Travelling Jib Cranes

Travelling jib cranes provide local lifting coverage along a continuous production area. A cantilever jib travels on a runway fixed to a building wall, columns, or independent support steel, serving a row of workstations without placing a mast in the working aisle. This system fits machine tending, assembly, maintenance, loading and inter-station transfer scenarios perfectly. Fixed jib cranes often fail to cover sufficient working areas for these operations, while overhead cranes become the go-to option for handling tasks across wide bays.

Wall-mounted travelling jib cranes can operate beneath main overhead crane levels subject to factory structural layouts. It effectively divides frequent short-cycle workstation handling tasks from conventional bay-wide lifting work. Meanwhile, it keeps unobstructed floor space for staff movement, trolley transit, fixture placement and on-site material circulation.

 

 

 

A travelling jib crane consists of a runway, a travelling cantilever structure, a hoisting unit, and a control system. The configuration is determined by the load, working radius, travel length, required hook approaches, duty cycle, and available building support.

• Runway: wall-mounted, column-supported, or carried by independent steel support; designed for the full vertical, horizontal, and dynamic crane loads.
• Travelling cantilever jib: provides lateral reach from the building line to the workstations, machines, racks, or loading positions.
• Travelling mechanism: manual or motorized motion along the runway, selected according to load, travel length, operating frequency, and positioning requirement.
• Hoisting unit: electric chain hoist or electric wire-rope hoist selected for rated load, lift height, operating duty, and speed.
• Trolley: manual or powered travel along the jib where the handling envelope requires controlled horizontal positioning.
• Control system: wired pendant or radio control, with arrangement determined by the site operating procedure and visibility requirements.

 

 

 

Parameter	Engineering Range / Requirement
Rated lifting capacity	Up to 6.3 t; final selection is based on the complete suspended load, including hook block, rigging, and below-hook equipment
Jib length	Up to 12 m; determined by required reach, building clearance, hook approach, and load at working radius
Crane travel	Along a wall- or column-supported runway; runway length is designed to match the service line and building grid
Working coverage	Continuous coverage along a line of workstations, machines, or storage positions
Hoisting unit	Electric chain hoist or electric wire-rope hoist, selected by load, lift height, duty cycle, and required speed
Jib trolley	Manual or powered, according to load handling frequency and positioning requirement
Crane travel drive	Manual or motorized, selected according to runway length, crane load, and travel duty
Control method	Wired pendant or radio control, subject to the site safety assessment
Installation level	Can be arranged below an overhead-crane runway where a layered handling layout is required
Structural support	Building wall, columns, brackets, connections, and runway support steel require engineering verification

Capacity note: Rated capacity applies to the full suspended load. The payload must be established after the weights of the hook block, lifting beam, spreader, rigging, and other below-hook equipment are included.

 

 

Travelling jib cranes are applied where several adjacent stations require the same lifting path. Typical applications include:

• Serving machine tools, fabrication equipment, and assembly stations positioned along one side of a production bay.
• Transferring components between machining, inspection, assembly, and packing positions.
• Handling dies, fixtures, tooling, fabricated parts, and maintenance components in a defined service line.
• Loading and unloading racks, pallets, conveyors, and worktables where clear floor space must be retained.
• Supporting local workstations beneath or beside an overhead crane without assigning all short-cycle lifts to the main crane.

The travelling jib crane is not intended to replace an overhead crane across the full bay. It provides a defined linear handling zone. The runway position and jib reach should be set from the actual lift points rather than from nominal building dimensions alone.

 

 

 

Define the lifting duty

Provide the maximum lifted load, lift height, lifts per hour, average travel distance, operating shifts, and required positioning accuracy. These data determine the hoist duty classification and whether manual or motorized jib and crane travel is appropriate.

Confirm the handling envelope

Identify the runway length, jib length, hook height, wall-side approach, outboard approach, and obstructions at each workstation. Machine guards, ducts, access doors, rack heights, and maintenance clearances should be included in the layout review.

Verify building support

Travelling jib cranes impose vertical reactions, horizontal forces, and dynamic effects on the support structure. Existing walls and columns must be checked for the proposed runway loads. Where the building structure is not adequate, independent support steel may be incorporated into the system design.

Coordinate with overhead cranes

A wall travelling crane can be positioned below the overhead crane runway to create two handling levels in one bay. Vertical clearance, overlap zones, electrical routing, travel limits, and operating rules must be reviewed before installation.

Select the control and power arrangement

The control location must provide clear observation of the load path. Cable management, power supply routing, pendant length, and any radio-control requirements should be defined with the layout. Electrical details are selected after the site supply and operating environment are confirmed.

 

 

What is a travelling jib crane?

A travelling jib crane is a cantilever crane that moves along a wall- or column-supported runway. It provides continuous lifting coverage along a line of workstations rather than a fixed circular coverage area.

What is the difference between a travelling jib crane and a fixed jib crane?

A fixed jib crane serves one defined radius around its mounting point. A travelling jib crane moves along a runway, allowing one jib to serve several workstations or machine positions in sequence.

What capacity is available?

Configurations are available with rated capacities up to 6.3 t. The final capacity is selected from the total suspended load, duty cycle, jib length, runway arrangement, and structural support condition.

What jib length can be provided?

Jib lengths up to 12 m can be engineered. The usable length depends on building clearance, required hook approach, load at working radius, and the planned handling envelope.

Does a travelling jib crane require a concrete foundation?

A wall- or column-supported travelling jib crane does not use a floor-mounted mast in the operating area. However, the building structure or independent support steel must be engineered for the crane runway loads.

Can it operate in the same bay as an overhead crane?

Yes, when the layout provides adequate vertical and horizontal clearance. The travelling jib crane is commonly installed below the overhead-crane runway to serve a workstation side of the bay. Shared operating areas require defined clearance and operating controls.

How are crane travel and jib travel controlled?

Travel can be manual or motorized. The correct arrangement is determined by the crane load, runway length, operating frequency, required positioning accuracy, and site workflow.

 

 

Submit the load data, required coverage, lifting height, duty cycle, and building layout for an engineering review. The resulting configuration can define the runway support, jib reach, hoisting unit, travel drives, and control arrangement for the intended handling line.

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