# How to Read a Boom Lift Reach Chart

> Canonical page: https://equiphire.com.au/how-to-read-a-boom-lift-reach-chart/. Last updated 6 October 2026.

## Two headline figures, two different positions

A boom specification lists a maximum working height and a maximum horizontal outreach. They describe two different boom positions. At full height the boom is close to vertical and the platform is near the machine. At full outreach the boom is close to horizontal and the platform is low. Neither figure tells you what the machine can do at a point in between.

## A real example: the 34ft Genie Z-34/22

From the manufacturer specification sheet for the Genie Z-34/22 IC, an articulating (knuckle) boom on our fleet:

Figure | Value |

Working height, maximum | 12.62 m |

Platform height, maximum | 10.62 m |

Horizontal reach, maximum | 6.78 m |

Up and over clearance | 4.57 m |

Platform capacity | 227 kg |

Working height is platform height plus 2 m, the metric convention for where a person can work. The 6.78 m outreach is measured at a low boom angle, not at 12.62 m. The 4.57 m up and over clearance is the tallest obstacle the boom can rise over and still reach down beyond.

## Reading the envelope

- Find the height of the work on the vertical scale.
- Find the horizontal distance from the nearest point the machine can stand to the work face on the horizontal scale.
- Where the two meet, check the point is inside the shaded envelope. Close to the edge means no margin: choose a bigger machine or stand closer.
- If something is in the way, check the obstacle height against the up and over figure, and its depth against the envelope above it.

The chart is drawn from the centre of the turntable, so measure from where the machine will actually stand, not from the kerb.

## Things the chart does not show

- Ground: the chart assumes firm, level ground within the slope rating on the sheet.
- Load: the rated capacity applies across the envelope only where the sheet says so; some models restrict capacity at full outreach.
- Licensing: in NSW a boom with a boom length of 11 m or more needs a WP high risk work licence. Boom length is not working height; see the NSW licence guide.

## Our boom fleet

Maximum figures only, from each machine record. Send your measurements and we check them against that model's envelope. The awnings and setbacks guide lists exactly what to measure.

## Next step

Browse boom lift hire, or compare with a scissor lift in boom lift vs scissor lift.

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