Last year, Liebherr-Australia delivered five PR 776 mining dozers for Western Plant Hire (WPH) – a contractor based in Western Australia that operates in a range of industries including mining, construction and civil works. Through Barrooghumba WPH JV, one of WPH’s fully incorporated 50:50 joint ventures with local Indigenous businesses and their communities, these machines have been installed at a mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Customer support can be a two-way street
Although the delivery of these 70-tonne dozers marks the beginning of Liebherr-Australia’s relationship with WPH specifically, this is not the full story. In 2021 WPH was acquired by MacKellar Group – a leading heavy equipment solutions provider in Australia and a long-term Liebherr-Australia customer. During MacKellar’s 10-year relationship with Liebherr-Australia, the company has purchased a range of Liebherr mining equipment, including excavators, off-highway trucks and PR 776 dozers. In fact, MacKellar was the first mining company in Australia to purchase the PR 776s in 2016 when these machines were new to the market.
Since this time, MacKellar has worked directly with local Liebherr-Australia customer support teams and with Liebherr-Werk Telfs – Liebherr’s factory in Austria that manufactures these dozers – and has provided crucial feedback about the PR 776 to assist in their development. Mackellar’s assistance with validating and improving the PR 776 has helped the dozer become the success it is today, with 250 units in operation in 23 countries across five continents.
‘Mackellar’s early experience with these dozers – and the resulting product improvements – helped give us the confidence that the machines would perform to our expectations on site. The latest version of the PR 776 has incorporated all the early learnings, resulting in a final product that is not only well refined, but is reliable and cost effective when compared to its competitors,’ says Luke Mateljan, executive director of operations at WPH.
From first introduction to reliable workhorse
Tony Di Prima, technical support advisor specialist for dozers at Liebherr-Australia, was part of the continuous improvement process for the PR 776 dozers and is impressed with the ways the machine has evolved over time.
‘The PR 776 has improved tremendously over the years,’ says Di Prima. ‘The redesigned cabin offers exceptional operator comfort with a spacious, ergonomic layout and low sound levels. Plus, its powerful engine, intelligent drive system and hydrostatic travel drive provides excellent productivity and manoeuvrability.’
Di Prima provides technical support and advice to Liebherr-Australia’s customer support representatives, managers and fitters on site and works closely with tradespeople and apprentices who are servicing and supporting machines in the field.
‘The team in Perth has seen impressive results, including increased reliability as well as a massive uplift in operator comfort and feedback,’ he explains.
Unparalleled excellence from delivery and beyond
Liebherr-Australia’s Perth team was responsible for overseeing the build and delivery of the five PR 776s for WPH and has expressed pride in the achievement.
‘Delivering these dozers to WPH has been an exciting project for our team. We worked closely with the customer to ensure the machines were built and delivered on time and safely,’ says Chris Di-Nardo, build manager, Perth, Liebherr-Australia.
WPH was also impressed by the hard work and dedication of the Perth team, both during the build and when providing the onsite support for these machines.
‘The Liebherr build team performed exceptionally well in preparing and delivering these units. They provided the mine specifications to our customers in a very tight timeline, and communication throughout the build was fantastic. Transport to site, commissioning, familiarisation and handover was also handled by Liebherr, which ensured a seamless process for us and for our client,’ says Mateljan.
Looking forward
The delivery of these five PR 776s to WPH marks a resurgence of interest in the PR 776 dozers and deliveries within the Australian mining industry.
‘We’re excited to see the PR 776 gain traction across a diverse set of commodities in the Australian market. Operators have stated clearly that the Liebherr dozer delivers both the best operating experience and highest production in the amongst OEMs. The product is a game-changer.’ says Brian Boitano, executive general manager of sales, marketing, training and solutions for Liebherr-Australia. ‘With more deliveries on the way this year, our dozers will be present across all of Australia’s mining hubs.’
