furnace by crane, hot steel is stored for cooling by an overhead crane,
the finished coils are lifted and loaded onto trucks and trains by overhead crane, and the
fabricator or stamper uses an overhead crane to handle the steel in his factory. The automobile
industry uses overhead cranes for handling of raw materials. Smaller workstation cranes handle
lighter loads in a work-area, such as CNC mill or saw.

Almost all paper mills use bridge cranes for regular maintenance requiring removal of heavy
press rolls and other equipment. The bridge cranes are used in the initial construction of paper
machines because they facilitate installation of the heavy cast iron paper drying drums and other
massive equipment, some weighing as much as 70 tons.

In many instances the cost of a bridge crane can be largely offset with savings from not renting
mobile cranes in the construction of a facility that uses a lot of heavy process equipment.

Gantry
Gantry crane
Further information: Container crane

A gantry crane has a hoist in a fixed machinery house or on a trolley that runs horizontally along
rails, usually fitted on a single beam (mono-girder) or two beams (twin-girder). The crane frame
is supported on a gantry system with equalized beams and wheels that run on the gantry rail,
usually perpendicular to the trolley travel direction. These cranes come in all sizes, and some can
move very heavy loads, particularly the extremely large examples used in shipyards or industrial
installations. A special version is the container crane (or "Portainer" crane, named by the first
manufacturer), designed for loading and unloading ship-borne containers at a port.

Most container cranes are of this type.

Deck

Deck crane

Located on the ships and boats, these are used for cargo operations or boat unloading and
retrieval where no shore unloading facilities are available. Most are diesel-hydraulic or electric-
hydraulic.

Jib

Jib crane

A jib crane is a type of crane where a horizontal member (jib or boom), supporting a moveable
hoist, is fixed to a wall or to a floor-mounted pillar. Jib cranes are used in industrial premises and
on military vehicles. The jib may swing through an arc, to give additional lateral movement, or
be fixed. Similar cranes, often known simply as hoists, were fitted on the top floor of warehouse
buildings to enable goods to be lifted to all floors.

Bulk-handling

Bulk-handling crane

Bulk-handling cranes are designed from the outset to carry a shell grab or bucket, rather than
using a hook and a sling. They are used for bulk cargoes, such as coal, minerals, scrap metal etc.

Loader

Loader crane using a jib extension

A loader crane (also called a knuckle-boom crane or articulating crane) is an electrically

powered articulated arm fitted to a truck or trailer, and is used for loading/unloading the vehicle
cargo. The numerous jointed sections can be folded into a small space when the crane is not in
use. One or more of the sections may be telescopic. Often the crane will have a degree of
automation and be able to unload or stow itself without an operator's instruction.

Unlike most cranes, the operator must move around the vehicle to be able to view his load; hence
modern cranes may be fitted with a portable cabled or radio-linked control system to supplement
the crane-mounted hydraulic control levers.

In the UK and Canada, this type of crane is often known colloquially as a "Hiab", partly because
this manufacturer invented the loader crane and was first into the UK market, and partly because
the distinctive name was displayed prominently on the boom arm.[56]

A rolloader crane is a loader crane mounted on a chassis with wheels. This chassis can ride on
the trailer. Because the crane can move on the trailer, it can be a light crane, so the trailer is
allowed to transport more goods.

Stacker

Stacker crane
A crane with a forklift type mechanism used in automated (computer controlled) warehouses
(known as an automated storage and retrieval system (AS/RS)). The crane moves on a track in an
aisle of the warehouse. The fork can be raised or lowered to any of the levels of a storage rack
and can be extended into the rack to store and retrieve product. The product can in some cases be
as large as an automobile. Stacker cranes are often used in the large freezer warehouses of frozen
food manufacturers. This automation avoids requiring forklift drivers to work in below freezing
temperatures every day.

Efficiency increase of cranes

Lifetime of existing cranes made of welded metal structures can often be extended for many
years by aftertreatment of weldings. During development of cranes, load level (lifting load) can
be significantly increased by taking into account the IIW recommendations (the International
Institute of Welding Technology IIW published the Guideline "Recommendations for the HFMI
Treatment" in 2016) leads in most cases to an increase of the permissible lifting load and thus to
an efficiency increase.

Similar machines
Shooting a film from crane

The generally accepted definition of a crane is a machine for lifting and moving heavy objects by
means of ropes or cables suspended from a movable arm. As such, a lifting machine that does
not use cables, or else provides only vertical and not horizontal movement, cannot strictly be
called a 'crane'.

Types of crane-like lifting machine include:

 Block and tackle

 Capstan (nautical)
 Hoist (device)
 Winch
 Windlass
 Cherry picker

More technically advanced types of such lifting machines are often known as 'cranes', regardless
of the official definition of the term.

ttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crane_(machine)