A ship-to-shore rail mounted
gantry cranes are the specialised version of the gantry cranes in which the horizontal gantry rails and their supporting beam are cantilevered out from between frame uprights spaced to suit the length of a standard freight container, so that the beam supporting the rails projects over a quayside and over the width of an adjacent ship allowing the hoist to lift containers from the quay and move out along the rails to place the containers on the ship. The uprights have wheels which run in tracks allowing the crane to move along the quay to position the containers at any point on the length of the ship. The first versions of these cranes were designed and manufactured by Paceco Corporation They were called Portainers and became so popular that the term Portainer is commonly used as a generic term to refer to all ship-to-shore rail mounted gantry cranes.
Workstation Gantry Cranes
Workstation gantry cranes are used to lift and transport smaller items around a working area in a factory or machine shop. Some workstation gantry cranes are equipped with an enclosed track, while others use an I-beam, or other extruded shapes, for the running surface. Most workstation gantry cranes are intended to be stationary when loaded, and mobile when unloaded.
Rail Mounted or EOT Gantry Cranes
Electrical Overhead Travelling (EOT) cranes or Gantry Cranes are commonly found in factory applications such as steel yards, paper mills or locomotive repair shops. The EOT gantry crane functions similarly to an overhead bridge crane, but has rails installed on the ground and gantry-style legs to support the crane. Capacities range from 2 to 200 tons. Most are electrically powered and painted safety yellow.
