Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd

What Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd does

Bob Francis Crane Hire Limited is a UK-based specialist crane hire company founded in 1982, providing mobile cranes, crawler cranes, and heavy haulage services to a broad client base across the construction, industrial, and maritime sectors. The company operates from four depot locations — Rhyl (North Wales), Chester (Deeside), Anglesey, and Shrewsbury — delivering daily service coverage across North and Mid Wales, the North West, and the Midlands, with extended reach throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland for multi-industry contracts. Its core technology is a modern, large-scale fleet of fully hydraulic mobile cranes (30 to 230 ton capacity from manufacturers including Grove, Liebherr, and Tadano), crawler cranes, HIAB truck-mounted units, heavy haulage tractor units (including a 150-ton Scania), and specialist trailers (Nooteboom, Goldhofer, Kassbohrer), supported by telehandlers and an urban trailer range. Certifications including UVDB Verified, SSIP, Constructionline Gold, and ISO 9001 underpin its eligibility for major construction and infrastructure contracts.

The business model is project-based equipment rental, with revenue generated from three streams: mobile crane and crawler crane hire, CPA contract lift services with full lifting and rigging, and heavy haulage transport. Services are delivered on a per-project or per-contract basis via an enterprise field sales motion through depot locations and dedicated phone contacts, with no published pricing. The customer base is described as broad, with named enterprise clients including Smit International for maritime operations. The company is privately held, founder-owned, and independently operated since 1982, with no disclosed external investment, acquisition, or leadership change. Recent fleet activity (2024-2025 additions including the Liebherr LTM 1230-5.1 at 230-ton, a 120-ton Liebherr LTM 1120-4.1, a 5-ton Hitachi mini crawler, and expanded heavy haulage trailers) signals ongoing capital investment in fleet capability, particularly at the heavier end of the lifting spectrum.

Name

Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd

Legal name

Bob Francis Crane Hire Limited

Website

https://bobfranciscranehire.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bob Francis Crane Hire Limited is a UK-based specialist crane hire company, founded in 1982, providing mobile cranes, crawler cranes, and heavy haulage services to construction, industrial, and maritime clients across the UK and Ireland from four depot locations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Crane Hire Services

NAICS

Construction, Mining, and Forestry Machinery and Equipment Rental and Leasing (532412)

SIC

Construction, Mining & Materials Handling Machinery & Equip (3530)

akta.pro primary industry

Cranes & Heavy Lifting Equipment Rental/Leasing (TLABAFAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Truck-Mounted & Loader Cranes (IMAHAJAF), Mobile & Crawler Cranes (IMAHAJAA), Cranes, Hoists & Rigging Equipment MRO (Mobile/Tower Cranes, Winches) (TLAKAHAE)

Keywords

• Mobile crane hire
• Crawler crane rental
• Heavy haulage services
• Contract lift services
• CPA crane hire

Headquarters

HQ city

Rhyl

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Crane Hire Services: Mobile crane and crawler crane rental services provided on a project or contract basis to construction, industrial, and maritime clients.
2. Contract Lift Services: CPA contract lift crane hire with full lifting and rigging services for complex heavy lifts.
3. Heavy Haulage: Heavy haulage transport services throughout the UK and Ireland.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd is a specialist crane hire company providing mobile crane hire, crawler crane hire, heavy haulage, and CPA contract lift services to construction, industrial, and maritime clients. Operations are delivered from four UK depot locations (Rhyl, Chester, Anglesey, Shrewsbury) serving North and Mid Wales, the North West, the Midlands on a daily basis, and clients across the UK and Ireland on multi-industry contracts. The fleet includes mobile cranes from 30-ton to 230-ton capacity, crawler cranes, HIAB vehicles, heavy haulage tractor units, and telehandlers, all operated by a trained team.

Product overview

Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd is a specialist crane hire company offering a comprehensive fleet of mobile cranes, crawler cranes, HIAB vehicles, trailers, and telehandlers for hire throughout the UK and Ireland. The company operates from multiple depot locations in Rhyl, Chester, Anglesey, and Shrewsbury, serving North and Mid Wales, The North West and Midlands on a daily basis. Their mobile crane fleet ranges from 30-ton to 230-ton capacity units, including Grove and Liebherr models, complemented by compact crawler cranes for constrained access work. Heavy haulage services are supported by a fleet of tractor units and trailers, while HIAB trucks provide truck-mounted crane capabilities for delivery and installation work.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mobile Crane Hire Hire of mobile cranes (30-ton to 230-ton capacity, including Grove and Liebherr models) operated by a trained and experienced team, available throughout the UK and Ireland for construction, industrial, and maritime lifting operations.
• Crawler Crane Hire Hire of large-scale, modern, fully hydraulic crawler cranes with state-of-the-art safety features for heavy and demanding lifts, including compact crawler cranes for constrained access work.
• Heavy Haulage Services Heavy haulage transport services throughout the UK and Ireland using a fleet of tractor units (including 150-ton 3-axle Scania) and trailers (Nooteboom, Goldhofer, Kassbohrer, and urban trailers) for plant and equipment transport.
• CPA Contract Lift Services Contract lift crane hire with full lifting and rigging services under CPA terms for complex heavy lifts, including specialist lifting and rigging capabilities for demanding projects.
• HIAB Vehicle Hire Truck-mounted HIAB crane units (Scania and Volvo tractor units with Fassi cranes, including beavertail variants) for local delivery, vehicle transport, and lifting services.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Emerson Crane Hire: UK crane hire operator providing mobile cranes, contract lifts, and CPA crane hire across multiple regions. Closely comparable in service offering and customer segments to Bob Francis.
• King Lifting: UK-based crane hire company providing mobile cranes, contract lifts, and heavy haulage. Directly comparable in customer segments (construction, industrial) and service mix to Bob Francis, with a similar mid-tier regional footprint.
• Weldex (International Crane Hire): UK crawler crane and heavy lifting specialist serving construction, infrastructure, and industrial clients. Strong overlap in crawler crane and contract lift services with Bob Francis's fleet.
• Ainscough Crane Hire: The UK's largest crane hire company, providing mobile and crawler crane rental across the UK. Most direct competitor to Bob Francis in the same product category, with a larger fleet and national footprint.
• Heavy Lift Solutions: UK crane hire company operating mobile cranes and heavy haulage services. Comparable in fleet composition and customer base (construction, industrial, infrastructure).

Regional players

• Nationwide Platforms: UK's largest provider of aerial work platforms and powered access, with adjacent material handling services. Operates in the broader equipment rental market but specializes in access platforms rather than mobile lifting cranes.
• George Cox & Sons: North West England-based crane hire and heavy haulage operator. Comparable in regional footprint (North West) and service offering (mobile cranes, heavy haulage) but operates in a different sub-region than Bob Francis.

Others

• Liebherr (Great Britain): OEM of mobile and crawler cranes including many of the same Liebherr models in Bob Francis's fleet (LTM 1030, 1040, 1050, 1060, 1120, 1230). Not a direct competitor but a key supplier and benchmark for fleet composition.

Broad incumbents

• Sarens: Global crane rental, heavy lifting, and engineered transport company with UK operations. Provides overlapping crawler/mobile crane and heavy haulage services to industrial, energy, and infrastructure clients.
• Mammoet: Global heavy lifting and transport specialist with major UK presence. Operates crawler cranes, mobile cranes, and engineered heavy transport — comparable in core service lines but operates at much larger scale and internationally.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bobfranciscrane
• Facebookfacebook.com/bobfranciscranehire
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bob-francis-crane-hire-limited
• Instagraminstagram.com/_bobfranciscranehire_

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd