A robust future

Mobile cranes market has seen many innovations in the recent years that are expected to address the growing demands from the infrastructure sector. Construction Times explores the new developments and the way forward for mobile cranes. 

Mobile cranes are crucial for construction projects as they help in moving components and materials within the construction site, as well as between offsite facilities and the construction site. The mobile cranes market has undergone segmentation based on machinery type, such as all terrain cranes, truck cranes, rough-terrain cranes, pick-n-carry cranes, among others.

The market dynamics

Mobile cranes hold the largest market share. In India, the surge in heavy construction projects, including flyovers, railways, metros, and bridges, has driven demand for heavy-duty mobile cranes. Anticipated growth lies in the increased demand for higher tonnage mobile cranes across various application segments. The usage of mobile cranes is expanding in plant erection and expansion projects, and the renewable energy sector, especially wind sector, is also contributing to the rising demand for mobile cranes.

Major players in the mobile cranes segment are bullish on the current market dynamics and the future outlook, as Manish Mathur, CEO – Cranes, Action Construction Equipment, highlights, “At present, the cranes market is growing at a rate of 25-30% YoY and with the present growth momentum of economy and government focus on infrastructure and manufacturing, we feel that it will continue to grow at least at 15-20% CAGR.” According to him, ACE is the largest mobile crane manufacturer in India and also, the world’s largest manufacturer of pick-n-carry cranes.

Pick-n-carry cranes

In India, pick-n-carry cranes make the lions share in the mobile cranes segment. Pick-n-carry cranes are used for a wide range of material handling operations and are extremely popular in Indian market, comprising over 90% of the total mobile crane industry in India. Abhijit Shinde, National Sales Head, Escorts Kubota, says, “The Indian mobile crane industry recorded an exceptional 26% growth YoY in current financial year (FY24) wherein pick-n-carry cranes segment record an impressive 45% growth YoY.” According to him, in the category of pick-n-carry cranes, Escorts Kubota continues to hold an undisputed market leader position in safe cranes segment.  

Medium & heavy-duty mobile cranes

The current market scenario of mobile cranes in India, specifically tyre-mounted medium and heavy category, as well as crawler cranes across various categories, is experiencing a positive upswing. The demand for these cranes is notable in projects such as high-speed railway, refineries, steel and cement plant expansions, and metro projects. The heavy-duty cranes are particularly sought after for wind turbines, catering to the need for increased hub height. Going ahead, the market for heavy-duty cranes is expected to grow further looking at more large-scale projects coming up. V G Sakthikumar, MD & CEO, Schwing Stetter India, adds, “Our outlook on the demand trend is optimistic, driven by factors such as the expansion of infrastructure projects across the country. The demand-supply scenario is dynamic, with a notable demand for heavy-duty cranes with higher tonnage capacity, especially in projects like wind turbines.”

Technology trends

Mobile cranes are one equipment segment where technology has evolved in a big way in terms of efficiency, safety and productivity. According to Mathur, the use of technology in machinery provides opportunities to improve the design and production of products using the service feedback. This can reduce considerably, the overall cost of the machinery through its lifespan along with a reduction in material consumption. On technology front, he adds, “The company provides option of Telematics which in turn digitises the equipment. It helps the owners of the machinery to remotely monitor and supervise the various functional parameters of the machine and remain updated of its health and maintaining the same to optimum level for better performance.”

Zoomlion is a major player that has introduced advanced heady-duty mobile cranes in the market. Danish Lari, Business Director - North, East and South India, Zoomlion India, elaborates on the safety and technology features in their range of cranes, “The big tonnage cranes are fully loaded with safety cut-off features like no boom operation can be taken by operator without adjustment and placement of outrigger. In the crawler cranes, we saw there were some incidents happened at site so we are now able to provide ground pressure data in system which will provide the feedback to operators in case ground pressure is not suitable. Engine cut-off/boom cut-off safety features will avoid any damage happening further in the crane in case of any malfunction of system.”

Aftermarket services

Prompt aftersales services will boost the confidence among the customers on the machines and their use without any hesitation. Aftermarket service support helps ensure that the customer gets as much use and value as possible out of their product. “We at Escorts Kubota believe in quality after-sales services to our customers that results in positive word of mouth for a company, brand loyalty and repeat sales,” says Shinde.

Liebherr, in India, has a strong base with capable sales and service teams with dedicated spares team. Additionally, Liebherr provides all sorts of services like Annual Rate Contracts (ARC), Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC), Liebherr crane refurbishment, Used Liebherr cranes acquisition and resale and reconditioning of older cranes. “We have bases across the breadth of India, primarily operating from Mumbai and Kolkata.,” Chandra adds.

Rentals

The demand for mobile cranes has witnessed a significant growth in the recent times due to the rise in the number of infrastructure projects for execution. This has driven the demand for rentals for mobile cranes. Satin Sachdeva, Founder and Secretary General, CERA (Construction Equipment Rental Association), and MD, Equipment Planet, provides an overview of the rental market, “The trend towards renting equipment instead of purchasing outright continues to drive growth in the rental market, making mobile cranes an attractive option for businesses looking for flexibility and cost-effectiveness. The adoption of precast technology further amplifies the demand for mobile cranes, as they are essential for lifting and positioning precast components efficiently. Moreover, mobile cranes are increasingly required at power plants, refineries, and other relevant projects such as windmill installations, where recent big pushes have necessitated the deployment of significant numbers of crawler cranes, ranging from 600 to 800-ton capacity. This diverse range of applications underscores the robust demand for mobile cranes across various sectors in the current market scenario.”

Market outlook

The outlook is positive for the mobile cranes market according to various steps taken by the government for infrastructure development. The most recent step in this direction is the allocations in the interim budget for the capex in the year 2024-25. “With government determined to initiate infra activity worth Rs 11.1 lakh crore in this financial year, not only our crane industry but the entire construction equipment industry has great days ahead,” says Mathur.

However, there are major supply challenges as to match the growth in demand. The entire supply chain requires capex which is very hard to coordinate as the liquidity in the system is still not at the desired level due to higher interest rates and other regulatory requirements, according to Mathur.