ACT Tower Crane 50: 2026 finds steady state

At a glance, the 2026 ACT Tower Crane 50 looks almost identical to last year’s. Total fleet size and branch count are essentially unchanged, and employment ticked up modestly; none of the three headline numbers moved by more than a percentage point or two. That stability extends further than it might first appear: every one of the top eight companies on the list holds the exact same rank it held in 2025. But further down, two companies moved sharply enough to stand out from an otherwise stable year.

Compared with 2025’s totals of 2,411 cranes, 274 branches and 9,942 employees, this year’s index holds essentially flat.

Which way to the top?

Morrow Equipment holds Number 1 for another year, followed by Maxim Crane Works, Uperio North America, ALL Family of Companies, Stafford Tower Crane, Bigge Crane and Rigging, Morwest Crane & Services, and Leavitt Cranes – the same eight companies, in the same order, as 2025.

Morrow Equipment’s Liebherr tower cranes working a high-rise site in Miami, Florida, USA. Photo: Morrow

It’s a sign of a market where the largest operators are neither expanding aggressively nor losing ground.

Just as notable is who’s absent: no new company entered the ACT Tower Crane 50 this year. Last year’s index welcomed two debutants, Bay Crane Companies and Torre Crane. This year, every name on the list was already on it in 2025. Whether that’s a one-year pause or a trend will be worth watching for in 2027.

Below that, two companies account for nearly all the year’s substantial movement. Select Crane Sales climbed 17 spots, the most on this table, from Number 39 to a tie at Number 22. The dealer grew its fleet from three tower cranes to 32 – a roughly tenfold increase in a single year. Bigfoot Crane Company climbed six spots, from 26 to 20, the second-largest gain on the list. Wolffkran continued a steadier, multi-year climb, moving up three spots into the mid-teens.

A closer look

The clearest sign of consolidation this year is the exit of J.F. Lomma from the standalone rankings. For years a holder of the largest single crane capacity in the index – the Favco M1280 – J.F. Lomma’s remaining assets were acquired by Bay Crane. The acquisition shows up in Bay Crane’s headcount and footprint, with employees rising from 1,230 to 1,650 and depots from 24 to 27, though its reported fleet count holds flat at 45 tower cranes both years.

Most of the rest of the list’s movement is mechanical rather than competitive. With J.F. Lomma’s exit shrinking the roster by one, roughly one dozen companies in the bottom third of the list moved up three to five spots simply because the list compressed beneath them.

Holding the line

Taken together, the 2026 ACT Tower Crane 50 shows a sector holding its position. The top of the list hasn’t moved at all, the aggregate numbers are essentially flat, and this year’s real story belongs to two companies – Select Crane Sales and Bigfoot Crane Company – that grew while almost everyone else held steady.

See the full ACT Tower Crane 50 feature in this month’s edition of American Cranes & Transport.