Bridge Cranes
Overhead cranes, or bridge cranes, are elevated cranes that move material across industrial environments. The overhead crane consists of three main parts: parallel runways, a hoist that lifts material up and down and carries material left to right, and a bridge that connects the runways and moves the hoist forward and backward.Many industries, including mining, steel, automotive, aviation, aerospace, marine, railroad, and utility, use overhead cranes for their manufacturing and maintenance operations.
If efficiency and downtime are critical factors in your material-handling facilities, consider the following types of overhead cranes:
Top Running Bridge Cranes
Top running cranes include a rail installed on top of each runway, and the bridge wheels move on the rail instead of the runways. These cranes are supported by the building structure or floor columns. They are ideal for moving extremely heavy loads, and they can be designed in single-girder or double-girder configurations. Both configurations are equally reliable and durable. However, the double-girder top running crane is ideal when extremely high hook height is necessary. Additionally, each configuration has unique benefits and is equipped to handle different load capacities, spans, and types of service.
Underhung Bridge Cranes
Underhung cranes, which are often called under running bridge cranes, allow you to maximize your facility’s floor space for production and storage because they are supported from the ceiling trusses or the roof structure. Like top running bridge cranes, underhung cranes can be designed in single-girder or double-girder configurations. However, underhung cranes are ideal for moving lighter loads generally, so the double-girder configurations are typically used to move only loads of maximum capacity, which is around 10 tons.
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