Liebherr has delivered the first 10 units of the 110 tonne LTM 1110-5.2 All Terrain crane equipped with the new Liccon3 crane control system, that the company announced last spring and displayed in October 2022 at Bauma.
Testing is now almost complete, allowing series production to begin. German crane and heavy transport company Riga Mainz has taken the first unit. The first 10 are equipped with an additional remote access data logger, allowing the company to monitor the cranes as they work. Liebherr says that it deliberately placed the first 10 units with customers in both the colder north and hotter areas of southern Europe.
Liccon3’s in cab touch screen display screen
Riga managing director Kai Langer visited the Liebherr plant in Ehingen for an official handover of the new LTM 1110-5.2: "Our aspiration is to set new benchmarks for the industry again and again. Therefore, it's important for us to be involved in new technologies such as Liccon3 right from the start in order to give important feedback to our partners in Liebherr's development department based on our practical experience."
Kai Langer of Riga Mainz (L) with Joachim Sommer of Liebherr
Riga crane operator David Traud, was trained on the new crane at the factory, added: "I am looking forward to being one of the first to drive the new crane. Everything is new and much more modern. I think the individual setting options are great. Nevertheless, you quickly get to grips with it, as the operation is basically the same as with the current Liccon2."
Fourth generation
Kai Langer returned to the company in July, after 10 years away, in order to take over from managing director Karl Reitz who is retiring at the end of this year. He led Riga’s marketing & business development functions from 2006 until 2013, but decided that he needed wider managerial experience if he was to eventually take the helm at the crane company.
After a year or two working as a consultant, he joined Deloitte Digital as manager of customer experience and service design, before taking up a similar role with Volkswagen owned Seat and its performance/hybrid brand Cupra. In May he and chief executive Uwe Langer agreed that it was time for the fourth generation of the Langer family to start the transition process, having taken over the company from his parents in 1998.
Riga Mainz was established in 1929, entering the crane market when it built a 7.5 tonne crane of its own in 1956. Today it has more than 110 employees and runs a fleet of around 40 cranes with capacities from 30 to 700 tonnes. Its fleet also includes heavy transport units such as 48 axle SPMTs and 4,000 tonne lifting and shifting systems.
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