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A jib crane serves a circle, a rail system an area. That single distinction decides more about the economics of an installation than any choice of device below it – and it is regularly asked too late.
The difference sounds academic and is not. A pillar jib reaches every point within its radius – but only within. If supply, processing and storage do not lie on the same circle, dead zones appear that are bridged either by hand or by a second device. A rail system, by contrast, maps a rectangle that adapts to the layout of the workstation instead of the other way round.
The jib passes the whole tipping moment into its base. At 120 kg and 4 m outreach that is around 5 kNm plus dead weight – a foundation rarely already present in an existing hall. Usual industrial floors of 15 to 20 cm are not enough; a foundation block is needed, and that means core drilling, concrete and curing time. A rail system instead spreads its loads over several columns or hangs from the hall structure.
Suspended rail systems are the most elegant solution: no column in the way, no floor work. But they assume the roof structure takes the additional load – and with halls from the seventies and eighties that is by no means a given. A check by a structural engineer costs little and belongs at the start, not the end. Where the hall does not carry, a floor-supported system bringing its own columns is the answer.
It is not the inferior solution but the solution to a different case. A single workstation with a fixed layout, an operating position at a machine, a removal point at a press: there the circle is exactly the right geometry, the installation is erected in days, and the price is well below a rail installation. It also makes sense as a supplement to an existing rail where a single remote position has to be served.
Not: which device do we need? But: what does this area look like in five years? A rail can be extended, a foundation cannot. Anyone serving two positions today who knows a third is coming runs the rail through and later only adds the trolley. That decision costs little at the start and saves a complete second installation later.
| Criterion | Pillar jib | Wall jib | Rail system |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working area | full circle | half circle | free area |
| Floor space | column in the way | none | only if floor-supported |
| Structural requirement | foundation block | load-bearing wall | roof or own columns |
| Extendable | no | no | yes, by extension |
| Erection time | days | days | one to two weeks |
| Worthwhile from | one workstation | one position at a wall | two connected positions |
Usually from the second workstation, if the two are connected. Two jibs cost similarly to buy but need two foundations, occupy floor space twice and leave the zone between them unserved. We work it through case by case – the answer depends strongly on the floor.
That cannot be answered on the phone. The hall structural calculations or an inspection on site are needed; with halls up to the eighties, caution is appropriate. The check is the first step of planning, not the last – if it comes back negative it changes the whole design.
With a rail system yes, provided profile, capacity and suspension were sized for it. That is exactly why we ask about the plans for the area when specifying the first installation. A jib cannot be extended – there the reach is fixed with the foundation.
It can take the load but rarely the task: it serves the whole hall, swings on a rope and is slow in fine positioning. For recurring workstation tasks a dedicated device is almost always faster – and the crane stays free for the rest of the hall.
The whole area covered – in X and Y.
View deviceWide reach by slewing around the column.
View deviceArticulated reach meets weightless floating.
View deviceCAD design in 2D and 3D – from requirements analysis to production-ready drawings.
ViewProcess plants – planned, built, documented and commissioned.
ViewLifting equipment, manipulators and balancers for industry, medical technology and logistics.
ViewManaging Director, Entracon Planungsgesellschaft mbH
Engineer with a doctorate, specialising in plant engineering, digital design and process automation – from simulation through to commissioning.
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