When Is a Crane Major Inspection Due? (It Isn't Always 'Ten Years')

The myth of ten years

People talk about the ten-year inspection, but a blanket ten years isn't accurate. The real trigger is the crane's design working period and duty class under AS 1418 — commonly around 10 years for mechanisms and up to 25 for structure, but sooner for hard-worked machines and later for lightly-used ones.

Condition monitoring

Best practice across the industry, including CICA's guidance, is moving toward condition monitoring rather than a fixed date — catching component issues as they emerge instead of waiting for a calendar trigger.

Signs yours is due

It's approaching or past its design working period or the manufacturer's interval; it's second-hand with no verifiable history; it's worked hard or in a corrosive environment; a periodic inspection has flagged increasing wear or cracking; or it's been modified, repurposed or in an incident.

Not sure?

Send us the crane type, capacity, year of manufacture and duty, and we'll tell you where it stands — no guesswork.