Klaus Th. Vetter, today's honorary chairman and the initiator of the association's foundation at the time, made it clear in his presentation that not only were the goals of the quality association achieved, but also exceeded in some areas. The idea of certifying "services on crane systems", especially the periodic inspections, with a seal of quality so that crane operators can be sure that cranes inspected by GKS members can be operated safely and permanently has proved its worth. Thanks to the members' voluntary commitment to comply with the strict quality and testing regulations, the companies have continuously improved their range of services. Standards are also set through regular exchanges of experience on issues relating to crane service and the application of regulations.

The GKS has become a central point of contact through numerous training events, such as the recent training to become a (test) expert, which enables seminar participants to take the corresponding test at the BGHM and other training courses for experts. The 31 member companies of the Gütegemeinschaft Kranservice e.V. employ a total of around 500 highly trained service employees throughout Germany, and the business model of the Gütegemeinschaft Kranservice "Quality and Safety" has been a complete success.

Presentations were given at this 20th anniversary conference:
- Motion control with electronic pendulum damping
- Terrestrial laser scanning - the point cloud as a basis for redesign and new planning
- Inspection of crane runway girders according to Eurocode 3-6
- Challenges when dealing with existing crane runways

GKS member companies are currently focusing their attention on crane runways in particular, as according to the regulations, this is part of the structure (e.g. part of the hall) and therefore no periodic inspections are required. However, practice shows that crane runways can exhibit cracks or other damage due to fatigue, which can pose a very high risk potential.
In addition, until 1980 crane runways were built according to a standard that does not meet today's requirements. It is therefore all the more important that a visual inspection of the crane runways is carried out when the crane is inspected in order to detect incipient cracks at an early stage. The crane operator should also pay attention to changes when driving on the crane runway.