Ready to go

George Barturen beams as he gives the okay for the massive R 9800 mining excavator to travel off the assembly pad and down to its future work site. “You know,” he says with a proud smile, “we’ve been working on assembling and commissioning this machine for some time now, to see it cycling so fast while loading the first trucks, that’s such a rewarding moment.” The Senior Product Manager based at Liebherr’s Mining business Down Under knows what he’s talking about. In his almost 30 years with the company, he has assembled countless numbers of 200 to 600 tonne mining excavators all over the Globe. However, the 810 tonne Ultraclass excavator is his personal masterpiece. “I was personally responsible for the project planning, assembly and commissioning of the world's first R 9800. Commencing operation in December 2009, the machine continues to operate on the east coast of Queensland, Australia. Back then, that first deployment took almost nine months of planning prior to the commencement of the onsite assembly process.” Nowadays, a team of up to twelve experts spends only twelve weeks assembling, optioning and commissioning the R 9800 excavator.

The finest moment is when the engines start for the first time.

George Barturen

A colossal construction set

But where do you start when building one of the largest excavators in the world? Like with the LEGO® Technic™ Liebherr R 9800 model, the assembly of the real machine needs an assembly manual and a plan. “We need to plan ahead in detail with our customer. While the components are shipped from our factory in Colmar (France) we setup and manage all aspects of the assembly site,” George explains. And this is not only about getting the thirteen main modules for the attachment undercarriage and uppercarriage sections onto trucks with multiple trailers and to the assembly site. “We map out where each module and components needs to be placed to maximise the number of components that the large cranes can reach, without having to relocate.”

The result of this meticulous planning is a safe and seamlessly flowing assembly process, reducing assembly time and costs. Every component in its place, every bolt ready for the major milestone: the marriage of the uppercarriage with the undercarriage. “It’s the pivotal moment, cranes lift the preassembled uppercarriage, which weighs 200 tonnes, we then remotely propel the undercarriage into position beneath the uppercarriage and assemble the two major machine sections together with 120 bolts.”

Being involved with the assembly of an R 9800 is always an exciting time for the team. “The finest moment though,” says George, “is when the engines start for the first time.” It’s when the raw sound of the two 1500 kW engines and hum of the hydraulic systems are felt that the assembly team knows their project is coming to a successful and rewarding close.

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The challenge

While George Barturen and his team in Australia watch their newly assembled R 9800 in action, on the other side of the world in Germany, LEGO enthusiast Tobias Branig opens a box that contains the LEGO Technic Liebherr R 9800 Excavator. “I was so excited. I could hardly sleep last night!” Tobias is a professional when it comes to building LEGO models. His parents gave him his first LEGO Technic set when he was five and he has been a fan ever since. He works as a metal-cutting foreman but spends his spare time in a workshop filled with over 125,000 LEGO pieces. They sit in hundreds of small drawers, which cover the wall from the bottom to the top, only leaving a gap where his desk and computer are. Here, he usually designs and builds his own models of construction machinery which take him from two to six months to complete. For his own models, his girlfriend Franziska, who also knows a thing or two about LEGO models, often supports him. But today, we have set Tobias a different challenge: to build the LEGO Technic Liebherr R 9800 in less than ten hours – without any help.

Like writing on a keyboard

At 08:37, the building begins. Tobias unpacks each of the numbered bags containing the 4,108 LEGO bricks, Smart Hubs and motors and sorts the pieces by shape and colour into plastic trays. He then strategically places them around his work desk and opens the first of the two building instruction books. With an eye on the building steps, he puts the first two pieces together. Then the next. His hands move like clockwork and bit by bit, the undercarriage starts to take shape. He hardly looks at the pieces, only the manual. “I know every LEGO piece by heart,” he says. “I know their shape and how they fit. It’s a bit like typing without looking at the keyboard. Once you know how to do it, you’ll never forget it.” After putting two grey L beams and a black two-module snap together, he adds with a wink: “Sometimes I can’t believe myself that I memorised them all.”

  • The challenge begins
    The first step: unpacking and sorting the first of the total 4,108 LEGO bricks into small trays. From now on, the clock is ticking.

    The challenge begins

    The first step: unpacking and sorting the first of the total 4,108 LEGO bricks into small trays. From now on, the clock is ticking.

  • The undercarriage is on its way
    After an hour, Tobias has assembled half of the parts for the undercarriage. He checks, if all is in order.

    The undercarriage is on its way

    After an hour, Tobias has assembled half of the parts for the undercarriage. He checks, if all is in order.

  • Full concentration
    The undercarriage can't be complete without the Liebherr logo. Steady hands are needed to have it perfectly straight.

    Full concentration

    The undercarriage can't be complete without the Liebherr logo. Steady hands are needed to have it perfectly straight.

  • A place for everything
    During the fitting of the motors, it is time to take a close look at the work desk. All LEGO parts are strategically placed.

    A place for everything

    During the fitting of the motors, it is time to take a close look at the work desk. All LEGO parts are strategically placed.

  • The marriage
    One of the pivotal moments: the assembly of the boom and the undercarriage. The wires that will later power the boom and the shovel snap into place with a click. Tobias moves the boom by hand, checking whether it functions correctly.

    The marriage

    One of the pivotal moments: the assembly of the boom and the undercarriage. The wires that will later power the boom and the shovel snap into place with a click. Tobias moves the boom by hand, checking whether it functions correctly.

  • Challenge accomplished
    After 6 hours and 48 minutes, the last bolt goes in to fit the biggest LEGO piece – the bucket. Tobias made it and finished well below the 10-hour limit.

    Challenge accomplished

    After 6 hours and 48 minutes, the last bolt goes in to fit the biggest LEGO piece – the bucket. Tobias made it and finished well below the 10-hour limit.

  • A test drive in Germany
    The LEGO® Technic™ Liebherr R 9800 excavator is ready to take its first round. And what better place to do this than in the streets of a small German village near the Baltic Sea.

    A test drive in Germany

    The LEGO® Technic™ Liebherr R 9800 excavator is ready to take its first round. And what better place to do this than in the streets of a small German village near the Baltic Sea.

  • I enjoy the experience of building the model. It’s such a great feeling!

    Tobias Branig

    Getting into the groove

    Two hours later, Tobias is still going. The black LEGO ring that forms the swing bearing to hold the uppercarriage of the R 9800 is already in place. “I’m at a stage now, where I get into the groove. I automatically know what comes next and can fully enjoy the experience of building the model. It’s such a great feeling. I’ll miss building it once I put the last piece in.”

    Minute by minute, the LEGO Technic excavator grows, the motors, the hydraulic parts and the uppercarriage go in. The foreman is fully relaxed. While he assembles the boom, he even finds time to reveal some of the secret building tricks of LEGO fans: “If there is a small piece that is in a hard to reach corner, like this one,” he holds up a small blue three module snap, “you don’t have to try and fiddle it in with your fingers. Just take a thin plate and push it in.”

    After four hours, it’s time for the finishing touches – the rails, the ladder, the cabin and the red fire suppression bottles. “The small bits take a while but that’s what really makes a model in the end,” says Tobias while he threads the hydraulic pipes through LEGO tubes. “I love that these are here as well and that they payed attention to that detail. That’s the icing on the cake.”

    Then, at six hours and 48 minutes, Tobias reaches the last page of the construction manual. One piece to go. He attaches the bucket to the boom and fills it with grey LEGO bricks. Challenge completed!

    We need your consent This YouTube video is provided by Google*. If you load the video, your data - including your IP address - is transmitted to Google and may be stored and processed by Google inter alia in the USA. We have no influence over further data processing by Google. By clicking on "Accept", you consent to the transmission of data to Google for this video in accordance with Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR and at the same time expressly consent to the transfer of data to the USA in accordance with Art. 49 (1) (a) GDPR. If you no longer wish to consent to each YouTube video individually in the future and wish to be able to load the videos without this blocker, you can also select "Always accept YouTube" and thereby consent to the associated data transmissions and transfers to Google and to the USA for all other YouTube videos which you open on our website in the future. Please note that, in the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there does not currently exist an adequate level of data protection in line with EU standards in the USA, and at present we cannot provide suitable safeguards to protect your data and offset this shortcoming. Possible risks to you of data transfer to the USA are that access by state authorities cannot be excluded and that your data could be processed for reasons of national security, criminal prosecution or for other purposes in the public interest of the USA, possibly without you being informed separately and without enforceable rights and effective means of redress being available to you. You can withdraw consent that you have given at any time with future effect via the settings. For further information, please see our Data Protection Declaration and Google's Privacy Policy. *Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Irland; Mutterunternehmen: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA

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