Guides

Working the job out before you ask for a price

Plain answers to the questions that come up before you have a model in mind — sizing a crane, jib types, buying against hiring, battery power and servicing, and the signage, lighting and lifting gear that goes on the crane once it is standing.

Flat-top tower crane over the Brisbane River at Portside, Hamilton

Guide How to choose a tower crane Start with two numbers: the heaviest load you need to place, and how far out from the crane it lands. Then the site decides the type. Read the guide

Luffing jib tower crane against the sky at Redcliffe

Guide Luffing, flat-top and hammerhead tower cranes Three jib types. The choice comes down to how much room there is above and around your site. Read the guide

Tower crane on a suburban site at Stones Corner, with Brisbane's CBD beyond

Guide Buying vs hiring a tower crane in Australia The maths turns on how long the crane is on site and how many jobs you will run it on. Read the guide

Connector panel on a Potain battery power unit

Guide Running a tower crane on battery instead of a diesel generator A lithium battery covers the split-second peak of a lift, so the generator that used to idle all day for that peak is not needed. Read the guide

Technician at an open control cabinet in the TES yard

Guide What tower crane servicing actually involves The scheduled checks, the parts that wear first, and what a breakdown response looks like. Read the guide

Equipment on the crane

Signage, lighting and lifting gear.

Written from our own product brochures, so the figures here are the ones we quote from.

Illuminated SkySigns LED display mounted on a tower crane at sunset

Guide Crane signage and advertising Two lit signs on the crane is the standard package. Here is what goes into one, how long it takes, and what sits outside the sign price. Read the guide

Guide Aviation lighting for tower cranes An obstruction light marks the crane for aircraft. Which one you need comes from the approval conditions for your site; the mounting and the power come from the crane. Read the guide

Galvanised material cage lifted on chains, with a tower crane behind

Guide Rigging and lifting gear for a tower crane site The crane is one line item. What hangs off the hook is another, and it is usually ordered last. Here is the list a tower crane site works through. Read the guide