Big crawler for a big job

Liebherr New Zealand is in the process of supplying Envirowaste Services with the world’s largest hydrostatically driven crawler tractor and the first to be delivered in the Southern Hemisphere.

The new PR764 III, 50 tonne crawler tractor with its massive 4.3x2.9 meter blade that can move up to 48 cubic meters of material, has been configured for the Envirowaste landfill operation at Hampton Downs, just south of Auckland, which is also one of the biggest landfills in New Zealand.

The Hampton Downs site is one of eight that Envirowaste manage nationwide and the largest in the North Island. Carl King, the national landfill manager for Envirowaste, says the customer support offered by Liebherr was a major factor in the company’s decision making process.

“Over the years we have built up a very strong relationship with Liebherr, especially with Tom Curran, our account manager, and Buks Pieterse the service manager and his workshop team. 

“All of our sites operate six to seven days a week.  The Liebherr machines have proved to be very reliable and if they do need any servicing work done the turnaround time is very fast.”

Envirowaste has been running a Liebherr PR752 and PR734 on the Hampton Downs site and when it came time to upscale due to an increase in demand the company looked at all the major suppliers. “As well as reliability, fuel economy, support and efficiency are vital areas where Liebherr won hands down. The whole package including the price was simply the best,” says King (pictured below).

“Going forward we are looking towards Liebherr as our preferred supplier as equipment is upgraded and the relationship goes from strength to strength.”

The Liebherr group is one of the largest manufacturer’s of construction and mining equipment in the world.  The Liebherr Company was founded in 1949 by Dr. Hans Liebherr with an initial staff of six working in a small house in Kirchhoff, Germany. The company today remains a family business, comprising of 100 companies worldwide, over 30,000 employees and a turnover in 2007 of 18.5 billion.

Liebherr New Zealand, a wholly owned subsidiary of Liebherr Australia, has under gone a recent re-focus of its efforts to promote the brand. In March 2008 Steve Green, director Eastern States, Liebherr Australia, launched a programme of change. In April 2008 he appointed Tim Callaghan as regional manager of Liebherr New Zealand. 

With a large capital investment from Liebherr Australia, Callaghan set about restructuring and streamlining the operations. Included in this was the acquisition of a large additional area of land at the Auckland head office to allow increased stock capabilities as well as a demonstration and display area. 

“We have seen a dramatic increase in enquiries as a direct result of the increased visibility of Liebherr equipment,” Callaghan says.

The parts department has undergone a remarkable overhaul too, including the appointment of Brian Trow to the position of parts manager.

Trow is a 12-year veteran of senior parts positions within Liebherr and brings with him a wealth of knowledge and expertise. He has already adjusted the mix of parts stock to be more appropriate to the New Zealand Liebherr machine inventory and there has been a 25 percent increase in the number of stock lines carried which amounts to a 20 percent increase in the value of the stock over 2007 levels.

The service and sales departments have improved access to training resources from Liebherr International across the world, with factory representative visiting New Zealand on a regular basis to conduct training schools specific to local requirements on customers own machines. This has allowed a direct line of communication between the factory and the customer, another benefit of a family owned corporation.

“The net result of these continuous improvements is an increase in enquiries and sales, as well as a greater awareness of the brand and benefits, like the dramatic fuel savings the Liebherr hydrostatic system can offer,” says Callaghan.

“Under the directorship of Steve Green, Liebherr Australia has demonstrated its backing and support for Liebherr

New Zealand. This concerted effort has built a solid base of confidence within Liebherr New Zealand that is flowing through to the customers.”

• Article supplied by Liebherr.