Single Girder vs. Jib Crane: When to Use Each (And a Third Option You Might Miss)

I get asked this weekly: Should I get a single girder crane, or should I go with a jib crane and hoist setup?

The honest answer? It depends entirely on what you're lifting—and where. From the outside, it looks like you just need something overhead to pick things up. The reality is, these systems solve completely different problems. A single girder crane is great for full bay coverage. A jib crane with a hoist is a specialized tool for a dedicated station. And sometimes, what you actually need is something in between—like a glass lifting setup with a low headroom hoist on a pillar jib crane.

Let me break this down by scenario. I'm not going to pretend there's one right answer. There isn't. But after coordinating dozens of overhead lifting installations—including some genuinely tight deadline jobs where we had to get a system online in under a week—I've seen which setups work and which ones create headaches.

Three Scenarios, Three Different Answers

The best way to think about this is to figure out where your operation falls. Broadly, I see three buckets:

• Scenario A: You need to move loads across a wide area—covering multiple workstations or bays.
• Scenario B: You have one or two dedicated workstations where heavy lifting happens repeatedly.
• Scenario C: You're handling awkward, fragile, or oversized loads (like glass panels) that need precise placement.

Each of these scenarios points to a different primary setup. Let me walk through each one.

Scenario A: Full Bay Coverage — Go with a Single Girder Crane

If your workflow involves moving materials from a receiving area to a storage rack, then to a fabrication table, then to a shipping bay—you need coverage. A single girder crane is your best bet. It runs on runways along the length of the bay, and the trolley moves across the girder. That gives you a rectangular footprint of coverage.

Here's the thing that surprised me when I first started specifying these: people assume single girder is the 'cheaper' option compared to double girder. And yes, it generally is. But it has a distinct advantage beyond cost—headroom. Single girder designs typically allow more hook height because the hoist runs on the bottom flange of the beam. If you have a low building, that extra headroom can be the difference between lifting something and not being able to lift it at all.

I'm not 100% sure on the exact percentages across all manufacturers, but based on specs I've reviewed over the last few years, a single girder system generally offers about 12-18 inches more hook height than a double girder in the same building. That's significant.

When to pick this: If your answer to 'where do you need to move things?' covers more than two adjacent stations. Think about a fabrication shop moving raw material from storage to saw to assembly. That's a single girder job.

Scenario B: Dedicated Station — The Jib Crane and Hoist Is Your Tool

Now flip the script. What if you have one machining center, one assembly station, or one testing area where you consistently lift heavy parts? A jib crane is a better fit. A pillar jib crane gives you a full 200-degree (or even 360-degree) arc of rotation around a fixed column. You get coverage of a circular area, typically up to about 20 feet in diameter.

What most people don't realize is that jib cranes are not inherently 'worse' than bridge cranes—they're specialized. They cost less, install faster, and for a single workstation, they're often more efficient because you don't have to wait for a trolley to traverse a long runway.

But here's the catch—and I learned this from a job where we installed five pillar jib cranes in a single facility: the hoist selection matters more than the jib itself. A cheap electric lifting hoist on a jib crane will wobble. It'll drift under load. And if you're trying to position something precisely (like aligning a component during assembly), that wobble is a nightmare.

When to pick this: If the load consistently moves within a 10-foot radius of a fixed point. Think of a welder's station, a press brake, or a dedicated assembly cell.

Scenario C: The Awkward Load — Glass Lifting Equipment Needs Something Different

Here's where things get interesting, and where the 'standard' advice often misses the mark. Glass panels, metal sheets, wood panels—anything large and fragile—these don't behave like a steel block. You can't just hook onto them with a standard hoist hook. You need specialized glass lifting equipment.

But more importantly, you often need a system that combines elements of a jib crane and a bridge crane. I've seen a lot of people try to use a single girder crane for glass handling, and it works—sort of. But the slow traverse speed and the limited precision can make panel placement frustrating.

A setup I've seen work beautifully: a pillar jib crane with a low headroom hoist, fitted with a vacuum lifting attachment. The jib gives you the fine rotational control. The low headroom hoist maximizes vertical space. And the vacuum attachment handles the glass safely.

I remember one install in early 2024 where the client needed to lift 6x8-foot glass panels into a framing station. We were on a tight timeline. The building had low overhead clearance. Everyone assumed they needed a single girder crane. But a pillar jib crane with a low headroom hoist gave them exactly what they needed—and we had it operational in about a week. The alternative would have been custom runway fabrication, which would have taken four weeks.

When to pick this: If your load is large, flat, and fragile—and you're placing it with precision at a fixed station.

How to Figure Out Which Scenario You're In

Here's a quick mental checklist I use when I'm triaging a lifting equipment request:

1. Draw your floor plan. Where is the load picked up? Where is it set down? If those points are more than 20 feet apart in two dimensions, you're likely in Scenario A.
2. Count the stations. If the load goes to one (or two adjacent) stations, you're in Scenario B.
3. Look at the load. If it's fragile, oversized, or needs vacuum or specialized handling, you're likely in Scenario C—even if the other factors suggest A or B.

Also, don't be afraid to ask the hoist manufacturer directly for recent installs similar to yours. They'll often share case studies (with the client name redacted) that can save you from reinventing the wheel.

A Quick Note on Budgeting

I won't give you a hard number because prices vary so much by region and specifications. But here's a ballpark from quotes I've seen in the last six months:

• A 2-ton single girder crane with a 40-foot span, including installation: roughly $25,000 to $45,000.
• A 2-ton pillar jib crane with a 12-foot boom and an electric lifting hoist: roughly $8,000 to $15,000.
• A specialized glass lifting setup (jib + low headroom hoist + vacuum attachment): $18,000 to $30,000.

Take these with a grain of salt. Steel prices fluctuate. But it gives you a starting point.

Look, the wrong choice here isn't just a cost issue—it's a workflow issue. A system that doesn't match your actual lifting pattern will slow you down every single day. That's why I lean toward educating clients on the trade-offs upfront. You can't make a good decision if you don't know what questions to ask. So start with your floor plan and your load type. The answer will become clear.