Liebherr L 556 - Manual (Page 5)

Quarrying // 5
Trimming quarries
for economy
With around 200 quarries and gravel pits, Mineral Baustoff, part
of the STRABAG SE Group, is one of the largest raw materials
brands in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe.
One of the five limestone quarries operated by Wolfgang Beckers
is at Eigenrieden, near Mühlhausen. Here, two areas of 17.3 and
29.6 acres are mined. From the forecourt of the office building,
we have an unhindered view across both areas. We are able to
watch all productions steps, from quarrying at the face through
to loading onto the customer’s trucks. One thing that is
conspicuous is the fact that there are no dumper trucks or long
conveyor belts in use. The entire organization is based on short
distances, which saves machines, personnel and time.
“Economy is the be-all and end-all. Our operation is completely
mobile. We have no stationary systems. We crush the material
where we find it. Then we process it, put it on a pile and sell it.
In between there are practically no distances to be travelled. We
have to be competitive. In sales, every cent per ton makes a
difference,” Beckers says. “We produce a broad range of end
products here; for example, calcium-magnesium fertilizers, which
we sell to the agricultural industry in the area. Then we have
products for road building, gardening and landscaping. That
includes, for example, frost protection layers, gravel base layers
and hydraulically bonded layers.”
A new Liebherr R 950 SME crawler excavator recently started
operations at the quarry face loading the crusher. Its reach of
42 ft 8 i is exactly configured for the conditions on site. The bucket
size has been optimized for the through put capacity of the crusher.
Beckers is proud of his new acquisition. “The excavator has been
in operation now for three weeks, and we already have superb
experience in terms of productivity and diesel consumption. In
addition to the fact that it offers far better performance and a
larger bucket capacity, its fuel consumption is lower than that of
its predecessor.”
Beckers also puts his faith in Liebherr with his wheel loaders.
Three generations are currently working in parallel. The oldest
one was built in 2005, the youngest, an L 566 unit of the latest
generation, has only just been delivered to the Themar quarry.
“What convinces me about Liebherr are the service intervals,
service availability, the advice, the quality and the operation,”
Beckers continues. “The machines are extremely durable and
highly economical in operation. In particular, diesel consumption
is, of course, important for us.”
Before procuring a new machine, economy and durability are
carefully scrutinized and documented. “We have made direct
comparisons between these machines and competitive models
Wolfgang Beckers, chief representative and regional manager
Mineral Baustoff GmbH for the German state of Thuringia.
R 950 SME crawler excavator at the quarry in Eigenrieden:
The material is processed on site and sold where it is found.
When talking about reducing costs and boosting efficiency, Wolfgang Beckers is in his element. As chief
representative and regional manager of Mineral Baustoff GmbH for the German state of Thuringia,
he has economically optimized five of the company’s quarries to the last detail. One way of achieving his
ambitious goals is by keeping distances short, but another is the efficient use of Liebherr machines.
Feature: Mineral Baustoff GmbH
“Economy is the be-all and end-all.
Our operation is completely mobile.”
Wolfgang Beckers, chief representative and regional manager
Mineral Baustoff GmbH for the German state of Thuringia