Surging construction activity lifted the number of cranes across Australian skylines to a record 813, driven by a resumption in high-rise apartment building and record number of cranes engaged on commercial work, the latest RLB Crane Index shows.

The jump by almost 100 from the last count six months earlier included a surge of 63 tower cranes in residential cranes – reflecting growing demand from first home buyers and owner-occupiers unable to meet the fast-rising prices of detached houses – and an increase in non-residential cranes to a record 307.