Load & Haul

Loaders add extra power, efficiency to gravel pit

Willy Dohmen GmbH & Co KG is a traditional family-run business that has been operating since 1952 when company founder Willy Dohmen started his gravel and sand operation.

Today the company is divided into five main business segments and employs about 280 people. Its site, near the German town of Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, not far from the German-Dutch border, extracts sand and gravel and refines the material for the production of concrete.

The company has recently invested in new additions to its load and haul fleet: two Liebherr L 580 XPower wheel loaders. The benefits of the XPower wheel loaders, coupled with positive experiences using machines of the previous generation, influenced the company’s purchase decision.

{{quote-A:R-W:300-Q:"Reliability is of utmost importance to ensure efficient workflows."}}“We already had other Liebherr large wheel loaders in operation,” a spokesperson for Willy Dohmen’s management said. “These included several L 576 and L 586 models from the previous series. We were very happy with these machines. Liebherr is also a reliable service partner and available whenever help is needed.”

A loading cycle in the 800,000m² gravel plant is between 30 and 150 metres. This is where the advantages of the power-split XPower drivetrain come into play, combining the hydrostatic and mechanical drives, which ensure full performance and high efficiency for all tasks.

“The new Liebherr wheel loaders are impressive in every respect,” the spokesperson said. “The two L 580 XPower units are extremely powerful and on average consume only around 13 litres of diesel per hour of operation, regardless of the application.”

The 29-tonne wheel loaders have a considerable tipping load of 19.5 tonnes and operate for about 10 hours a day. With powerful Z-lift arms and 5.7m3 backfill buckets, they can move up to 3000m³ of sand, gravel and double-crushed chips daily. They also work directly on the demolition wall, feed systems and load material in the gravel plant.

Reliability is of utmost importance to ensure efficient workflows. With their powerful axles, robust XPower drive and reinforced core components, the wheel loaders offer strength, endurance and durability.

Having won both the prestigious European Red Dot and iF Product Design awards in 2016, the XPower generation is already being recognised as a “game changer” in wheel loader technology.

Liebherr’s goal is to meet its valued customer requirements while trying to minimise impact on the environment and produce more aggregate for fewer inputs.

{{image2-a:l-w:300}}Designed and built for reduced fuel consumption and service costs, along with higher productivity, the XPower offers reliability and economical value in today’s competitive earthmoving market.

It also has the capacity for bulk handling, fast cycle times and travelling long “pick and carry” distances.

The modern ergonomic cab design provides the operator with added comfort and enhanced visibility, promoting more productivity in the safest environment.

The larger loaders in the L 566 Z to L 586 Z XPower range are intended to suit the quarrying application, with an emphasis on reduced running costs, high handling capacity and increased productivity.

The Liebherr XPower driveline brings together the benefits of both hydrostatic and mechanical drives. The interaction between the two different drives is automatically adjusted to suit any application. As a result, the XPower offers optimal efficiency during loading and transport, without noticeable gear shifting or interruption in tractive force.

The XPower driveline with Liebherr Power Efficiency can reduce fuel consumption by up to 40 per cent, potentially increasing profitability.

In 2017 extractive industry operators participated with XPower wheel loaders in evaluation sessions organised by Liebherr Australia at a limestone quarry just outside Joondalup, Western Australia.

Source: Liebherr Australia

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