
Wheel Loader
L 550
Job Report
The Liebherr L 550 wheel loader in use
by Baggerbetrieb Burkhardt GmbH
in Thuringia, Germany

Situation
Task
In 1994 René Burkhardt at the tender age of 21 took the bold
step to start his own business and founded Baggerbetrieb
Burkhardt based in Thonhausen, Thuringia. He provided his
customers with excavator services using a Liebherr A 900.
As the business grew the company expanded quickly and
moved into new business sectors. In 2001 the subsidiaries
Baggerbetrieb Burkhardt GmbH and Transport-Recyclingund Landschaftsgestaltung GmbH were founded in order to
separate excavator and transport services. Then in 2004 the
company expanded again with the purchase of MTB GmbH.
Today the company’s services include complex bridge
demolition work, this includes work for German railway and
autobahn bridges, the removal and demolition of buildings
and structures, earthworks, road and sewer construction,
rail track work with road/rail excavators, bulky goods and
heavy transport and finally gravel extraction and the recycling
of buildings materials. Earth and timber in its own mine.
There are around 70 people in the workforce, some of which
have been working for the company since it was founded and
are among the top personnel in their industry, an aspect of
which Mr Burkhardt is extremely proud.
The company planned to purchase a new wheel loader
which must meet very specific requirements for use in
the mine. The machine must be capable of breaking the
very hard and abrasive gravel which contains a very high
proportion of pebbles out of the wall and load it on to trucks.
The wheel loader must also be able to travel from the deeper
section of the gravel quarry quickly on some lengthy tracks to
all areas of the mine. Other tasks include feeding the crusher
and screening systems, the removal of the material ejected
from the conveyor belts and transporting it to the landfill site.
This results in a handling capacity of over 1500 tons every day.
The machine should therefore be reliable, safe and comfortable,
require little service with good service availability and above
all economical in terms of fuel consumption.
L 550
2

Solution
Since Baggerbetrieb Burkhardt GmbH already has eight
Liebherr wheel loaders, from the L 506 stereo loader to the L 544
mid-range machine, and is very happy with their performance,
the company has now added its first new generation large
machine, the L 550, to its fleet.
This machine is used for work on the very hard gravel wall.
To enable it to cope with the extreme forces required for this
work, the L 550 was fitted with a Liebherr earthmoving shovel
with teeth and a screw-on wear blade. The L 550 will also
be used to move material to the landfill site. For this task the
machine can use its permanent all-wheel drive system on all
four wheels and scores heavily with its self-.locking differential
from 0 to 45%. The sprightly and maneuverable machine has
also impressed René Burkhardt, manager and operator, on its
many trips to and from the crusher and screening system.
Technical Data
Operating weight
Tipping load, articulated
Engine output
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17, 3 0 0 kg
12,15 0 kg
129 kW / 175 HP
The hydrostatic travel drive provides another positive effect.
It enables the Liebherr diesel engine to be installed in a particular
position at the rear of the machine where it can also act as a
counter-ballast. This means that the vastly low net weight of
the machine provides a higher tipping load and greater stability.
In turn, this also means a reduction in fuel consumption which
is a low 9.5 liters per hour at Baggerbetrieb Burkhardt GmbH.
Furthermore, the Liebherr travel drive always uses hydraulic
braking even in the most adverse conditions at the company’s
site. The brakes therefore suffer practically zero wear. Liebherr
wheel loaders also score heavily in terms of service and
maintenance. This is because opening just one hood reveals
all the servicing points which can be reached easily and safely
from the ground. For operator Heiko Bauer there is simply no
alternative to the Liebherr L 550 wheel loader.
Bucket capacity
Fuel consumption
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Tires
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9.5 litres / hour
Michelin XHA2 23.5R25
3.2 m
3
L 550
3

Liebherr-Werk Bischofshofen GmbH
Postfach 49, A-5500 Bischofshofen
+43 50809 1-0, Fax +43 50809 11385
www.liebherr.com, E-Mail: info.lbh@liebherr.com
www.facebook.com/LiebherrConstruction
BK LBH 11658221_DD-10.13_enGB Subject to te chnical modifi cations.