Cranes -2000 kg Maximum G-Rail Cranes

Manufactured by Givens Engineering in London, Ontario

G-Rail Cranes: Extremely lightweight, extremely versatile…

The G-Rail crane is the next step in the evolution of enclosed-track cranes. G-Rail cranes are designed to be extremely lightweight, move with very little friction, and have an adaptable, modular design. If you're concened about ergonomics, you'll understand why it is so important to keep the bridge weight , and the friction, to the lowest levelpossible.

G-Rail Track Profiles:

C250 Aluminum Profile
Nominal 250kg capacity, 150mm x 70mm:
C1000 Aluminum Profile
Nominal 1000kg capacity, 250mm x 110mm:

These rail shapes feature an extremely high moment-of-inertia (stiffness) to weight ratio. They are also have atorsional stiffness that is unusually high compared to most traditional rail profiles.Notice how high the profile is relative to its width --maximizing the stiffness-to-weight ratio.

Advantage: Extremely lightweight bridge

G-Rail (TM) crane profiles, combined with Slant-Truss bolt-on reinforcements combine to create one of the lightest lifting systems in the world.

When you have to move a load quickly, the importance of a lightweight bridge becomes obvious! The Slant Truss bolts into the upper G-rail track profile, instantly stiffening the span. The longest, lightest spans possible can be achieved.

The Slant Truss is an all-alumninum bolt-together system that improves the stiffness of the G-Rail by several times. Its natural triangular shape applies the most stiffness where it's needed--at the midpoint of the span.

When spans approach 25', 30' and even 35', the weight of the bridge increases exponentially, making many long-span cranes ergonomically impossible --there is simply too much weight for a worker to pull back and forth quickly. The extremely lightweight G-Rail, reinforced with the Slant Truss, makes long spans much more feasible.

Advantage: Completely free-standing support frame

The support frame for the G-Rail crane is one of the strongest on the market.

Many competitors state that unless movement of the support frame can be tolerated,
attachment to part of the building structure may be necessary.

G-Rail cranes are meant to be entirely self-supporting, due to some of the largest
columns in the industry. Typically, C250 cranes have columns 5" x 5", where
competitors columns can be 3" x 3" and 4" x 4".
C1000 columns are generally 7" x 7", where competitors' are 5" x 5".

In addition to the columns, G-Rail cranes are stiffened by recruiting the runway itself to rigidize the top of the frame. In effect, the runways become part of the frame! In particular, the saddle clamp, (painted yellow, supporting the runway), which is unique in the industry, connects the header absolutely rigidly to the runway. Notice that the headers are made of tube --not I-beam or channel-- adding to the stiffness in the direction of the runways.

Advantage: Low running friction

The key to smooth, friction-free running is in the end trucks.

G-rail end trucks are rigid, as opposed to articulating --that is, the bridge cannot skew
with respect to the runways. This means that the whole bridge moves along evenly,
with less 'pendulum effect'.

Our end trucks are machined from aluminum, not welded, making them very accurate and square-fitting, which eliminates the
possiblity of binding.

Where some cranes boast that their end trucks are very short, we believe that a longer end truck is better for smooth running, and low friction --and our end trucks are the longest in the industry!

Notice especially the size of the guide wheels at either end of the end truck; where most cranes have very small wheels for economy, ours are relatively the largest of any crane!

Advantage: G-Rail cranes are very versatile.

Many different installation variations are possible for your specific situation.

We understand that a perfectly rectangular crane is not always possible, that there are often obstacles to avoid.

For example, most C250 cranes can be made with L-shaped columns, where any column is completely independent of the other columns.

What this means is that an L-column does not have to be directly opposite another column.

Another advantage of the L-column is that a completely open architecture is possible: notice that in this drawing below, the sides of the crane are open to admit a
larger crane, or a forklift, etc.

The Slant Truss….

Can be added to the G-rail, or not, as the loading requires.

G-Rail does not need to be reinforced if the span is 4m (13') or less, even if the rail is fully loaded.

For example, the crane shown here, with C250 rail, has a capacity of 250kg, and has no trusses. This is because no span exceeded 4m.

If the rail is not fully loaded, the untrussed span can be more than 4m.

Fo example, if this crane were rated for less than the rated load, for 100kg,
then the untrussed span allowed would rise to 6m (20').

But if a Slant Truss were added to the C250 rail, the allowable span would rise to
9m (30')!

G-Rail Capacity Charts

The G-Rail capacity for any given span is shown here, where the weight of a hoist has already been included.