Rent Spider Lifts – Maximum Stability on Difficult Terrain

Spider lifts – also known as crawler platforms or tracked aerial work platforms – take you where wheels sink in, floors would be damaged or access routes are too narrow. Luibl rents out eight spider lifts from CTE and Teupen with 13.00 to 39.50 m working height and up to 17.00 m outreach. Every machine has a bi-energy drive and is delivered by our own low-loader from our Passau depot to your site. How the spider lift differs from scissor, articulating and telescopic boom lifts is shown in the overview Rent a lifting platform – designs compared; all aerial work platforms in the fleet are listed under rent aerial work platforms.

Choosing the right machine comes down to three questions: How narrow is the access, how much load can the ground take, and how far is the working point from where the machine sets up? The following sections answer them in turn.

The tracked undercarriage spreads the machine's weight over a large contact area. Ground pressure is therefore much lower than with a wheeled chassis – lawns, paving and indoor floors stay intact. The rubber tracks usually leave no marks on parquet, natural stone or tiles. Off-road, spider lifts cross mud, sand and gravel where wheels would spin.

At working height the machine stands on four fold-out outriggers. Each can be adjusted individually, so the platform stays level on slopes, on landings or next to raised flower beds.

Key data of our spider lifts:

• Working height: 13.00 to 39.50 m
• Platform capacity: 200 to 400 kg
• Outreach: 6.50 to 17.00 m
• Stowed width: from 0.78 m (CTE TRACCESS 135, 200 and 270)
• Machine weight: 1,600 to 11,900 kg
• Drive: bi-energy – combustion engine for outdoor use, electric mode for indoor work

The tracks protect the ground while the machine is travelling. During work, however, the load is concentrated on the four outrigger pads. What lies under the outriggers therefore decides whether a job stays damage-free. Before delivery, check which of the following surfaces you have at the working area:

• Lawns, parks, cemeteries: The tracks spread the load well along the route. Place load-spreading pads under the outriggers so they do not press into damp ground. Allow for larger pads after long periods of rain.
• Paving, slabs, terraces: Individual slabs can break or tilt under point loads if the bedding gives way. Outrigger pads bridge several stones and distribute the load. Where there are voids – for example above basements or service shafts – check the load-bearing capacity with the owner in advance.
• Indoor floors such as parquet, natural stone, tiles and screed: The rubber tracks run without marking. Place the outrigger pads on protective boards or mats. For underfloor heating, raised access floors or old timber-beam ceilings, the permissible distributed and point loads must be known before the machine enters the room.
• Gravel, sand, crushed stone, construction sites: This is where tracked machines show their off-road ability. Set the outriggers on compacted ground or on sufficiently large pads.
• Slopes and steps: The individually adjustable outriggers compensate for inclines. The permissible set-up gradient is stated in the operating manual of each machine – we will advise you before hire.

Machine weight is the key planning figure: a CTE TRACCESS 135 weighs 1,600 kg, a Teupen LEO40GTX 11,900 kg. Tell us the ground conditions in your enquiry and we will recommend the lightest machine that reaches your working height.

Our rental fleet is split into two series with clearly different strengths. The CTE TRACCESS models are narrow and light and fit through gates and doorways. The Teupen LEO models reach greater heights and outreach but are 1.58 m wide.

How to read the table:

• Access narrower than 1 m: Only the CTE TRACCESS series fits. The TRACCESS 270 still reaches 27 m working height and 14 m outreach through narrow access.
• Large outreach: From 15 m outreach, Teupen is the choice. The LEO30Tplus reaches 17.00 m – the largest outreach in the fleet.
• Heavy material or two people with tools: The Plus models and the LEO40GTX carry 400 kg in the platform.
• Maximum height: The Teupen LEO40GTX reaches 39.50 m but weighs 11,900 kg. On sensitive ground, first check whether the LEO35Tplus with 35 m and 5,400 kg is sufficient.

A spider lift pays off whenever a wheeled aerial work platform cannot reach the working area or would damage the ground. In practice there are four situations:

• Green spaces and tree care: Narrow models from 0.78 m pass through garden gates into courtyards and parks. The tracks protect lawns and root zones, and the outreach brings the platform into the crown.
• Interiors and listed buildings: In churches, museums, halls and shopping centres the machines work in electric mode without exhaust at the point of use. The rubber tracks protect parquet, natural stone and tiles.
• Facades, glass and building services: Glass cleaning, rooflights, signage and maintenance on hard-to-reach exterior walls, even where unpaved ground surrounds the building. The slewing upper structure saves repositioning.
• Rough terrain and events: Sites with mud, sand or gravel, slopes, and stage and rigging work at events – with no anchoring in the ground and no damage to hall floors or lawns.

Listed interiors combine every requirement at once: narrow portals, sensitive floors, no exhaust and working points high above pews or fittings. The following example shows how to plan such a job step by step – for instance inspecting a vaulted ceiling at 16 m.

1. Measure the access: The clear width of the portal or side entrance determines the series. With less than 1 m clear width, only a CTE TRACCESS fits – for 16 m working height the TRACCESS 170 with 0.80 m width or, if extra distance over the pews is needed, the TRACCESS 200 with 20 m working height and 8.50 m outreach.
2. Clarify floor and loads: Agree with the heritage authority and the owner what distributed load the floor can take and whether there are crypts or voids beneath it. Plan protective boards for the route and pads for the outriggers.
3. Fix the set-up point: If pews are in the way, the machine works from the centre aisle. The outreach then has to bridge the distance to the working point.
4. Plan for electric mode: Indoors the machine travels and works electrically. Clarify where it can be charged during longer jobs.
5. Agree time slots: Services, guided tours and concerts determine working hours. Allow for set-up and repositioning time and enquire early.

The same approach applies to museums, palaces, theatres and historic halls.

Mobile elevating work platforms may only be operated by people trained in accordance with DGUV Principle 308-008 and authorised in writing by their employer. The duty to carry out a risk assessment and instruction follows from the German Ordinance on Industrial Safety and Health (BetrSichV). At handover we familiarise your operators with the specific spider lift.

For basic training we recommend a course to IPAF standard. Luibl does not run training courses itself but provides information on certified providers: Trainings.

Spider lifts are not approved for road use. Luibl therefore delivers them with its own low-loader from our Passau depot directly to your site – in Lower Bavaria, Austria and across Europe. Transport weight ranges from 1,600 kg for the CTE TRACCESS 135 to 11,900 kg for the Teupen LEO40GTX and influences vehicle and costs. Please tell us what the access road is like and where the low-loader can unload.

If the ground is paved and the working point freely accessible, wheeled machines are often the more economical choice: articulating boom lifts for work over obstacles and telescopic boom lifts for great heights.

Spider lifts cost more to rent than comparable wheeled machines – the tracked undercarriage, the variable outriggers and the rubber tracks are more complex. They become economical where no alternative could be used at all or where ground protection would otherwise be expensive.

These factors determine the rental price:

• Working height and outreach: Between a 13-metre machine for indoor work and a 39.5-metre spider lift there are several classes. With up to 17 m outreach, reach often matters more than height.
• Series: The narrow CTE TRACCESS models for tight access, the Teupen LEO models for large outreach and 400 kg platform capacity.
• Rental period: Daily, weekly and monthly rates are staggered; for longer projects, long-term terms including maintenance and periodic inspection during the rental period apply.
• Transport: Delivery and collection by our own low-loader are shown separately, based on distance from Passau, transport weight and access.

If the ground can take the load and the working point is freely accessible, also consider the more economical alternatives: a scissor lift for purely vertical work or an articulating boom lift on wheels. All types at a glance: rent aerial work platforms.

Send us the working height, horizontal distance to the working point, access width, ground conditions, site location and rental period via our contact form – you will receive a binding quote at short notice.