Strong, long and easy

The crane presentation during the Customer Days at the Liebherr plant in Ehingen was eagerly awaited. And for good reason, because we presented our new member of the LTM family for the first time. A 400-tonne crane – powerful, economical and quick to set up. The initial response from the audience was overwhelmingly positive.

A powerful 400-tonne lifting capacity – this makes the LTM 1400-6.1 the most powerful six-axle crane on the global market. The new crane replaces the successful LTM 1350-6.1, which has been in our line-up for 15 years. “The LTM 1400-6.1 is the perfect crane for entry into the large-crane segment thanks to the enormous increase in lifting capacity provided by the Y-guying system,” explains Julian Rapp. On the product management side, he played a key role in developing the concept for the new 400- tonne machine. “At the same time, this is also a striking difference compared to its predecessor, as we were able to significantly simplify the set-up processes,” he emphasises. In the following paragraph, we explain exactly what our resourceful engineers have come up with for assembly of the Y-guying system.

Ready, steady, go! Thanks to short set-up times, the LTM 1400-6.1 can start work on the construction site in next to no time. The Y-guying for the telescopic boom is quick and easy to install: “With just one lift, the 400- tonner places the Y-guying system onto its own chassis, where it is first centred and then pinned in place. The hydraulic Likufix quick coupling between the boom and the two Y-frames closes automatically when the boom is then luffed down. Then all that remains to be done is to close the electrical plug connection and the crane is ready for use,” explains Franz Ölberger, Head of telescopic boom design and development. “We were able to reduce the work steps to a minimum. The resulting time savings are enormous.”

Like its predecessor, the LTM 1350-6.1, the new 400-tonne crane is equipped with 100 tonnes of basic ballast and 40 tonnes of additional ballast. The proven concept whereby the hydraulic ballasting device is integrated in the counterweight frame has also been adopted for the new LTM 1400-6.1: ballast assembly is simple, quick and does not require an auxiliary crane. At the same time, the plates are compatible with other Liebherr large cranes, allowing greater efficiency and streamlined logistics for crane operators with several Liebherr cranes. “An absolute plus point is that the ballast is now designed as a continuously variable VarioBallast® system,” says Julian Rapp, noting a fundamental difference to its predecessor: “The 140 tonnes of ballast achieve an enormous radius of 7.7 metres and thus ensure maximum lifting capacity. The ballast radius can be reduced to 5.6 metres for use in confined spaces.”

The new crane is also equipped with the VarioBase® variable supporting base, which also boasts an alteration. Like previous systems on large mobile cranes, the outriggers can be flexibly positioned at the predefined supporting positions with pinning options of 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 per cent. However, the sliding beams can now be freely extended between 0 and 50 per cent for the first time. Until now, this was only possible on mobile cranes with up to five axles.

• 70-metre telescopic boom – can be carried on the crane with a 12-tonne axle load
• 120-metre maximum hook height
• Y-guying for maximum lifting capacity, designed for easy assembly
• 45.5-metre lattice type fixed jib, optionally hydraulically adjustable between 0° and 40°
• Eccentric including 3.5-metre telescopic boom extension
• Luffing lattice jib up to 80.5 metres

This article was published in the UpLoad magazine 02 | 2024.