Operated rental is the default for most picks; bare rental fits long-duration in-house programs. Here is how to choose.
Crane rental comes in two flavors: operated and bare. Operated rental includes a certified operator and most operational risk; bare rental delivers the crane only. Picking the right model is mostly about risk allocation, duration, and whether you have qualified operators in-house.
For the great majority of CDH jobs — refinery turnarounds, commercial HVAC sets, marine topside, utility transformer work — operated is the right call. The crane comes with the operator who runs it every day, fuel is included, the equipment insurance is ours, and you do not have to staff for it.
Any short-duration pick, any pick where you do not have a certified operator in-house, anything in a refinery or petrochem plant, anything marine, and any critical lift. Operated covers ~90% of crane rentals in the Gulf South.
Long-duration in-house programs (a multi-month plant maintenance contract), GC self-perform work where you already employ NCCCO operators, or any case where you have the operator and the insurance to take on operational responsibility.
Operated rental keeps the operator under CDH employment and the equipment insurance on us. Bare rental shifts operational risk and insurance to the customer; we verify operator credentials and complete pre-rental inspection, but the day-to-day operation is yours.
Bare rental rates are lower per hour or per day, but the math shifts once you include your operator labor, fuel, insurance loading, and operational management. For most short-duration picks, operated is cheaper all-in.
Not sure which model fits? Call dispatch at 337-962-3999 and we will walk through it.
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Call dispatch for a two-minute scope. Same-day quote in most cases.