What it costs, tier by tier
A machine shop, a warehouse bay, one repair line - you need very little. One to three tonnes. Between $6,000 and $15,000 for the crane. Then freight, erection, and concrete for a runway if the building has to carry rails it never carried before. Add another 30%, and you are still being optimistic.
Five tonnes. The workhorse. Most general manufacturing buys one. $12,000 to $28,000. Double girder, longer span, heavier duty class - you are at the top of that band, not the middle.
Ten and sixteen tonnes: $22,000 to $55,000. Steel fabrication, precast, equipment assembly. At this level, the arguing shifts to motor brand and trolley speed.
Twenty to thirty-two tonnes, roughly $45,000 to $110,000. Foundries. Shipyards. Heavy precast. These orders usually carry an enclosed cab, an inverter, and a radio remote - those three alone can add five thousand dollars before anyone mentions the crane itself.
And then it stops being a product. Fifty-ton and hundred-ton cranes are engineering packages: reinforced box girders, twin motors, redundant brakes, controls drawn around your specific site. $110,000 to $350,000 and climbing, but at this capacity a range is nearly useless - site conditions decide everything.
Span ruins more budgets than tonnage does
Buyers obsess over tonnage. They should obsess over span.
A 1-ton crane covering 30 meters is not the same machine as a 1-ton crane covering 15. Heavier girders, wider end trucks, different trolley. I reviewed a quote last year that undercut three competing bids by two-thirds, purely because someone read the span four metres short. The buyer nearly signed it.
Hook travel does the same thing, just quieter. Every extra metre costs rope, sheaves, structure.
Duty class, where people get burned
ISO 4301 duty class is the single most abused spec in this industry, in both directions.
Too high: a workshop that lifts twice a shift gets sold an ISO A5 continuous duty crane, on the assumption that heavy industry means heavy duty. That can add thirty percent for zero operational gain.
Too low: premature brake, gearbox, and motor wear. And every hour of downtime with a crane parked over a production line costs real money. I have seen this argument settle a great many purchase orders, always in the same direction - the cheaper class wins, and then the crane sits in a spare parts queue.
Match the class to the work cycle. That's the whole advice.
The options that quietly inflate the invoice
Radio remote. Anti-collision. Load limiter. Runway LED lighting. Enclosed cab. Electrification instead of festoon cable. Each is defensible alone. Together they add up faster than anyone expects - I have watched an option list reach twenty percent of the total on a mid-size crane without a single person in the room noticing.
Installation and commissioning run ten to twenty percent of equipment cost. A new runway can cost as much as the crane. And if the existing structure cannot take the wheel loads, stop - you need a structural survey before you order anything.
What I'd want in writing first
Get the scope down. Girder dimensions and weight. Hoist make and model - not just "CDL hoist." An electric hoist spec sheet should tell you drum diameter, rope speed and brake type. Travel speed. Motor make. Paint system, because epoxy versus enamel matters outdoors. Warranty in months, and who pays for parts.
Ask for the CE declaration of conformity and the load test certificate early. Most suppliers have both ready. The ones who hesitate are telling you something.
Commissioning should sit with the supplier or an authorized partner. Warranty claims tend to hinge on the installation record.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How much is a 1-ton crane?
$6,000 to $15,000 for the equipment. Span and lift height push it up from there.
2.A 5-ton crane?
$12,000 to $28,000. Double girder and heavy-duty put you at the ceiling.
3.10 tons?
$22,000 to $55,000, depending on span and control package.
4. Single or double girder?
A single girder overhead crane wins on value up to about 20 tonnes. Past that, or on long spans, you have no real choice.
5. Is installation included?
Usually not. Freight, erection, commissioning, runway - call it 10 to 30%.
6. Why do quotes differ so much?
Scopes. Compare spans, lift, duty class, hoist brand, and control specs line by line rather than the total at the bottom.
Not sure which family fits?
Start broad with types of gantry crane, or tell us the job and we'll point you to the right one.
Contact: Alice
Email: sales@mine-cranes.com
WhatsApp: +86 193 3739 2819
