A Modern Alternative to Jacking & Cribbing
11/21/2025
For heavy rigging, civil construction and industrial maintenance projects, success hinges on meeting increasingly tight deadlines and staying within budget. From bridge lifts to the placement of electrical transformers, jacking and cribbing remains a traditional heavy lifting method. Cribbing refers to stacking wooden timbers to create a temporary support structure allowing for the jacking equipment to be fleeted to a new height. While cribbing gets the job done, there are hidden expenses inherent to the conventional, low-tech approach.
Economic Considerations
Let’s look at the costs of a jacking and cribbing lift, beginning with the cribbing material itself. Dense and durable hardwood such as oak, azobe or ekki timbers maintain their structure over time and withstand harsh environments. However, timber prices have continued to increase due to the high demand and limited supply of these natural resources. Tariffs, rising shipping costs and supply chain issues will likely continue to elevate the purchase price of cribbing timbers.
Timber used for cribbing can vary in quality and consistency. Knots, cracks or damage due to moisture can create uncertainty in the load bearing integrity. Timbers that were initially similar in size can become dimensionally inconsistent over time due to uneven drying, warping or unplanned pressure points.
Freight costs to get the heavy timbers to the project site also add to the cost of a jacking and cribbing approach. Not to mention, you need to allow space for staging them, which is often an issue in space-constrained work zones. Transport and staging costs can cut into project budgets before the lifting even starts.
Finally, there are labor costs. Depending on ground conditions, each lifting point could require a stack consisting of many layers of wood. Each incremental lift requires stopping to fleet the jack (remove and reset the cylinder), placing additional timbers, and visually verifying stability before proceeding. To get a stack of 4’ x4’ cribbing to a height of 3’, the effort adds up quickly. If using 6” stroke cylinders, the project will require another stack of wood to unload the jacking cylinder and an additional stack to be placed under the jack. The labor hours accumulate quickly, as do the project risks.
The Safety Equation
The Modern, Engineered Approach
The Holmatro Ring Climbing Cylinder introduces a new technology: a mechanical ring system. Instead of relying on external cribbing built up manually around a traditional jack, the system incorporates stacking rings that become part of the cylinder assembly. As the cylinder extends to the end of its stroke, a technician inserts lightweight stacking rings (around 2.2 lbs. each) around the cylinder rod, between the load and the top of the cylinder housing. The rings are placed using a dedicated fork tool, which optimizes safety by enabling personnel to distance themselves from the load zone.
The engineered rings have documented load ratings and lock into position creating a stable, predictable, load-bearing column. This simple, integrated design expedites the lifting process, dramatically reduces labor and accelerates the entire schedule.
The Ring Climbing System uses a double-acting hydraulic cylinder with 115-ton load capacity. Weighing just 50 lbs., this innovative cylinder delivers both speed and accuracy. Its powered retract cycle is much faster than spring return alternatives, enabling quicker placement of the subsequent rod extension puck and stacking ring for each incremental lift up to the maximum height of nearly 36. When lowering a load, the Ring Climbing Cylinder’s powered retract offers precise control.
The Business Case for Ring Climbing Cylinders
The overall cost of a traditional jacking and cribbing approach is rarely quantified but often comes with a significant impact on budgets, scheduling and safety risks. Choosing integrated mechanical load holding, such as Holmatro Ring Climbers, means controlling variables while gaining predictable savings through reduced labor, faster lift times and lower transport costs. This innovative technology also optimizes safety. The unique capabilities of Ring Climbing Cylinders provide a strong argument to replace “the way we’ve always done it” and perhaps stack rings, not wood.
