Liebherr L 556 - Manual (Page 43)

Quarrying // 43
The road to the quarrying site runs parallel to the conveyor belt
system, which ends at the base of the 328-foot-high face of dark
limestone with layers of white quartz. “We perform blasting here
about every four weeks, depending how much material the blasting
has produced,” explains Lanwehr. “When we are blasting, we
always work from the top down. Our berms, that is ridges on the
face, are only about 33 feet wide. That means most of the material
drops down to the bottom. What does remain on the berms has
to be cleared away by a compact excavator. From the pile formed
by blasting, we pick the material up with the crawler excavator and
put it into the crusher here. The mobile hammer crusher has an
operating weight of 110 tons and grinds 440 tons of rock per hour,
feeding it onto the conveyor belt system.”
The conveyor belt runs continuously for up to ten hours a day.
At the top of the pit, the material takes different paths and is
moved into two silos for preliminary sieving. It is split into 0/32
and 32/250 grades. The sand-free fraction goes into system 1,
which manufactures 14 different grades of fine grit. The rest goes
into system 2, where water is added to bond the sand. Another
eight products are manufactured here.
The different products are put into temporary stock in piles, where
they are directly loaded onto the customers’ trucks. Here, Thomas
Lanwehr places his trust in Liebherr wheel loaders. “We attach
great importance to low fuel consumption and in that respect
there is simply no alternative to Liebherr. The wheel loaders really
are unbeatable. Liebherr machines have reduced our fuel
consumption in loading by 35 – 40 percent. We purchased the
first L 580 for the quarry just after it was launched, and just two
weeks ago we took delivery of the latest machine. Between them,
we have had several Liebherr machines working here, and we
haven’t had any problems with any of them. Working in two
shifts, we operate about 3000 hours per year and machine – a
little less in the winter, a little more in the summer. We replace
our machines about every three years.”
“Working time is also a very important criterion. We have a shovel
with maximum volume on the L 580 and that works without
problems. The Liebherr machines have an excellent tipping load.
What is important for us is to load the trucks as quickly as possible
– at most three load cycles, then it should be full, but not too full.
For this reason, the wheel loader has built-in scales. That tells
the driver exactly how much he has loaded onto the truck. That
is very important, not least to make sure that the lorries are not
overloaded. If that were the case, they would have to come back
after being weighed to tip some of the load off. That would be
rather laborious and far too time-consuming.
“The other thing that always strikes me is the fact that Liebherr
wheel loaders are extremely quiet. The new L 580, for example,
is practically noise-free. Open up the throttle and you hear simply
nothing – certainly not any noise from the engine. That was one
reason why we turned to Liebherr in the first place. While we still
had a construction contractor in Warendorf, we had to fulfill strict
conditions regarding noise emissions because the company was
based within a mixed industrial estate. At the time, Liebherr wheel
loaders were the only machines that enabled us to come under
the specified limits. Of course, we no longer have that problem
here in the quarry. But still, noise means stress for the people
who work here, so every machine that runs quietly is a benefit.
We like to make sure that our employees can enjoy good working
conditions. For example, our wheel loaders are equipped with
climate control and with ventilated and heated seats.”
Thomas Lanwehr summarizes his experience with Liebherr
machines. “Let me put it this way. If it proves successful, it will
remain. You can see that with our operations. And that includes
our many years of loyalty to Liebherr.”
“We attach great importance to low
fuel consumption, and in that respect there
is simply no alternative to Liebherr.”
Thomas Lanwehr, managing director
Working in two shifts, the wheel loaders are in action for about
3000 hours per year per machine.
Sector:
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Liebherr machines
in operation:
Lanwehr Naturstein
GmbH + Co. KG
Company profile
Quarry operator
12 employees
1936
Head office at Arnsberg-Müschede, Germany
Thomas Lanwehr
www.lanwehr-naturstein.de
2 L 580 wheel loaders
Feature: Lanwehr