# Crane & Heavy Haul

GPS tracking for crane and heavy-haul operators that proves an oversize load stayed on its permitted route, records escort and crane boom hours for billing, plans the journey around bridges and curfews, and keeps drivers compliant with ELD and hours of service.

Source: https://www.highpointgps.com/industries/crane-heavy-haul
Last updated: 2026-09-21

A crane company and a heavy-haul carrier share the same two problems: the load is worth more than the truck, and the permit says exactly where the truck is allowed to be. An oversize load that leaves its permitted route for one exit is a fine, a lost permit and, if a bridge is involved, far worse. GPS tracking from High Point GPS turns the permitted route into a geofenced corridor in MyGeotab, with the curfew hours and the speed limit on the permit attached to it, and records every kilometre the truck drove inside it. When a state or provincial enforcement officer asks whether the load stayed on route, the trip replay is the answer, with the escort vehicles' positions on the same map. On the crane side, an IOX-AUXM input reads the boom or the outriggers, and the hours the crane spent set up and lifting are the hours on the invoice, separated from the hours it spent driving to the site. Journey planning uses the trip history of previous moves on the same corridor, so the next permit application starts from a route the fleet has already driven. Drivers on heavy-haul trucks run under the ELD mandate in both countries, and the Geotab Drive app records duty status, the pre-trip inspection on the tractor and trailer, and the hours left before the driver is out of time on a two-day move. Every record is stored for the audit, the insurer and the customer who disputes hours per lift.

## Common problems

- No proof after the fact that an oversize load stayed on the permitted route and moved only in permitted hours
- Escort vehicles and the load on different radios, with the office guessing where the convoy is
- Crane hours billed from the operator's ticket, with the customer disputing set-up and lift time
- Journey planning for each permit started from scratch, without the record of the last move on that corridor
- Hours-of-service problems on two-day moves discovered at the roadside instead of at dispatch
- Pre-trip inspections on a tractor and a multi-axle trailer done from memory and signed at the end of the day

## Highlights

- Permitted route drawn as a geofenced corridor, with curfew hours and permit speed attached as zone rules
- Alerts the moment a load leaves the corridor or moves during curfew, to the driver and the office
- Escort vehicles and the load on one live map, with the convoy's spacing visible to dispatch
- Trip replay of the whole move as the record for enforcement, the permit office and the insurer
- Boom, outrigger and PTO state through IOX-AUXM, so crane hours split into travel, set-up and lift
- Hours per lift and per site for billing, with the customer's geofence as the boundary
- ELD hours of service and electronic DVIR for tractor and trailer in the Geotab Drive app
- Journey planning from the fleet's own trip history on the same corridor, with the stops that worked

## Route Compliance for an Oversize Load, by Geofence

A permit for an oversize load names the route, the hours it may move and the speed it may travel. High Point GPS draws that route as a corridor geofence in MyGeotab before the move, with the permit's curfew and speed limit as rules on the zone. A truck that leaves the corridor triggers an alert to the driver and the dispatcher within seconds, which is soon enough to stop before a low bridge or a prohibited ramp. A truck that moves during a curfew window triggers a different alert. The driver sees the corridor on the same tablet that runs the Geotab Drive app, and the dispatcher sees the load and every escort vehicle on one map, with the spacing between them.

After the move, the trip replay is the record. It shows the load inside the corridor from the origin to the destination, the speed on each segment, the stops and their durations, and the escorts' positions alongside. When an enforcement officer, the permit office or the insurer asks whether the load stayed on route, the contractor answers with the replay rather than a driver's recollection. Moves on the same corridor build a history, and the next permit application starts from a route the fleet has driven and the stops it used.

![A timeline of an oversize load's move: leaving the yard at 4:55 with two escorts, crossing a bridge inside the corridor at 6:40, stopping for the curfew at 9:00, resuming at 15:05 and arriving at 18:22 after 212 kilometres with no corridor exits.](https://www.highpointgps.com/images/guides/crane-heavy-haul.webp)

*A permitted heavy-haul move as MyGeotab records it: every segment inside the corridor geofence, the curfew stop, and the escorts alongside.*

## Crane Hours: Travel, Set-Up and Lift, Separated

A mobile crane bills for the hours it spends at the customer's site, and the customer's question is always the same: how many of those hours were lifting? An IOX-AUXM input on the crane reads the outriggers, the boom or the PTO that drives the hydraulics, and the platform records when each was engaged. The result is a day split into travel to the site, set-up with the outriggers down, lift time with the boom working and idle time between picks. The invoice for the lift carries those hours, and a customer who disputes them is shown the record for their site geofence, pick by pick.

The same records feed maintenance. Boom hours and engine hours are read from the crane rather than from an operator's log, and the inspection and service intervals the manufacturer sets run on those hours. A crane that has done four hundred boom hours since its last inspection is flagged before the next job, not after a failed pick. Fault codes reach the shop as they occur, and the crane that was booked for Monday's steel erection is confirmed ready on Friday because the platform says so, not because someone walked out to the yard and looked.

## Journey Planning and the Convoy on the Road

Planning a heavy-haul move is hours of work on bridge ratings, turning radii and curfews. The fleet's trip history shortens it. Every move the fleet has made on a corridor is stored, with the stops, the average speed and the segments where the convoy slowed. A planner building the next permit application starts from the route that worked, and the dispatcher setting the departure time uses the actual duration of the last move rather than an estimate. Pilot cars and the load are all on one map, so a convoy that stretches out on a grade is visible before the escort loses sight of the trailer.

AI dash cams on the tractor record the road ahead and the driver, and the footage is retrieved by trip and by event. On a move where a motorist cuts between the escort and the load, or a low branch strikes the cargo, the video and the position arrive together for the claim. Driver scoring records hard braking and cornering on a truck that weighs what a heavy-haul combination weighs, with thresholds High Point GPS sets for that class of vehicle rather than for a delivery van. The weekly review starts from a specific event on a specific move.

## ELD, Hours of Service and the Two-Day Move

Heavy-haul tractors fall under the ELD mandate in the United States and in Canada. The Geotab Drive app records the driver's duty status from the GO device in the tractor, and the dispatcher sees each driver's remaining hours before assigning a move. A two-day move with a curfew in the middle is planned around the hours the driver actually has, and a driver who is running out of time is handed off at a planned point rather than parked on a shoulder with an oversize load. Roadside inspections get the ELD record on the tablet, with the permit and the inspection report beside it.

The pre-trip inspection on a tractor and a multi-axle trailer is a long checklist, and the electronic DVIR in Geotab Drive walks the driver through it with the trailer's own items included. A defect on a steerable axle is a photo and a work order before the load moves. Driver ID through an NFC fob ties each trip and each inspection to the driver at the wheel, which matters when a team drives a move in shifts. Fuel purchases on a fuel card reconcile against the trip record for IFTA, and the distance by jurisdiction is reported without anyone reading odometers.

## FAQ

### Can it prove my oversize load stayed on the permitted route?

Yes. High Point GPS draws the permitted route as a corridor geofence with the permit's curfew hours and speed limit as rules. The trip replay shows the load inside the corridor from origin to destination, with speed, stops and the escorts' positions. That record answers enforcement, the permit office and the insurer.

### Will the driver be warned before leaving the route?

An alert goes to the driver's tablet and to the dispatcher within seconds of the load leaving the corridor, and a separate alert fires if the load moves during a curfew window. The driver sees the corridor on the same tablet that runs the Geotab Drive app, which is soon enough to stop before a restricted bridge or ramp.

### How does it record crane hours for billing?

An IOX-AUXM input reads the outriggers, the boom or the hydraulic PTO, and the platform records when each was engaged. Hours at the customer's site split into set-up, lift and idle time, and the invoice carries those hours. A customer who disputes them is shown the record for their site geofence.

### Does it handle ELD and hours of service?

Yes. The Geotab Drive app records duty status from the GO device in the tractor for the US and Canadian ELD mandates. The dispatcher sees remaining hours before assigning a move, and the electronic DVIR covers the tractor and the trailer on the same tablet.

### Can I see the escort vehicles and the load together?

Yes. Pilot cars and the load appear on one live map with the spacing between them, and their positions are stored in the same trip history. Dispatch sees a convoy stretching out on a grade before the escort loses sight of the trailer, and the replay shows the whole convoy after the move.