Liebherr launch the new Xpower® wheel loader range to the international press

Over thirty of the world’s press were on hand to see the official media launch of the new Liebherr Xpower® wheel loader range in Scotland. After a full tour of the ‘Forth Crossing Project’ which features five impressive Liebherr cranes, the group arrived at the Reigart Recycling Facility in Coatbridge near Glasgow to see the Xpower® machines put through their paces.

The new Xpower range features six machines from the 550 up to the 586, and on hand at Reigart’s were the 550 and 566 wheel loaders. The Xpower® range features a new innovative Liebherr XPower® driveline system which considerably increases working efficiency, tipping loads, machine availability and quicker working cycles leading to increased handling capacity throughout the range.

The Liebherr XPower® driveline brings together the hydrostatic and mechanical drive. The interaction between these two different drives is continuously adjusted automatically to the given application. As a result, XPower® offers the optimal level of efficiency during material loading and travelling, providing maximum acceleration and performance along all loading cycles – including both short and long haul. All components are also ideally adapted to each other. XPower® stands for maximum efficiency.

The Liebherr XPower® driveline allows continuous regulation of acceleration in all speed ranges, without noticeable gear shifting or interruption in tractive force. Greater performance and excellent operator comfort increase your productivity. The requirement for unnecessary counterweight can be avoided through the unique component mounting position at the rear of the machine. Ideal weight distribution results in high tipping loads and greater handling capacity per hour of operation. The Liebherr XPower® travel drive accelerates quickly, allowing high travel speeds. Time savings can be made on flat terrain, as well as on inclines resulting in considerable gains in productivity. The Liebherr XPower® driveline with Liebherr Power Efficiency (LPE) achieves a reduction in fuel consumption of up to 30%. XPower® efficiency reduces operating costs and increases profitability.

Lift Arm variants are available to help optimise production and reliability whatever the application. The standard Z-bar linkage provides a large torque in the lower region of the lift arm, the ideal prerequisite for conventional wheel loader applications – simple, quick filling of the bucket leads to high handling capacity. An alternative is available in the form of the industrial lift arm for L 550 – L 566 and L 580 wheel loaders at no extra charge.

The industrial lift arm boasts a parallel guide arrangement and especially high torque in the upper lifting range, the best solution for industrial use as it allows large attachments to be fitted for transporting heavy loads. The new sturdy bucket design from Liebherr allows the bucket to be filled quickly and efficiently, fully filled attachments increase productivity. The bucket’s excellent penetration and simple filling mechanism result in lower fuel consumption.

The wide range of attachments available means the right tool is always to hand. As a result, a multitude of uses can easily be covered which increases utilisation of the machine and raises productivity. Liebherr wheel loaders can manoeuvre quickly and efficiently thanks to their compact design – the best choice for high handling capacity.

Lee Palmer, Managing Director of Liebherr-Great Britain Ltd outlined more about the brand “Over the past ten years Liebherr-Great Britain Ltd has seen steady growth across all our product lines. The material handling side of our business has achieved market leader status for a number of years in the wheeled excavator product sector. These machines are specifically designed to suit scrap and waste applications and have many USP’s which set us apart from our competitors. We will deliver over 100 machines to our customer base during 2015.

We have also seen growth in the earthmoving product sector of the construction industry. Sales of wheel loaders and crawler excavators have increased based on the quality and performance of these machines. The crawler excavator is a huge market sector with lots of opportunity but is very price sensitive. The wheel loader market is also buoyant and Liebherr-Great Britain Ltd has increased its market share on these products over the past two years. In this product sector we will deliver over 80 units to UK customers this year.

Although the earthmoving sector of the construction industry is highly price sensitive, it is vital that we capitalise on this growth opportunity and exploit every sales opportunity across these products.

What has caused the increase in demand in the UK market? The first reason is the backlog of demand for fleet renewal. During the recession years between 2008 and 2012 earthmoving customers retained older machines in an attempt to stabilise costs throughout their businesses. This meant the market for new and used earthmoving machines was low. As confidence returns, and new projects get underway, investment has grown in new equipment which has also increased the amount of used equipment available as customer’s trade in old machines for new.

Although some of the major projects were started or at least announced during the recession, there has been an increase in demand for construction plant. There is a national shortage of new homes throughout the UK as developers struggle to supply to demand. Projects such as Cross Rail, Mersey Gateway, and the Forth Crossing have supplemented the many road building and government funded construction projects throughout the UK. New large infrastructure builds, such as HS2 and Hinkley C Power Station will continue to drive demand in the coming years.

Our used equipment business deals with machines which are coming in from a number of different sources. A trade in against a new machine being the most popular. Second, operating lease’s which have recently matured. The last being disposal of older Liebherr rental machines.

Our division’s aftersales staff is made up of 122 employees, working from eight UK depot locations. This aftersales team consists of 67 engineers, 55 of which are field based while twelve are workshop based. We have 31 office based administration staff as well as in house technical experts who assist our engineers to diagnose and repair. With this labour force, Liebherr's aftersales service for earthmoving equipment in the UK has reached an outstanding level ensuring on which high performance can be delivered to our national customer base.

Last but not least, our rental activities are a key part of our total operations. Our UK rental fleet owns 190 machines and is targeted to grow to 300 machines in in the coming years. Each year, the rental division will purchase approximately 60 new machines to strengthen its fleet, as well as disposing of older machines. One of the key advantages of the rental division is that new sales can utilise rental machines to deliver product demonstrations. This is an excellent way to promote the features and benefits of Liebherr machines prior to sale.

Before I close, let me try to give you an outlook: Recent market statistics suggest that the earthmoving sector of the construction industry in the UK will continue to grow in the future - albeit such prognosis needs to be seen with caution. Market pricing and total cost of ownership is critical as customers look for more cost effective solutions to move earth. At the same time, scrap prices appear to remain low and this will affect investment and sales of equipment into this market sector. To summarise, our overall projection is quite optimistic and we look forward to new equipment coming up towards Bauma 2016.”

For more information visit www.liebherr.com