There’s no doubt about it, the sign industry is constantly changing. For sign and lighting companies that service and install outdoor signage, staying ahead of the curve on the latest lift-truck trends can have a tremendous impact on business productivity, safety, and profits for decades to come.

As older sign crane designs manufactured by legacy companies are becoming more difficult to maintain and less compliant with modern safety regulations, manufacturers are leading the effort to develop an innovative and modern generation of lift trucks for the sign industry.

Desirable Lift Truck Features

So what are the major features to look for when investing in a lift truck for sign installation or service? Before examining features, sign companies should first gain a full understanding of the work they currently perform in terms of working heights, side reach, and lifting capacity, as well as crew experience and their current operation and downtime costs. These considerations will help guide the purchasing process by ensuring that that they review the right equipment that will maximize their business potential and ability to complete jobs in a timely manner.

• Working Height and Side Reach—The first feature to look for is basket working height. A good rule of thumb is to aim for a working height that covers at least 80 percent of the company’s jobs. Along with working heights, sign companies should be aware of the side reach they need to reach the job site from the street or parking lot.
  Side reach can vary widely depending on the brand and the boom configuration. Our customers choose models with working heights of 62’ and 85’ and side reaches of 56’ and 61’ respectively. By covering the core 80 percent of their work, they can maximize their equipment use and return on investment.
• Telescopic vs. Articulated Boom—Next, sign companies should review whether or not they need a telescopic or articulated boom. Telescopic booms are “point and shoot,” and are preferred by most sign companies because of how easy they are to operate, the optional material handling main winches, and the improved side reach compared to articulated bucket trucks.
  However, articulated booms can work up and over obstacles to reach signage that would be difficult to reach from the street with a straight boom. While helpful in some situations, articulated booms can also be more complex to operate and they lack a main winch for sign installation.
• Lifting Needs—Once a company has chosen the right working height, side reach and boom configuration, it’s important to consider lifting needs. If most of the work you do involves installing signs weighing more than 500 pounds, it makes sense to consider a sign crane with a high-capacity main winch. Elliott Equipment Company’s sign cranes include winches rated from 5,900 lbs. up to 14,000 lbs. to cover a wide range of sign installation applications. However, if most of the work involves light-duty lifting, it may be better to choose a light-duty lift truck with minimal material handling capabilities.
• Basket Tools—Finally, sign companies should also carefully review the tools that they use in the basket to consider how their truck can be equipped to improve setup and job completion times.
• For example, our HiReach lift trucks can be equipped with 110V, welding, and oxy/acetylene hoses routed through the boom cable carrier and into the basket with quick connections. This makes each truck a truly mobile workshop, and eliminates the need to haul a welder into the basket or to dangle hoses from the truck bed.

Sign Installation Truck Features

Sign companies both large and small see big benefits in running installation sign cranes in their fleet. Owning a sign crane allows companies to perform sign installs without the need for third-party crane rentals or sub-contractors, and lets them fully control the entire sales and installation process. Furthermore, they can set themselves apart through their ability to have scheduling flexibility and their own installers on-site that understand company policies and procedures.

At their core, the sign cranes feature a telescopic boom, a material handling main lifting winch, stabilizers/outriggers, and in most cases, detachable or fixed ‘man basket.’ Newer sign cranes also include a wide range of additional features including remote basket controls, self-leveling baskets, material handling mini ‘jib’ cranes in the basket, fully hydraulic outriggers, and more.

The dual functionality of a material handling winch and a two-man basket makes it possible to fully use a sign crane and keep it operating on a daily basis in a range of jobs. A model featuring a 500 lb. capacity, hydraulically rotating two-man basket with a 500 lb. jib winch and 5,900 lb. main winch on a CDL (commercial drivers license) or non-CDL truck chassis would be ideal. Compared to using older sign cranes, the addition of a hydraulically rotating basket and jib winch makes it possible to perform a wide range of light installation and service work without requiring a second bucket truck.

Sign Service Truck Features

With the increasing use of LEDs, aluminum cabinets and other light-duty components, more and more sign companies are choosing to invest in aerial service trucks without a high capacity main winch. Service trucks have a smaller outrigger footprint, and commonly are mounted on non-CDL truck chassis. Booms can be articulated or telescopic, and they can include one or two man baskets depending on the product.

In 2017, OSHA will implement a series of new crane regulations in the U.S. that will require operators of aerial lifting equipment with winches rated above a 2,000 lb. capacity to acquire a crane operator’s license. This means that operators of service trucks without a main winch will be exempted. To learn more about this, I recommend visiting the www.osha.gov website.

I commonly talk to people from sign companies who tell me that they start with an installation truck as their main workhorse, and then support the installation work with a service truck. For many companies, hiring an operator with a CDL with a crane license is not easy, so having a non-CDL truck on hand can mean big savings for employers. For these applications, my company offers HiReach service trucks with up to 87’ of working height equipped with two-man platforms on non-CDL trucks.

Storage and Payload

Before investing in a new truck, sign companies should gain a full understanding of how much weight they carry to the job site and what size of boxes they need. With new engine emissions regulations, truck chassis weigh more than ever before, which makes it critical to select a sign truck with enough payload for tools and supplies.

It’s no surprise that as truck weights have increased, more and more sign companies are choosing to buy larger sign installation cranes and hiring installers with a CDL. The extra payload capacity makes it worthwhile in most cases, and it opens the door to a whole range of sign cranes with working heights up to 140’.

Making the Right Choices

In summary, there are two classes of sign trucks on the market, installation sign cranes and service sign trucks. Sign cranes offer telescopic booms with material handling winches and baskets that are capable of performing install and service work, but these trucks are often heavier and require a larger chassis. Sign service trucks are smaller and use non-CDL chassis in most cases, but they lack the material handling winch for installation work.

Regardless of a sign company’s needs or aspirations, choosing the right sign truck is a crucial step in growing their business. Looking for products that have a high resale value, strong market presence, excellent support network, and high quality will mean that the investment will boost profits for years to come.