A practical walkthrough for warehouse managers and factory owners — from sizing the crane to budget planning and installation.
By Chen Wei, Senior Structural Engineer at SIEC Cranes | Published June 27, 2026
Picking the right single girder overhead crane for a warehouse comes down to three things really — capacity, span, and hoist type. Most managers overthink it. A 5-ton single girder with a 15-meter span and a wire rope hoist covers about 80% of warehouse lifting jobs I see. The tricky part is the runway. The full installation cost (the crane itself is only half the story). And whether your building can take the load. I have worked through this with dozens of warehouse owners across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Here is how we break it down.
Buyers always ask this first. The answer is usually simpler than they expect. Warehouse lifting breaks into three weight bands:
| Warehouse Type | Typical Load Range | Recommended Crane Capacity | Span Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light pallet storage / e-commerce | 0.5 - 3 tons | 3 ton | 6 - 15 m |
| General warehouse / distribution center | 2 - 8 tons | 5 ton or 10 ton | 10 - 22 m |
| Heavy industrial / steel warehouse | 5 - 18 tons | 10 ton or 16 ton | 15 - 25 m |
My rule to every buyer: measure your heaviest single load, add 15%. That is your minimum rated capacity. Do not buy a 10-ton crane if you only lift 2 tons — the bigger crane means heavier runway beams and more building steel. That cost advantage evaporates fast.
Budget mistake almost every first-time buyer makes: they price the crane and forget the runway steel, electrification, freight, and installation. Here is the real breakdown for a 5-ton single girder crane with a 15-meter span, CE-certified, from a Chinese manufacturer like SIEC Cranes:
| Cost Item | Estimated Cost (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Single girder crane (5t, 15m span) | USD 8,000 - 14,000 | CD1 wire rope hoist included, pendant control |
| Runway steel beams + rail | USD 3,000 - 7,000 | Depends on building column spacing and local steel prices |
| Power conductor system | USD 500 - 1,200 | Safety flat cable or angle conductor |
| Freight (container shipping) | USD 1,500 - 4,000 | Varies by destination port |
| Installation labor | USD 2,000 - 5,000 | 3-5 days on site, local crane rental for lifting |
| Total (estimate) | USD 15,000 - 31,000 | Customs duties and taxes not included |
For a 10-ton crane with the same span, add roughly 30-40% to the crane cost and 15-20% to the runway steel. For a 3-ton crane, subtract about 20-25% from the total. These are 2026 estimates based on recent projects we shipped to Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, and Nigeria.
Warehouse buyers argue about wire rope versus chain hoists more than they should. The decision is pretty clean really:
| Factor | Wire Rope Hoist | Chain Hoist |
|---|---|---|
| Best capacity range | 3 - 20 tons | 0.5 - 5 tons |
| Daily use endurance | High (8-10 hrs/day) | Moderate (3-5 hrs/day) |
| Lift height | Up to 30 m (single reeving) | Up to 12 m standard |
| Hoist cost (5t, 9m lift) | USD 1,800 - 3,500 | USD 800 - 2,000 |
| 5-year maintenance cost | Lower (wire rope lasts 2-3 years) | Higher (chain stretch, frequent replacement) |
For a warehouse running a single shift (8 hours), pick a CD1 wire rope hoist. The upfront cost is higher but the maintenance over 5 years is about 40% lower. Chain hoists are fine for backup duty or occasional use under 3 tons.
We cover this in more detail in our wire rope hoist guide and hoist product page.
This trips up first-time buyers more than anything I have seen. A good crane on bad runways is useless and dangerous. Three things matter:
Deflection limit. For single girder cranes, the runway beam should deflect no more than L/600. For a 15-meter span, that is max 25 mm under full load. Go tighter to L/800 if running high speed or the hoist is heavy.
Beam sizing. Typical warehouse runway beams range W200x46 (light duty, 6m span) to W360x79 (medium duty, 15m span) or custom plate girders for longer spans. A structural engineer should run the numbers for your building. Guessing leads to undersized beams that crack over time.
Column capacity. Gets skipped more than it should. The building columns must support the crane vertical load plus horizontal thrust from starting and stopping. If retrofitting into an existing warehouse, get a structural assessment first. About 1 in 5 existing buildings we survey need column reinforcement before a crane goes in.
Rail type. Standard crane rail (KB- or P-type profile) bolts or welds to the beam top flange. For single girder cranes under 10 tons, a flat-faced rail (30-50 mm wide) is usually enough.
I get asked this weekly. For warehouses, the answer is almost always single girder, unless one of these applies:
Otherwise, single girder saves you 20-35% on the crane itself, 10-20% on the runway steel, and gives more headroom because the hoist runs under the beam rather than sitting on top.
For a deeper comparison, check our complete single girder crane guide and double girder guide.
Retrofit installations are more common than new builds in my experience — maybe 60-40. Here is the sequence we follow:
Typical timeline: 1 week for site survey and structural assessment, 2-3 weeks for steel fabrication and shipping, 3-5 days for installation. Total project from order to first lift: about 5-8 weeks.
Not every warehouse layout suits an overhead crane. Some work better with jib cranes or gantry cranes. Quick comparison:
| Warehouse Type | Best Crane Choice | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Long narrow warehouse (6-15m wide) | Single girder (underslung) | Saves floor space, no runway columns needed |
| Wide-span warehouse (18-30m) | Single girder (top running) | Cost-effective for moderate spans, simple runway |
| Multi-zone workshop | Combination (workstation) | Multiple workstations, lower capacity, modular layout |
| Outdoor yard / steel stockyard | Gantry crane | No building structure required, portable |
I give this checklist to every warehouse owner. Run through these before you send out RFQs — saves everyone time:
Different regions, different problems. From our projects, here are the patterns that keep coming up:
Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia). High humidity and occasional flooding mean standard indoor cranes need marine-grade paint and sealed electrical enclosures (IP55 minimum). Many buyers opt for a 5-ton single girder because most warehouses in the region have 6-12 meter column spacing. We ship a lot to Vietnam and Indonesia — the demand for automated warehouses is growing fast there.
Middle East (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Iraq). Sand and dust are the main enemies. Sealed control panels and stainless steel limit switches are not optional — they are survival requirements. The 45-50°C summer heat means motor insulation class F or higher is a must. Many warehouse projects in Saudi Arabia and Iraq specify FEM or CMAA standards rather than European EN 13001.
Africa (Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa). Power quality is the biggest headache. Voltage fluctuations and single-phase drops cause motor burnouts. A voltage stabilizer or soft starter is highly recommended. Import duties on steel can add 15-30% to the total project cost, so some buyers choose local steel sourcing for runway beams.
Yes. That is actually one of the main advantages of single girder cranes. The under-running hoist design needs only about 600-900 mm of clearance between the roof truss and the hook. For very low roofs (under 5 meters), consider a suspension (underslung) crane which attaches directly to roof steel and needs even less headroom.
It depends on the building. Steel-framed warehouses built after 2010 often have enough column capacity built in. Older buildings and concrete-framed structures usually need reinforcement. A structural engineer should assess your columns. The cost of reinforcement ranges from USD 500 to USD 5,000 per column depending on the work needed.
With proper maintenance, a single girder overhead crane in warehouse service (A3-A5 duty) typically lasts 20-30 years. The wire rope needs replacing every 2-3 years in continuous use. The hoist motor brushes and brake pads need inspection every 6 months. The steel girder itself should be inspected annually for cracks — though in practice, single girder cranes in indoor warehouses rarely develop structural issues within 15 years.
A single crane can only cover one bay (one span between two runway beams). To cover multiple bays, you need either a transfer system (crane moves between bays on a turntable or crossover) or separate cranes in each bay. Transfer systems add about USD 5,000-12,000 and are worth it only if material needs to flow across bays. For most warehouses, one crane per bay is simpler and more reliable.
We manufacture single girder overhead cranes from 1 to 20 tons with CE certification, ISO 9001 quality, and FEM/CMAA engineering standards. Every crane comes with a structural calculation report, load test certificate, and one-year warranty.
Tell us your warehouse dimensions and heaviest load, and we will send you a technical proposal with pricing, runway drawings, and a project timeline — typically within 2 working days.