Annual Report 2020
Deep Foundation Machines
Liebherr’s Deep Foundation Machines product segment posted sales of € 258 million in the 2020 financial year. This represents a € 53 million or 17.0 % decrease compared with the year before.
Global market leader in duty cycle crawler cranes
2020 saw a decline in the deep foundation machines sector. This applied in particular to piling and drilling rigs, although the downturn was less pronounced for duty cycle crawler cranes. In general, the industry had to operate in a challenged market. In spite of this, Liebherr managed to maintain a stable market share in the deep foundation engineering sector and could hold its position as a global market leader in duty cycle crawlers.
Liebherr recorded a significant increase in sales in North America, the most important sales region for this product segment. This was driven by favourable growth in the USA. Sales revenues from non-EU countries increased, growth was recorded in Turkey compared to the previous year. There were bigger declines in the European Union, most notably in Germany and France. Business also declined in Asia and Oceania, Africa and the Near and Middle East, and Central America and South America.
In future, construction machinery will be part of a digital world – this is why Liebherr continues to improve the digital integration of machines.
A success story continues
Liebherr launched a number of new products in the Deep Foundation Machines product segment, with most of the launches taking place online for the first time. The unveiling of the new LRB 23 piling and drilling rig builds on previous successes in this product segment. The compact all-rounder model boasts a power output of 600 kW and a safety-enhancing assistance system. The HS 8070.1 was the first new generation duty cycle crawler crane to be unveiled. With a load capacity of 70 tonnes it offers a transport option that enables a transport weight of less than 35 tonnes thanks to self-dismantling. Noise emissions and fuel consumption were lowered significantly.
Besides the development of various assistance systems, predictive maintenance and electrification were two further focal points of research. The MyJobsite service provided a major contribution to the digital integration of deep foundation machines. This digital tool documents and merges data on various machines and their surroundings. The data is then used to generate reports on quality, performance, costs and safety, assisting machine operators and fleet managers to reach the right decisions as they carry out their work. Over the reporting period, the product segment invested primarily in real estate as well as business and operational equipment.
Liebherr expects to achieve a noticeable increase in sales in the Deep Foundation Machines product segment in 2021.