Four economical XPower wheel loaders for the Stolz company: Low diesel consumption decisive factor for new acquisition

The four new L 580 XPower® are deployed for duty in the four lava and basalt quarries of the Stolz company in Hillesheim, Daun, Kirchweiler and Walsdorf. Company owner Dieter Stolz has specialized in the quarrying and processing of volcanic slag (lava and basalt). An ideal raw material for road and sports ground construction that the Stolz company processes to substrate. The new wheel loaders are used for filling the crushing and sieving plant and for loading the final products and substrates. Every Liebherr wheel loader processes up to 2,000 tons of material per day.

One year of XPower®: Customers draw a positive balance

One year after the new and innovative XPower machine concept was presented and introduced to the market, XPower customers draw a positive balance. The XPower wheel loaders impress in all areas of application with their high performance and low diesel consumption. A customer survey has shown that the average fuel consumption of the XPower wheel loaders L 550, L 556 and L 566 ranges between nine and twelve litres of diesel per operating hour. For the XPower models L 576, L 580 and largest Liebherr wheel loader, the 32.6 ton L 586 XPower®, the average diesel consumption under tough conditions ranges between twelve to sixteen litres of diesel per operating hour.

Basis for these efficient fuel figures is the stage IV / tier 4f conform power-split driveline which Liebherr installs in all XPower wheel loaders as standard. It combines a hydrostatic drive, which is ideal for short loading cycles, with a mechanical drive, which in turn shows its benefits on long routes and up hill. The proven Liebherr Power Efficiency system plays a key role in this. During multiple years of testing and development, Liebherr has continuously fine-tuned the harmonization of all components of the driveline and thereby achieved fuel savings of up to 30 percent compared to the previous generation.

The XPower wheel loaders are clearly demonstrating their advantages on the plant premises of the Stolz company. There are occasions on which the wheel loaders have to travel long distances from the quarry face to the crushers and absolve uphill drives along the way. The perfect terrain for the power-split driveline. "Despite their low diesel consumption of 14 litres, the wheel loaders have an enormous breaking force and are on top of that extremely manoeuvrable," explains company owner Dieter Stolz.

Reinforced lift arm for more productivity

With an annual output of 1 million tons, productivity is a top priority for the Stolz company. The wheel loaders are in operation for 250 days per year, up to 10 hours per day. On a daily basis, they more around 2,000 tons of volcanic slag (lava, basalt). Lava is light raw material with a high degree of density which stores moisture and then slowly releases it again. The reinforced Z-bar linkage of the L 580 XPower wheel loaders is the perfect choice for the volcanic bulk material of the Stolz company and offers up to 20 percent more breaking force than the previous generation.

The loading capacity is also supported by the installation location of the components. Liebherr installs heavy components, such as the engine, at the very rear. This shifts the centre of gravity towards the rear of the wheel loader, so that there is no need for additional counterweight. This ideal weight distribution results in high tipping loads and an increased handling capacity per operating hour.

A strong partnership between the two family-run companies

Just like the Liebherr company group , the Stolz company is also a family-run company and is now in its third generation since its foundation in 1953. Executive and operations management have been taken over by Dieter Stolz's sons. Rene Stolz is the director and Roman Stolz is responsible for operations management. In their own processing plants, the Stolz company produces roofing and recultivation substrates, among others. Company owner Dieter Stolz is very satisfied with quality delivered by Liebherr. "A good relationship between dealer and customer is always very important. But the high availability of the Liebherr technicians was also an important decision-making factor for me," Dieter Stolz explains.

The trust placed in the Liebherr brand clearly shows on the plant premises. Apart from the four new L 580 XPower®, there are also two L 586 wheel loaders, an L 580, an L 508 Compact, four R 974 caterpillars, two more R 934 and 936 caterpillars and a PR 734 crawler tractor in use on site.