Crane Procurement Checklist: 7 Steps From Potain Tower Cranes to Overhead Crane Manufacturers

I run equipment procurement for a regional general contractor — about 180 people, roughly $2.4M in annual equipment spend, projects from Salt Lake City commercial builds down to municipal work in southern Utah. Over the past six years, I've managed more than 40 crane-related contracts: tower crane leases, overhead crane purchases, luffing jib tower crane builds, mobile crane parts orders. This checklist is the version I now keep taped inside our purchasing software.

Seven steps. Three to six weeks, depending on how tight your timeline is.

If you're sourcing a Potain crane, a bulk-ton mobile rig, or evaluating an overhead crane manufacturer, the flow is the same. So is the pattern of mistakes buyers make.

Step 1 — Name the crane category before you name a brand

Most people start with a brand. That's backwards. Start with the type: tower crane, overhead crane, or mobile crane?

Because those three categories don't share supply chains. If you're lifting on an assembly line inside a plant, you're talking to an overhead crane manufacturer — not a Potain dealer. If you're doing a mid-rise in downtown Salt Lake, you're talking tower cranes — and an overhead crane manufacturer can't help you there.

This gets conflated more than it should. I once watched a project manager compare an overhead crane quote against a tower crane quote because the first one was cheaper. Both quotes were "correct." They just weren't for the same job.

Step 2 — Scope the jobsite, not the spec sheet

Utah is not a generic crane market. You're working with:

• Seismic zones running along the Wasatch Front
• Valley wind loads that cap tower crane free-standing height
• Site altitude near the mines or up in the canyons, which derates lift capacities

That's part of why "Potain luffing crane Utah" is a real search for local teams — luffing jib tower cranes have a shorter tail swing, and that often decides whether a machine fits a tight downtown lot at all.

Before you call anyone, write down: max radius, max load at that radius, foundation footprint available, wind exposure, seismic category, and power on site. Bring that page to every vendor conversation.

OSHA 29 CFR 1926.1400 covers ground conditions and load rating requirements you're checking against here. Pull the actual standard before you sign anything.

Step 3 — Put all three supply paths on the table

Three paths: new OEM, private label, and used. Each one trades money for risk in a different spot.

Used versus private label is the underrated argument. Both save money. Neither is a slam dunk. Here's what most people miss — the assumption that private label means "same machine, smaller invoice" doesn't hold up. A private label unit may follow the same standard, but part numbering, resale value, and servicing network all fork the moment you go off the OEM channel.

I learned this the expensive way in 2022 on a mobile crane parts order. We went with a smaller supplier's private label equivalent to save 23% off the OEM part. On paper, great. In practice, two hydraulic components weren't available under the private label numbering. Six-week wait for a substitute, and about $3,400 of rework by the time the unit was back in service. Rerun the TCO at six months and we were 11% above the OEM path.

The "always get three quotes" advice ignores that evaluating non-authorized channels doubles your due diligence on part numbers — before the quotes are even comparable.

Step 4 — Build a TCO number, not a quote comparison

This is the step I get the most pushback on, and the one that pays back the most. I run every option through the same spreadsheet:

• Purchase price or lease rate
• Freight and site setup
• Erect and dismantle labor per lift cycle
• Estimated annual maintenance and consumables
• Replacement frequency of wear parts
• Residual value or exit cost
• Downtime penalty

Real example from our 2023 numbers: two tower crane lease options. Option B was $1,200/month more expensive on the rate. But B bundled quarterly service and a spare parts kit. Option A itemized those at extra cost. Over an 18-month lease, Option A came out about 7% higher on total cost. That 7% was invisible on the one-page quote comparison the vendor sent us.

Even after we picked B, I second-guessed it for two weeks. What if A's unit was actually newer and I'd paid for a service bundle we wouldn't use? Didn't fully relax until the first scheduled service call showed up on time, invoice-free.

Step 5 — Verify the parts network before you sign

Something vendors won't tell you: you're not just buying the iron. You're buying the parts pipeline behind it.

For Potain tower cranes specifically, that means confirming dealer coverage for the full model and parts catalog — from MDT 178 and MCT 85 through the older units still in the field. A part with a 10-week lead time doesn't help a machine that needs to lift tonight.

I ask any dealer three questions, in order:

1. Who stocks this specific part number, and where?
2. What's the standard lead time from request to shipment?
3. If I order the same part again 18 months from now, does the number change?

About 25% of the vendors I've talked to get vague on the second and third question. That's not a dealbreaker — it's a contract clause.

Step 6 — Match delivery dates to your site schedule, not the other way around

This is the other mismatch. A machine "delivered on time" is worthless if the site isn't ready to receive it.

For bulk-ton rigging — anything in the 50-ton-plus range — that also means foundation checks, road loading verification, mobile crane support for assembly, and the labor to run the build. In Utah, add winter access to the list.

One insider note: "standard turnaround" from a lot of suppliers already bakes in buffer time. It's a queue-management number, not a lead time for your specific order. Worth asking directly when you're under the gun.

Step 7 — Lock payment, acceptance, and warranty in writing

Every rework job I've lost money on started with a verbal assumption about what "acceptable condition" meant at handover. Put the following in the PO or contract:

• Warranty start trigger (delivery date vs. first lift date)
• What's covered, what's excluded
• Who pays travel and labor during the warranty window
• Buyer's right of rejection and the conditions that trigger it

If the vendor won't commit to specifics, that's your signal.

Things that trip people up

A few closing rules I keep on the wall:

• Don't compare unit price to unit price. Same spec sheet, two vendors, double-digit TCO spread. Every time.
• Don't skip the site scope. Every hour you save on the front end comes back doubled on install day.
• Don't assume OEM is always more expensive. Let the 18-to-24 month TCO tell you. Sometimes the OEM path is the cheap path.
• Don't buy on brand first. Start with the crane type, the lift duty, and the site constraints. Brand is step four, not step one.
• Don't trust a spec sheet that isn't published. If the number is critical, get it in writing from the manufacturer or a certified dealer.

Not every job justifies an OEM path. Not every budget can afford new. When someone asks me which one to pick, my honest answer is usually: "Depends on what your TCO spreadsheet says." Go private label when it's the right call — just go in knowing what you're trading for what.