At a recent handover attended by Quarrying Africa, family-owned Rustenburg-based concrete producer, Rustcrete Readymix Concrete, took delivery of a new Liebherr L 550 wheel loader from Liebherr-Africa’s Earthmoving division.
Having previously relied on old wheel loaders to stockpile material and load customer trucks at its crushing plant, Rustcrete Readymix Concrete, one of the oldest readymix concrete producers in the Rustenburg area, has opted to replace one of its old units with a new Liebherr L 550 wheel loader, citing efficiency as a major driver of the buying decision.
Commenting on the buying decision, JP Beumer, procurement manager at Rustcrete, says from the onset, the look and feel of the Liebherr L 550 was appealing. However, having run some old machines for a long time, Rustcrete was looking for better loading efficiency and productivity, and the Liebherr L 550 ticked all the right boxes.
“When we saw the machine for the first time, we were impressed by the design. After speaking to the Liebherr-Africa team, we were immediately aware of the potential benefits of going the Liebherr route. Although we haven’t run the machine for that long, we have already seen massive gains, both in terms of fuel efficiency and productivity,” says JP.
Tendayi Kudumba, GM – Earthmoving at Liebherr-Africa, says the innovative Liebherr driveline on the L 550 helps minimise fuel consumption, as well as brake and tyre wear. Its excellent handling capacity also helps operators cut back on operating costs.
Equipped with a powerful John Deere engine producing 146 kW (195 hp) of power, the 17,3 t machine’s bucket can discharge its 3,2 m³ capacity from a height of 2,88 m, which is above average in this size category.
Justin Bergh, national sales manager – Earthmoving at Liebherr-Africa, is excited to be associated with Rustcrete, a company he calls the yardstick of excellence in the readymix business in Rustenburg. He also believes that the two companies – Liebherr and Rustcrete – share common values, given that they have both been family-owned entities since their establishment.
Read more in the January/February issue of Quarrying Africa.
