Cranes & Lifting
THE HS 895 HD is the largest heavy duty crawler crane in Australia.
Designed for applications such as dynamic compaction, casing oscillators, clamshell grabs, dragline, slurry wall grabs, plus standard lift and shift applications, this crawler crane can tackle the toughest jobs.
Arriving in Melbourne in December 2016, the 200 tonne HS 895 was a gamble for Liebherr and the customer as it was the first of its type.
Since commissioned on a site in regional Victoria, the HS 895 has proven itself time and time again by operating in a large sand quarry with an extensive area rich in horizontal sand deposits that were traditionally unavailable.
Previously, hydraulic excavators and articulated dump trucks worked together but only to a dig to a depth of 15m.
However, once the overburden was removed by the hydraulic excavators, the HS 895 HD had a dig depth of 40m plus; an enormous advantage.
Equipped with a 5.5 cubic metre mechanical clamshell grab, and operating with a swing radius of about 180 degrees, each full cycle takes only 45 seconds to achieve a full payload.
Designed specifically with a rounded shape and special grab teeth to penetrate very hard soils or interlocked material, and fitted with a tagline winch contributes to quick and precise operation of the clamshell grab, the HS 895 HD is easily able to achieve a high-fill ratio.
Extraction forces of the clamshell were an initial concern of the site operator.
The 2 x 35 tonne single line pull, free-fall winches on the HS 895 allows the operator to have in excess of 70 tonnes of pull force, which ensures a full load in the bucket every time.
Customer feedback noted that the increase in production was an impressive 400 tonnes per hour.
The site operator had also been able to unload the HS 895’s clamshell bucket directly into the waiting trucks which drastically cut down on labour and the need for additional excavators and loaders.
This, coupled with the production rate, more than covers the initial investment and running costs of the HS 895.
Liebherr-Australia said it looked forward to the continued success of this equipment in Australia and New Zealand with more additions of this application planned for 2019/20.
A video of the HS 895 HD can be viewed online at Liebherr’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ep8KE7NoOkQ.