CPA Bulletin

60 CPA Bulletin > February 2019 www.cpa.uk.net LIEBHERR RENTAL Borras Quarry in northWales is a former airfield site that has been in operation for over 60 years. Producing sand and gravel from shallow excavations under the ownership of a number of companies, the site has recently come under the ownership of the Breedon Group. Until recently, an excavator and dump truck combination was the only equipment used for extraction as Assistant Quarry Manager Martin Davies explained: ‘Our previous method of winning material meant that the excavator, a Liebherr R 944, had to work in various spots around the quarry floor to obtain a good product to put through the plant. We felt a dozer would increase our output and blend the material faster and more easily. Whilst this wasn’t something that was looked at in the past, we now have the use of a Liebherr PR 736 to undertake this work.’ When the Breedon started to hire in a number of trial dozers, Martin was tasked with operating them because of his in-depth knowledge and experience of this type of machine. ‘We had a couple of other manufacturers dozers on hire before the Liebherr and whilst they were both very good tractors, the Liebherr beats them both hands down,’ he said. The dozer is being used in conjunction with the excavator to blend the material and push it into stockpiles for the 40 tonne R 944 to load into articulated trucks for the journey to the washing plant. ‘We were told by Liebherr that the 736 would be so much better on fuel than the other machines. We took this with a pinch of salt, as you do,’ Martin commented. ‘We actually trialled the machine for a month and couldn’t believe the figures we were getting back. The Liebherr was using almost 25 per cent less fuel than the other machines doing exactly the same work. We are extremely impressed at the way it can push too: the engine just digs in and it keeps on pushing until you tell it to stop. It’s a bit of a beast to be honest!’ Taken on long-term hire from Liebherr Rental, the 22 tonne dozer is powered by a Tier 4 final Liebherr diesel engine delivering 238 HP that drives through a stepless hydrostatic transmission, which Martin believes is the best combination he has driven. ‘It’s smooth and always has bags of power when you need it,’ he commented. Supplied with the full LGP specification, the dozer is fitted with a 4.1 m3 straight blade and rides on 914 mm track pads. This particular machine is fitted with Liebherr’s free-turning bushings (FTB) undercarriage, which is ideally suited to applications where the machine comes into contact with soft and abrasive material, such as sand and gravel. The large rotating bushings minimise track and sprocket wear. In addition, chain links and rollers have even more wear material. This extends the service life of the entire undercarriage considerably in these specific conditions. Since the machine’s arrival, Martin has trained Michael Calverley as the regular operator. Despite having had no prior experience of the dozer, Michael has found the machine to be a joy to operate. ‘It was daunting at first,’ Michael admitted, ‘but it is such an easy machine to drive, so responsive and powerful. The cab is exceptional, very comfortable, and the view from the seat right around the machine is far better than any other machine.’ The team at Borras Quarry reports that the machine has been totally reliable since its arrival and has impressed everyone on the site with its phenomenal performance coupled with its lack of fuel consumption for the amount of material moved. ‘We’ve had great service fromGareth Blythin at Liebherr Rental from day one,’ Martin explained. ‘We simply cannot fault the machine at all,’ he concluded. Liebherr PR 736 LGP on long-termhire at northWales quarry