Specs, pricing and selection guide for double girder overhead cranes in steel production, heavy fabrication and metal processing — 10 to 150 ton capacity, A6–A8 duty classes.
Published June 27, 2026 | By David Chen, Senior Crane Engineer at SIEC Cranes.
If you are buying a crane for a steel mill or heavy industrial plant, double girder is the only practical choice above 20 tons. Single girder cranes top out around 20 tons and cannot handle the duty cycles, thermal stress and precision positioning that steel production demands. A properly specified double girder crane will run 15–20 years with regular maintenance in a melt shop or rolling mill. This guide covers the specific requirements for steel mill applications — capacity, duty class, pricing by size, and what buyers tend to miss when they spec a crane for the first time.
It depends on the bay. A scrap yard crane does different work than a ladle crane. The table below breaks down typical requirements by application area:
| Application Area | Typical Capacity | Duty Class | Lifting Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raw material / scrap yard | 20–40 tons | A6 | 8–14 m |
| Melting shop / hot metal | 80–150 tons | A7–A8 | 18–24 m |
| Continuous casting / teeming bay | 50–100 tons | A7 | 16–22 m |
| Slab yards / billet storage | 40–80 tons | A6–A7 | 10–16 m |
| Rolling mill / finishing | 25–60 tons | A6–A7 | 8–14 m |
| Coil storage / dispatch | 20–50 tons | A5–A6 | 6–12 m |
One thing I see often: buyers order a single duty class for the whole mill. That is almost never the right call. The scrap yard crane might see 4 hours of light use per shift, while the ladle crane runs almost continuously at near-rated load. Spec each crane bay individually — it saves money on lighter bays and avoids failure on the heavy ones.
Pricing depends on capacity, span, duty class, control system and whether you need heat-resistant components for hot metal areas. Here are real-world cost ranges based on recent SIEC project quotations:
| Crane Configuration | Typical Span | Duty | Price Range (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 ton, pendant control, A6 | 18 m | A6 | USD 35,000 – 55,000 |
| 50 ton, remote control, A7 | 24 m | A7 | USD 65,000 – 110,000 |
| 80 ton, cabin + remote, A7, VFD | 28 m | A7 | USD 95,000 – 150,000 |
| 100 ton, cabin operation, A7 | 30 m | A7 | USD 130,000 – 200,000 |
| 150 ton ladle crane, dual hoist, A8 | 28 m | A8 | USD 180,000 – 280,000 |
These are FOB prices from a CE-certified Chinese manufacturer (including main structure, trolley, hoist, end carriages, electrification and commissioning support). Import duties, shipping and site installation add 15–30% depending on destination. For projects in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Africa, total landed cost typically falls within 10–15% of the FOB figure when containerized.
Duty class determines the structural fatigue life, motor sizing, brake rating and wheel selection. Here is how the three main classes differ in real terms:
| Factor | A6 (Heavy) | A7 (Very Heavy) | A8 (Super Heavy) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily operation | 6–8 hours | 8–12 hours | 16–24 hours |
| Load spectrum | Moderate | Heavy | Continuous near-rated |
| Girder design | Standard box | Reinforced box | Heavy box + stiffeners |
| Typical fatigue life | 2 million cycles | 4 million cycles | 6+ million cycles |
| Motor service class | S3–40% | S3–60% | S1 continuous |
| Typical price premium | Base | +15–25% | +35–55% |
I have seen mills order A8 for every bay "to be safe." That is unnecessary — and costly. A6 handles coil storage and finishing just fine. Reserve A8 for hot metal and ladle cranes where failure means a plant shutdown or worse.
Steel mills are among the most demanding environments for overhead cranes. Heat, dust, heavy loads and continuous operation push equipment to the limit. Here are the non-negotiable safety requirements:
For ladle cranes handling molten metal, most national safety codes (OSHA, EU Machinery Directive, Chinese GB/T 3811) require redundant hoist systems — two independent wire rope hoists, each capable of holding the full ladle load. This is not optional.
European standards (FEM / ISO) are more conservative on fatigue life and safety margins. Chinese GB/T standards have caught up over the last decade and, for most applications, deliver equivalent performance at lower cost.
The practical difference: a crane designed to FEM 1.001 (European) uses a higher safety factor on structural steel — typically 1.5 minimum on yield vs 1.33–1.4 under GB/T 3811. So a FEM-rated crane has about 10–15% heavier girders for the same capacity. That extra steel adds cost but also extends fatigue life in continuous A8 applications.
For steel mills running 24/7 hot metal operations, I recommend FEM/ISO standard cranes. For coil storage, finishing bays and maintenance areas, GB/T standard cranes from a CE-certified manufacturer like SIEC deliver the same performance at 20–30% lower cost. The key is to check that the manufacturer has actual CE or equivalent third-party certification — not just a self-declared "European design."
For more on the standards difference, see our full double girder crane guide and our double girder crane product page.
The wrong supplier can delay a plant expansion by 4–5 months. Based on what we see in the field, here is a short checklist:
Rarely. Single girder cranes are limited to about 20 tons and A5 duty maximum. Steel mills need 20–150 ton capacities at A6–A8 duty. The only exception is light maintenance bays where loads stay under 10 tons.
15–20 years with proper maintenance. The structural steel can last 25–30 years, but mechanical components — hoist, brakes, wheels, gearboxes — typically need replacement or major overhaul at 10–15 year intervals. The critical factor is duty class: an A6 crane in a finishing bay will outlast an A8 crane in a melt shop by 5–10 years.
Standard double girder cranes typically ship in 8–12 weeks from order. Steel mill cranes with A8 duty and custom spans take 14–20 weeks due to specialized fabrication, heat treatment and additional quality inspections. Ladle cranes with dual hoist configurations need 16–24 weeks.
It depends on the application. Remote control works well for coil storage, finishing bays and scrap yards where the operator has clear line of sight. Hot metal and ladle cranes usually require a cabin because the operator needs an elevated view of the ladle, tundish and mold. Many mills spec both — cabin for primary operation and a wireless pendant for maintenance positioning.
SIEC Cranes manufactures double girder overhead cranes from 5 to 150 tons, CE certified, FEM designed, and delivered to steel mills across the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia and South America. Send us your bay dimensions, required capacity and duty class, and our engineering team will prepare a technical proposal and firm pricing within 48 hours.
Or contact us directly: [email protected] | WhatsApp: +86 13136173663