Modular & Portable
Building
Lifting in Melbourne
Site Sheds, Transportables and Prefabricated Modules
We lift and place modular buildings, transportables, site sheds, portable offices and prefabricated modules across Melbourne. Onto footings, onto piers, onto trucks, off trucks, and stacked into position on modular builds.
These loads catch people out because they are light for their size. A building that weighs four tonnes handles nothing like a four-tonne steel beam, and the damage that happens on these lifts almost never involves anything being dropped.
The Failure Mode Is Twisting, Not Dropping
A building is a box. Lift it from two points and it wants to fold in the middle; lift it unevenly and it racks, turning the rectangle into a parallelogram. Racking can leave doors unable to close, crack windows in their frames, separate wall sheets at the joins and leave floors out of level. Modules and transportable buildings are therefore lifted from four points using a spreader arrangement that keeps the slings vertical and prevents the rigging from squeezing the walls and roof inward. Spreader bars also stop angled chains from applying pressure to the barge, roof edges or wall cladding. A properly rigged lift keeps the slings away from the structure entirely. Send us the building dimensions, weight and lifting-point details for projects across Melbourne, Geelong, Bacchus Marsh and Western Victoria.
What We Check Before Lifting
Six things that get confirmed before the hook takes weight:
- Lifting points and hardware. Condition, type, and rating of the lugs or ferrules, and that the rigging matches them.
- Weight and balance. Actual weight rather than an estimate, and where the center of gravity sits, since fitouts and services rarely sit centrally.
- Nothing loose inside. Contents shift during a lift and change the balance mid-air. Furniture, tools, documents and equipment either get secured or come out.
- Transport restraints removed. Every restraint off before lifting, and every one accounted for, since one missed strap will hold a module to a trailer.
- Rigging geometry. Spreader configuration set for the building’s lift point spacing, with headroom under the hook checked as part of it.
- Trial lift. The building comes up a few hundred millimeters and stops, so balance and rigging can be verified before it goes anywhere.
That last one takes about a minute and finds problems while the building is still over the trailer rather than over its footings.
What We Check Before Lifting
Six things that get confirmed before the hook takes weight:
Lifting points and hardware
Weight and balance
Nothing loose inside
Transport restraints removed
Rigging geometry
Trial lift
What We Lift
Site Sheds and Portable Offices
Site offices, amenities, lunch rooms, first aid rooms and storage units delivered, positioned and collected at project end.
Transportable Buildings
Transportable homes, granny flats, cabins, classrooms and relocatable buildings placed onto footings and piers.
Prefabricated Modules
Structural steel modules for modular construction, lifted from the trailer and positioned or stacked to the erection sequence.
Bathroom and Service Pods
Prefabricated bathroom pods, plant modules and service risers placed into position during construction.
Sheds, Cabins and Outbuildings
Garden sheds, studios, pool houses, kiosks and small structures lifted over houses and into rear yards.
Relocations and Removals
Existing buildings lifted off their footings, transported and reinstalled elsewhere, or removed from site entirely.
Call us now at 0457 000 637.
How the Job Runs
How the Job Runs
Four steps, one phone call. Start yours now.
Four steps, one phone call. Start yours now.
Send the building details
Call, email or fill in the quote form with your site address, load weight, dimensions and required date. Photos and drawings help.
Send the building details
Call, email or fill in the quote form with your site address, load weight, dimensions and required date. Photos and drawings help.
Method confirmed
Lifting points assessed, rigging and spreader configuration determined, crane selected on weight and reach, and transport method decided.
Method confirmed
Lifting points assessed, rigging and spreader configuration determined, crane selected on weight and reach, and transport method decided.
Permits and scheduling
Oversize approvals and road occupancy arranged where required, and the date set around the approval timeline.
Permits and scheduling
Oversize approvals and road occupancy arranged where required, and the date set around the approval timeline.
Lift and place
Restraints removed, trial lift performed, building lifted, traversed and landed on its footings, then adjusted and secured before the crane releases.
Lift and place
Restraints removed, trial lift performed, building lifted, traversed and landed on its footings, then adjusted and secured before the crane releases.
Transport and Lift Together
Most of these jobs involve both, and it is worth knowing which part drives the timeline.
- Planning the Timeline. A building wider than about 2.5 meters is an oversize load. Most transportables and many modules exceed that comfortably, which means permits, signage, and potentially pilot vehicles for the transport leg. Those approvals take longer to arrange than the lift takes to perform.
- Oversize Load Transport. Where the building is small enough, and the site allows, a crane truck can carry and place it in one visit. Where it is larger, the transport runs on a float, or a tilt tray, and a separate crane meets it at the destination.
- Crane Truck Delivery. Either way, both ends need access confirmed. Getting a module to a site it cannot be delivered into is a common and expensive way to lose a day.
Moving a transportable across Melbourne? Call 0457 000 637 early, because the permit lead time usually sets the date.
Transport and Lift Together
Most of these jobs involve both, and it is worth knowing which part drives the timeline.
Most of these jobs involve both, and it is worth knowing which part drives the timeline.
What size crane do I need to lift a modular building?
It depends on the module weight and the reach required. Structural steel modules commonly run from around eight to twenty tonnes, while site sheds and small transportables are considerably lighter. The reach from where the crane can stand to the final position usually matters more than the weight.
How are modules lifted?
From four points, using engineered lifting lugs or cast-in ferrules built into the frame, connected through a spreader beam ormulti-legg arrangement. Four-point lifting keeps the structure square and prevents the racking that a two-point pick causes.
Why does a spreader bar matter on a building lift?
It keeps the slings vertical and separated, so the rigging is not pulling inward against the walls and roof. Without it, the chains compress the structure, damaging the barge, roof edge, and cladding, and the building can rack out of square.
My building has no lifting points. Can you still lift it?
Not without an assessment. Older transportables and second-hand structures frequently have no engineered lifting points, or have lugs added without engineering. The options are an engineered assessment before lifting, or loading it on a tilt tray instead of craning. Send photos of the corners and chassis, and we will advise.
Do I need to empty the building first?
Loose contents shift during a lift and change the balance in the air, so anything not fixed either comes out or gets secured. Fitted joinery and services are fine, but furniture, tools, stock and documents are not.
What is a trial lift?
Raising the building a few hundred millimeters and stopping to check balance and rigging before committing to the full lift. It takes a minute and finds problems while the building is still over the trailer.
Is a transportable an oversize load to move?
Usually, anything beyond about 2.5 meters wide is oversize, which most transportables and many modules are. That brings permits, signage, and possibly pilot vehicles, and those approvals set the timeline more than the crane does.
Can one truck do the transport and the lift?
For smaller buildings and site sheds, often yes, a crane truck can carry and place in one visit. Larger transportables and modules travel on a float or tilt tray with a crane meeting them at the destination.
Can you place a building over a house into a backyard?
Yes, subject to weight, reach, and clearances. Small studios, cabins and sheds go into rear yards regularly. Send the building weight, the distance over, and the roofline height.
How accurate is the placement?
Accurate enough to land on footings and line up connections. The crane brings it close, then ground crew guides it in with tag lines and fine-adjusts with bars and jacks before bolting down.
Can you relocate an existing building?
Yes, subject to assessment. Existing structures are lifted off their footings, transported and reinstalled, though condition and lifting point availability need checking first since these were often not built to be moved twice.
What does modular building lifting cost in Melbourne?
Quoted on the crane size, the reach, the number of units, and whether oversize transport and permits are involved. Multiple units in one attendance cost considerably less per unit. Call 0457 000 637 with the details.
Which areas do you cover?
All Melbourne metro suburbs, with Maidstone, Werribee and Caroline Springs among the areas we attend most often, extending through Geelong, Bacchus Marsh, Melton and Ballarat, plus regional Victoria.
0457 000 637
Open 24 hours
25 Rowsley Station Rd, Maddingley VIC 3340
Contact Us
Cranes and transport run from 25 Rowsley Station Rd, Maddingley VIC 3340, directly on the Western Freeway. On oversize movements, position genuinely matters, because a wide load leaving from the freeway corridor avoids the suburban routes where clearances and turning geometry cause problems. Maidstone work is mostly site sheds and small structures on constrained blocks. Infill development sites where the shed has to be lifted over a fence into a compact yard, and the reach over the boundary decides the machine rather than the weight.