Liugong loader is quarry workhorse

A Liugong 877III wheeled loader is proving its worth for Hungarian aggregates producer Versendko Mining.

The company has four extraction sites. Two produce standard limestone aggregates, a third produces quarry products for railway construction from volcanic rhyolite. The fourth quarry, meanwhile, has a depost of andesite, which is used for decorative stone applications such as tiles, monuments and landscaping.

The 877III wheeled loader is currently at working at one of the limestone quarries near the southwestern Hungarian town of Pécs. Opened in 2008 to feed a nearby motorway scheme, output peaked at 20,000 tonnes per day. Although activity has since quietened down, the quarry still ships between 100 and 150 trucks of aggregates per day.

Experienced operator Csaba Balatinacz was unfamiliar with the Liugong name and initially sceptical of the new loader.

However, he has since been won over. “I like the 877III for many reasons,” he said. ”First, it is very easy to operate and it has a powerful engine with an easy transmission. That power is very useful for driving into and lifting the rock. This is particularly useful when the rock is wet because it becomes much heavier for the same load space – only the other day the warning gauge showed 9.95 tonnes of wet load had been lifted but the machine didn’t show any signs of a struggle. And yes, the machine is all standard specification.

“To some people who are concerned about Chinese product, I am sure to say that its quality all round is very good. Panels close and doors shut perfectly. Another area that is important for a machine operator is the easy way daily service checks are carried out. This is not a problem with the Liugong and checks are completed very quickly.”

Versendko Mining owner, Zoltau Csako added, “The Liugong machine has proved to be a typical earthmoving machine with no more and no less problems than its competitors.”