Truck crane hire
Last updated
Crane truck hire rates
Every crane truck comes with an operator who drives the truck and runs the crane. Prices exclude VAT. Inside a main centre the truck drives to site and travel is small; out of town, travel is quoted as its own line.
| Size | Rate | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 8–10 t crane truck | Per day, with operator | R2,500–R5,200 |
| 8–10 t crane truck | Per hour, with operator | about R1,000 * |
| 12–15 t crane truck | Per day, with operator | R3,200–R5,200 |
| 20–34 t crane truck | Per hour, with operator | about R1,900 * |
* Few price points for this one, so treat it as a guide; the exact price comes back on WhatsApp.
The 8–10 t class is the one most hired; its full specs and rates are on 8 ton crane truck hire. For the 20–34 t class we have few price points, so treat the hourly figure as a guide.
For example, two days of an 8–10 t crane truck delivering and placing steel and tanks on a site in Krugersdorp:
| Example quote (for illustration only) | Amount |
|---|---|
| 8–10 t crane truck, 2 days at R2,500–R5,200 a day with operator | R5,000–R10,400 |
| Transport both ways to Krugersdorp | R2,920–R3,540 |
| Example total, excl. VAT | R7,920–R13,940 |
What changes a crane truck price
- Crane size: the heavier the load at your reach, the bigger the crane and truck.
- Hours or days: a single delivery with a lift at each end is often cheaper by the hour; a day on site setting trusses or offloading several trucks is cheaper by the day.
- Distance: a crane truck drives on its own wheels, so out-of-town jobs are charged per kilometre each way.
- Waiting time: if the truck stands while the site gets ready, that time is charged. Have the drop-off point clear before it arrives.
- Rigging: a rigger or a spreader beam is added as its own line. If the truck must work from the street, the road permit has to be in place before it arrives.
What does "8 ton" mean on a crane truck?
Crane truck size names describe the crane, and the number is usually the most the crane lifts close to the truck. What decides your job is how much it lifts at your reach, and that falls fast as the boom goes out. Two other numbers help:
- Lifting moment (t·m, tonne-metres): the crane's strength. Load × reach can't go over it. A 30 t·m crane lifts at most about 3 t at 10 m.
- Hydraulic outreach: how far the boom reaches with its own rams. Manual (pin-on) extensions reach further but lift less, and their weight comes off the load chart.
A quick check: divide the lifting moment by your reach in metres. That gives a ceiling, and the real chart is a bit lower. On a Palfinger PK 32080 (30.4 t·m), 30.4 ÷ 9.9 m = 3.07 t, and its chart gives 2.9 t at 9.9 m. Always confirm the lift at your reach from the crane's own chart; we do that before we price.
Crane truck sizes and specs
| Class | Crane (or similar) | Most it lifts | Lifting moment | Hydraulic outreach | Stabiliser spread | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8–10 t | Palfinger PK 18500 | 8,000 kg | 18.3 t·m | 14.6 m (18.8 m with fly jib) | 4.8 m | R2,500–R5,200 a day |
| 12–15 t | Palfinger PK 42002 SH | 15,000 kg | 41.1 t·m | 21 m (25.2 m manual) | 7.4 m | R3,200–R5,200 a day |
| 20–34 t | Palfinger PK 65002 SH | 22,000 kg | 62 t·m | 20.4 m (32.6 m with fly jib) | 8.6 m | about R1,900 an hour |
Smaller crane trucks (around 4 t, for a few pallets or a small tank) and 4x4 crane trucks for farms and rough sites are priced on WhatsApp. Tell us the access and the load.
How much a crane truck lifts at reach
This is a real load chart for one 30 t·m knuckle-boom crane (Palfinger PK 32080, B version, or similar). It shows the pattern every crane truck follows: the lift at 10 m is about a third of the lift close in.
| Outreach | Lifts |
|---|---|
| 3.6 m | 8,300 kg |
| 4.3 m | 6,920 kg |
| 6.1 m | 4,780 kg |
| 8.0 m | 3,630 kg |
| 9.9 m | 2,900 kg |
| 11.9 m (manual extension) | 2,340 kg |
| 14.0 m (manual extension) | 1,920 kg |
| 16.2 m (manual extension) | 1,300 kg |
| 18.4 m (manual extension) | 900 kg |
| 20.8 m (manual extension) | 600 kg |
The maker's outreaches are measured with the boom at 20°, so they aren't the maximum reach. Reach is measured from the crane's slewing column, which sits behind the cab: if the truck parks 3 m from a wall and the load lands 4 m past it, that's about 7 m of reach plus the distance from the column to the side of the truck.
Deck space and payload
A crane truck is a delivery truck and a crane in one, and the crane takes some of each:
- Deck length: the crane sits between the cab and the deck. It needs about 0.88 m of chassis on a PK 18500, 0.97 m on a PK 32080, 1.32 m on a PK 42002 SH and 1.56 m on a PK 65002 SH.
- Payload: the crane's own weight comes off what the truck can carry: about 2.1 t for a PK 18500, 3.1 t for a PK 32080, 3.9 t for a PK 42002 SH and 5.0 t for a PK 65002 SH.
So a "flatbed truck with crane" carries less than the same truck without one. If you need a long deck (a 6 m container, long steel lengths, a stack of trusses), tell us and we confirm the deck length and payload of the truck in writing with the price. For loads that only need moving, not lifting, a flatbed truck may do it.
Lift-and-deliver jobs crane trucks do
Containers
Empty containers onto site and off, site offices and storage units. The tare mass is on the container doors.
Tanks
Plastic water tanks onto stands, steel tanks and septic tanks into holes. Bulky tanks catch the wind, so we lift them with tag lines.
Steel
Beams, lintels, roof sheeting bundles and trusses, delivered and lifted onto the walls or roof in one visit.
Bricks, blocks and paving
A "brick crane truck" offloads pallets with a brick grab or pallet forks, straight to where the builder needs them.
Generators and machinery
Generators, compressors and workshop machines in and out of sites. Send the mass and the lifting points.
Precast
Manholes, culverts, kerbs, palisade posts and small precast slabs placed directly from the deck.
Crane truck or mobile crane?
Choose the crane truck when the load is light at your reach and needs carrying anyway. Choose a mobile crane when the load is heavy at reach or high up: at about 10 m a 30 t·m crane truck lifts 2.9 t, while a 20–25 t mobile crane lifts 7.8 t, and the mobile crane's boom reaches 27.9 m. A 20–25 t mobile crane is about R4,500 a day with operator. See mobile crane hire for the capacity-at-radius tables.
Load tests and operator certificates
A truck-mounted crane is a lifting machine under the Driven Machinery Regulations, 2015, with the same rules as a mobile crane:
- A thorough examination and performance (load) test by a lifting machinery inspector of a registered lifting machinery entity at intervals of no more than 12 months (reg 18(5)), and a six-monthly examination of hooks, ropes, brakes and safety devices (reg 18(6)).
- Cranes over 5,000 kg capacity carry a load indicator and/or a load-limiting device (reg 18(9)).
- If you hire the truck, you keep a register on your premises with its latest performance test and service records, not older than 12 months (reg 18(7)(b)).
- The operator holds a certificate for code C32, truck-mounted crane, and a licence card valid for up to 24 months (reg 18(11) and the 2024 National Code of Practice). On construction sites, reg 23 of the Construction Regulations adds a medical certificate of fitness and a daily inspection before use.
Our crane trucks are load-tested, and copies of the certificates come before the truck arrives, on request. More detail: lifting machinery load tests and safety and certificates.
What to have ready
- The load's mass and size, and where it's picked up and placed. A photo of each spot helps us pick the crane.
- Room for the stabilisers: 4.8 m wide on an 8–10 t class crane and up to 8.6 m on the 20–34 t class, on firm, level ground. Keep them off trenches, manholes and fresh fill.
- Access for the truck: gate width, turning space and overhead clearance on the way in.
- Overhead power lines: nobody may come inside a line's safety clearance with the boom or the load without the line operator's permission (Electrical Machinery Regulations, reg 19(5)).
- Street work: if the truck works from a public road, arrange the municipality's permission and traffic control.
How booking, deposit and certificates work step by step: how hiring works.
Crane truck hire near you
We send crane trucks with operators across all 9 provinces. Town pages show local prices and travel: crane truck hire in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town.
- Crane truck hire in Cape Town
- Crane truck hire in Durban
- Crane truck hire in Johannesburg
- Crane truck hire in Pretoria
More on sizes, reach and the rules: our crane truck guide. Lifting pallets around a yard instead? See forklift hire or telehandler hire. Putting people at height? See cherry picker hire.
WhatsApp us the load and the routeQuestions people ask
How much does it cost to hire a crane truck per day?
An 8–10 t crane truck with operator is R2,500–R5,200 a day with operator and a 12–15 t is R3,200–R5,200 a day with operator, excluding VAT. Travel out of town is its own line. The exact price for your load and route comes back in writing on WhatsApp.
How much is crane truck hire per hour?
An 8–10 t crane truck is about R1,000 an hour with operator and a 20–34 t is about R1,900 an hour. We have few hourly price points, so treat them as a guide. A short lift-and-deliver job is usually cheaper by the hour than by the day; tell us the pick-up and drop-off points and we price it both ways.
What is a hiab truck?
“Hiab” is the name many people use for any truck with a folding crane behind the cab, after one crane brand. It means the same as a crane truck, truck-mounted crane or flatbed with crane. Our crane trucks carry HIAB, Palfinger, Fassi or similar knuckle-boom cranes.
Can a crane truck lift a container?
An empty 6 m container, yes, with the right crane and deck: the container's tare (empty) mass is printed on its doors. A loaded container usually needs the 20–34 t class or a mobile crane. Send us the tare and contents mass and where it must be placed.
What certificate does a crane truck operator need?
A certificate of training for code C32 (truck-mounted crane, up to the capacity on the certificate) from an accredited training provider, under Driven Machinery Regulations reg 18(11) and the 2024 National Code of Practice, plus a licence card valid for up to 24 months. Our operators have theirs; copies come before the truck, on request.
Related
Sources we checked
- Palfinger PK 18500 loader crane technical data
- Palfinger PK 32080 loader crane leaflet (lifting capacities)
- Palfinger PK 42002 SH technical data
- Palfinger PK 65002 SH technical data
- Driven Machinery Regulations 2015 (GN R.540), reg 18 lifting machines
- National Code of Practice for Training Providers of Lifting Machine Operators 2024 (Notice 5588), crane codes
- National Code of Practice 2024, clause 14 certification
- Construction Regulations 2014 (GN R.84), reg 23 construction vehicles and mobile plant
- Electrical Machinery Regulations 2011 (GN R.250), reg 19 overhead power lines
Need a crane truck?
WhatsApp us the job, the town and the dates. We confirm the machine, the start date and the price in writing before the machine moves.
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