Increasing Demand
Liebherr relies on 38 years of experience in the mobile harbor crane business. In 1974, when Liebherr entered the market, demand for mobile harbor cranes was small. After 20 years of moderate but constant business, Liebherr accomplished their 100th LHM delivery in 1994. The same year marks a significant turnaround, with annual deliveries being double-digit for the first time.
In 1996 type LHM 400 was launched, which is to date the bestselling LHM model. Due to an impressive 250 deliveries, this model accounts for about one quarter of all LHMs ever supplied. Its successor, type LHM 420, has been introduced into the market in 2011 and can be equipped with Liebherr’s state-of-the-art Pactronic® hybrid drive system.
Thanks to a year by year increase in deliveries, Liebherr received order for their 300th LHM in 2001. At that time nearly 50 cranes were delivered each year. Accordingly the 500th Liebherr Mobile Harbor Crane was handed over in 2005, which was one year after market launch of Liebherr’s reachstacker LRS 645. In the following years annual order volume has permanently been increasing, mainly due to the market introduction of various highly competitive models, like the LHM 600 in 2006, which is still the strongest Mobile Harbor Crane in the market.
Liebherr launched their new lightweight series in 2008, which has been the most successful year so far, with annual deliveries being triple digit for the first time. The year after, Liebherr supplied their 800th LHM. Thanks to the market introduction of two new models, LHM 420 and LHM 550, Liebherr accomplished the golden anniversary just three years later. Besides, the recent and very successful launch of above-mentioned new types provides a solid and promising base for future growth.
Remarkable is the exponential increase in demand. While it was taking 31 years to sell the first 500 Liebherr Mobile Harbour Cranes, the other 500 have been accomplished in less than seven years. This is testament to the enduring increase in demand for flexible cargo handling solutions.
1000th Liebherr Mobile Harbour Crane
Ordering customer Montoir Bulk Terminal is a subsidiary of the SEA-invest Group, which is one of the world’s largest terminal operators for dry bulk, fruit and liquid bulk. SEA-invest Group operates 25 ports spread across three continents.
Their new crane, type LPS 550, has a maximum lifting capacity of 144 tons and a boom length of 48 metres. The tailor-made portal solution allows for customer’s needs and concurrently ensures maximum efficiency. The crane is equipped with the unique Pactronic®. This innovative hybrid drive system boosts performance and reduces emissions at the same time, each by 30%. The Green advantage of Pactronic® goes hand in hand with Sea-invest Group’s business policy which highlights paying attention to the environment. Additionally Sea-invest has equipped their new machine with electronic drive, which allows an even more eco-friendly crane operation.
Receiving order for this anniversary crane underlines the satisfaction of Liebherr customers who are convinced of their innovative product range and consistently choose Liebherr products again.
