---
title: "Crane runway requirements for new and existing halls — Ervan Cranes"
description: "Crane runway requirements explained: runway beams, crane rails, wheel loads, tolerances and existing buildings, plus the data your crane supplier needs."
url: https://ervancranes.com/en/blog/crane-runway-requirements/
language: en
---

A **crane runway** is the steel structure an overhead crane travels on: two runway beams with rails, end stops and the supports beneath them. It must carry the crane's wheel loads and horizontal forces within tight alignment tolerances. The crane manufacturer supplies the loads; the building's structural engineer designs the runway, columns and foundations for them.

## What a crane runway consists of

For a top-running overhead crane, the runway runs along both sides of the hall. It typically includes:

- **Runway beams:** rolled or welded steel girders on column brackets or on separate runway columns.
- **Crane rails** and their fixings, either welded or held by adjustable clamps.
- **End stops** at both ends, sized for the impact of the crane's buffers.
- **Bracing** that carries longitudinal travel and braking forces down to the foundations.
- **Power supply:** the [conductor line](https://ervancranes.com/en/blog/crane-power-supply-festoon-vs-conductor-bar/) and its brackets along one runway beam.

Underhung (suspension) cranes work differently: their tracks hang from the roof structure, which must then be designed for the crane. How the crane itself is built is explained in our overview of [overhead crane components](https://ervancranes.com/en/blog/overhead-crane-components/).

## Who designs what: crane supplier and structural engineer

The runway sits between two disciplines, and most problems start where responsibilities are left open. The crane manufacturer knows the crane, the structural engineer knows the building, and each needs data from the other.

| Task | Usually responsible |
| --- | --- |
| Wheel loads, horizontal and buffer forces | Crane manufacturer |
| Rail type and crane-side tolerances | Crane manufacturer |
| Runway beams, brackets, columns, bracing, foundations | Structural engineer |
| Fabrication and alignment of the runway | Steel contractor |
| Rails, clamps, end stops, conductor line | Defined in the contract |
| Runway survey before crane installation | Defined in the contract |

In Europe, crane actions on structures are defined in EN 1991-3, and EN 1993-6 is the design standard for steel crane supporting structures. Runway beams also need a fatigue check, because every crane pass loads them again; the crane's classification feeds directly into it.

## Which loads the crane runway carries

- **Vertical wheel loads** from the weight of the bridge, the trolley and the load. They peak on the rail that the loaded trolley is closest to.
- **Dynamic effects** from lifting, travelling over rail joints and braking. Codes cover them with dynamic factors that increase the static loads.
- **Transverse horizontal forces** from trolley acceleration and braking, and from skewing: when the bridge runs slightly askew, the wheel flanges or guide rollers push sideways on the rails. Skewing forces can be the larger of the two.
- **Longitudinal forces** from bridge acceleration and braking, plus buffer forces at the end stops.

When a runway beam sits on a bracket beside the column, the vertical load acts off the column axis and bends the column. In an existing hall, this bending moment, rather than the wheel load itself, is frequently the critical check for the columns.

## Why runway tolerances matter

An overhead crane is a stiff frame on wheels and runs only as smoothly as its runway allows. The parameters to survey are:

- span (rail centre to rail centre) along the full length;
- straightness of each rail in plan;
- rail level along the runway and the height difference between the two rails;
- steps and gaps at rail joints;
- rail position relative to the beam web.

Permitted deviations are given in EN 1090-2 together with EN 1993-6, and the crane manufacturer may ask for tighter values. Beyond them, the wheel flanges are forced against the rail head: flanges and rails wear quickly, travel resistance rises, the crane skews and horizontal forces in the structure grow. A rail sitting off the web centre also adds torsion to the beam and local stress in the web.

Settlement, temperature and wear change a runway over time. Survey it before the crane is installed and again whenever flange wear or skewing appears.

## Crane rails and rail fixing

Light and medium cranes often run on flat bar rails, solid rectangular bars welded or clamped to the top flange. Heavier cranes use crane rails with a base, such as DIN 536 type A rails, fixed with clamps. Rail size is chosen together with the wheel, because wheel load, wheel diameter and tread width determine the contact pressure on the rail head.

Clamped rails can be adjusted and replaced, which helps when the runway needs realignment, and elastomeric pads beneath them reduce noise and spread the load. Welded rails are simple but hard to correct later. Joints must be tight and flush, as a step hits the wheels on every pass. End stops are matched in height and strength to the crane's buffers.

## Installing an overhead crane in an existing building

Many cranes go into halls that were designed without crane loads. Before the crane is ordered, a structural engineer should check:

1. the original drawings and calculations or, if they are missing, the actual sections and materials on site;
2. column capacity for wheel loads, bracket eccentricity and horizontal forces;
3. longitudinal bracing for travel and buffer forces;
4. foundations under the loaded columns;
5. clearance from rail level to the lowest roof element, including lights, ducts and sprinklers.

If the building cannot take the loads as it stands, the options include strengthening columns and bracing, a free-standing runway on its own columns and foundations, a lighter crane, or a gantry crane on floor rails. Hook height and clearances are explained in our guide to [overhead crane dimensions](https://ervancranes.com/en/blog/overhead-crane-dimensions/), and the site work in [overhead crane installation and commissioning](https://ervancranes.com/en/blog/overhead-crane-installation-and-commissioning/).

## What to send to the crane manufacturer

- hall plan and cross-sections with column grid and column profiles;
- top-of-rail level (existing or planned) and clear height to the lowest roof element;
- span or distance between runway beam centres, and runway length;
- existing runway beams, rail type and fixings, if any;
- obstacles: lights, ducts, sprinklers, cable trays, doors, other cranes on the runway;
- position of the power feed and photos of the hall.

Combined with the load, lifting height and duty, this lets the manufacturer calculate reliable wheel loads for your structural engineer.

## How Ervan Cranes approaches the runway interface

At Ervan Cranes, each project starts with a needs analysis and [project design](https://ervancranes.com/en/solutions/project-design/), so the crane is engineered to the building it will serve as well as to its load, span, lifting height and duty class. Our approach is to agree wheel loads and runway requirements with your structural engineer at the design stage. Cranes are fabricated at our facility in Torbalı, İzmir, and the team that designs a crane also commissions it. The [overhead cranes we design and build](https://ervancranes.com/en/products/overhead-cranes/) cover single and double girder designs from 1 to 100 t.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### Can an existing hall carry an overhead crane?

In many cases, yes, but only a structural check can confirm it. Columns, brackets, bracing and foundations must take the wheel loads, the bending from eccentric brackets and the horizontal forces. Where they cannot, a free-standing runway or a gantry crane keeps the loads out of the building.

### Who is responsible for the crane runway?

Normally the building owner, through their structural engineer and steel contractor. The crane manufacturer provides the loads, rail requirements and tolerances. Who supplies the rails, end stops and conductor line, and who surveys the runway, should be written into the contract.

### How often should a crane runway be inspected?

Include it in the crane's periodic inspection, which national rules require at set intervals: at least yearly in Germany under BetrSichV and DGUV Vorschrift 52, and typically yearly in Türkiye under the work equipment regulation. Check rail fixings, joints, end stops and welds during routine maintenance, and have the geometry surveyed when skewing or flange wear appears.

### Why does a crane skew or ‘crab’ on its runway?

Typical causes are runway deviations in span, straightness or level, unequal diameters of the driven wheels, a bridge that is out of square, or drives that do not run in step. The signs are flange wear, squealing and bright marks on the side of the rail head. The fix starts with surveying both runway and crane; replacing worn wheels alone only treats the symptom.

## Plan the runway and the crane together

Send us your hall drawings, column grid, rail level and the load you need to lift, and we will clarify early which crane data your structural engineer needs. [Request a quote](https://ervancranes.com/en/request-a-quote/) to start the project design.

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