Rent Truck-Mounted Platforms – Flexibility for Working at Height

A truck-mounted platform brings working height directly to the job site: no lead time, no staging area, no low-loader transport in advance. The boom truck drives up, sets up its outriggers, and lifts. For church spire renovations, street lighting, tree pruning on public land, or large-scale installation work up to 57 metres, this is the decisive operational advantage over stationary equipment. Luibl rents truck-mounted platforms from 16 m to over 50 m working height – VUV-inspected, with brands such as Ruthmann and Palfinger, available for delivery throughout Switzerland and across Europe.

Truck-mounted platforms differ from self-propelled aerial work platforms in one key respect: they are road vehicles. That means:

High mobility between job sites: A boom truck can travel from job site A to job site B during a lunch break. For municipal operations that visit several streetlight or tree locations each day, this is the decisive cost-efficiency factor compared with stationary machines.

Fast automatic setup: Modern truck-mounted platforms deploy their outriggers automatically at the push of a button. Set-up times under five minutes are standard – no manual rigging, no separate setup crew required.

Large horizontal outreach: Truck-mounted platforms from 20 m working height achieve horizontal outreach of 12 m and more. This reaches work areas that self-propelled machines could only access through repeated repositioning – for example façade work over hedges, fences, or parked vehicles.

Below-grade operation: Certain truck-mounted platform models can swing the boom below the level of the outriggers. For bridge undersides, retaining walls, and sloped terrain, this is the only technically safe solution that requires no specialised equipment.

The light class of truck-mounted platforms is built on carrier vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of up to 3,500 kg. Driving licence category B is sufficient to operate these – no HGV licence, no driver card, no restrictions under EU driving and rest time rules.

Technical specifications of this class:

• Working height: 16 m to 22 m

• Horizontal outreach: up to 11 m

• Basket load: 200 kg to 230 kg

• Carrier vehicle: van or light truck up to 3.5 t GVW

• Outrigger footprint: variable, typically 4.5 m to 5.5 m – load-spreading pads required on soft ground

Application areas:

• Street lighting maintenance for municipal works departments

• Façade and painting work on buildings up to three storeys

• Tree pruning and maintenance on public green spaces

• Signage and advertising installation in commercial areas

• Electrical installation on building façades and hall roofs

The Class B platform is particularly relevant for trade businesses and municipal operations that don't have or don't want to maintain an HGV licence holder on their team. The vehicle is driven just like a standard van – with the driving licence employees already hold.

For a gross vehicle weight above 3,500 kg, driving licence category C1 (up to 7.5 t) or C (over 7.5 t) is required. This class addresses projects where working height and outreach exceed the limits of the light class.

Technical specifications of the large-unit class:

• Working height: 30 m to 57 m and above

• Horizontal outreach: up to 30 m on large units

• Basket load: up to 300 kg (two-person operation)

• Outrigger footprint: up to 8 m – requires load-bearing ground or load-spreading pads

• Below-grade operation: available on several models (boom can swing below outrigger level)

Case in point: a 57 m large unit was deployed for a church spire renovation in Passau. The variable outrigger configuration allowed a compliant, maximally stable setup despite extremely tight space on the market square – a stationary solution would not have been feasible on this ground and site layout.

Application areas for the large-unit class:

• Church spires, industrial chimneys, silos

• Bridge inspection and bridge maintenance

• Installation of wind turbine ancillary equipment and cable infrastructure

• Structural steel installation in industrial construction

• Event stage rigging and sound system installation at large events

The driving licence requirement depends solely on the gross vehicle weight of the carrier vehicle, not on the platform's working height:

• Category B (up to 3,500 kg GVW): Sufficient for all truck-mounted platforms in the light class. No entry in a logbook, no driver card requirement.

• Category C1 (3,501 kg to 7,500 kg GVW): Required for medium truck-mounted units. C1 holders need a driver card under EU rules for journeys over 100 km.

• Category C (over 7,500 kg GVW): Mandatory for large units from 30 m working height upward.

Regardless of driving licence category, the following applies to operating the platform itself: the operator must be verifiably instructed in accordance with VUV. Holding a driving licence for the carrier vehicle does not replace instruction in platform operation. Luibl carries out documented equipment instruction at every handover.

Using a truck-mounted platform on public roads, pavements, or squares is subject to road traffic law. The following points should be clarified before deployment:

Setup permit: A permit from the responsible road traffic authority is generally required to use public traffic areas as a setup location (Art. 29 SVG/VRV). Processing time ranges from one working day to two weeks depending on the authority and canton – apply well in advance.

Traffic safety and cordoning: The setup area must be secured in accordance with RSA (guidelines for securing worksites on roads). Compliant cordoning, warning lights, and traffic signage where required are the operator's responsibility – not a Luibl task, but can be coordinated on request.

Ground and load-bearing capacity: On pavements, paved areas, and green spaces, the ground's load-bearing capacity must be checked before setting up the outriggers. On soft ground or where load-bearing capacity is unknown, load-spreading pads (at least 1 m × 1 m per outrigger) are mandatory. Luibl recommends requesting load-spreading pads as standard with every truck-mounted platform rental.

Wind speed: Safe operation of truck-mounted platforms is limited to a maximum wind speed of 12.5 m/s (wind force 6) – in accordance with SN EN 280. Operation must be stopped in weather conditions exceeding this threshold. For work at heights above 40 m, local wind measurements are recommended, as wind speed increases with height.

Ruthmann: Ruthmann boom trucks are the standard for truck-mounted platforms in Germany's municipal and commercial sector. Ruthmann's mast system is engineered for high duty cycles – built for durability rather than minimum weight. The basket controls respond proportionally and precisely, which matters for façade work requiring tight tolerances. Ruthmann models cover the range from 16 m to 57 m working height.

Palfinger: Palfinger platforms are known for their small footprint when setting up outriggers. Compact outrigger widths allow deployment on streets with parking on both sides, without fully blocking oncoming traffic. This makes Palfinger models a preferred choice for urban deployments with limited setup space.

Both brands are regularly serviced in the Luibl rental fleet and inspected to VUV standards before every delivery. Inspection certification is provided at handover.

All truck-mounted platforms are covered under the carrier vehicle's motor liability insurance for damage to third parties while operating on the road. For damage to the rental unit itself (equipment damage, operational accident damage), machinery breakdown insurance with an excess is required. This can optionally be included in the rental agreement through Luibl.

In the event of damage: report to Luibl immediately, do not attempt unauthorised repairs, and allow initial assessment by a Luibl technician on site.

Luibl delivers truck-mounted platforms throughout Switzerland as well as to Austria, Germany, Poland, Czechia, Italy, Hungary, and other European countries. Over 200 locations ensure short distances and short-notice appointment availability.

Request a rental quote via luibl.ch/rent: state working height, job site location, rental duration, and the operator's driving licence category. For projects requiring a public-space setup permit: enquire early so that delivery date and permit lead time can be coordinated.