First narrow track crawler for Mexico

Niamh Marriott Deputy Editor, International Cranes and Specialized Transport

13 November 2024

Mexican crane and heavy haulage company ESEASA has taken delivery of a new Liebherr LR 1700-1.0W.

The 700 tonne capacity crawler crane loads offshore components on a wide chassis in the port of Anahuac, Veracruz, Mexico. (Photo: Liebherr)

It is the first crane of this type in Latin America.

In addition to the narrow travel gear, which mainly offers advantages in wind farms, ESEASA has also ordered the wide standard travel gear.

The crane comes with a variety of boom configurations, providing maximum flexibility and making it ideal for use in industrial applications as well, Liebherr said.

Crane order

Ordering the cranes at ConExpo 2023. Left to right: Daniel Pitzer (CFO Liebherr-Werk Ehingen), Christian Tableros (sales director Liebherr Mexico), Abraham Santos (owner ESEASA), Aldo Santos (owner ESEASA), Jan Liebherr (chairman of the board of directors of Liebherr-International). Photo: Liebherr.

ESEASA ordered the 700 tonne crawler crane at Conexpo 2023 as part of a package that included a Liebherr LTM 1250-5.1 and two LRT 1090-2.1 rough terrain cranes. A Liebherr LTM 1150-5.3 has since been added to its 300-strong crane fleet.

Updated model

The LR 1700-1.0W is the successor to the LR 1600/2-W.

Company co-owner Aldo Santos said, “We opted for the LR 1700-1.0W because it is significantly more powerful than its predecessor. It also offers state-of-the-art crawler crane technology.”

Narrow-track crawler cranes are optimised for use in wind farms: they can travel from one turbine to the next along the existing routes and be deployed quickly.

The biggest differences between the LR 1700-1.0W and its predecessor model, the LR 1600/2-W, are the new crane’s higher lifting capacities and lifting heights. The new crane thus meets the more challenging requirements of working on modern wind turbines with hub heights reaching 170 metres.

Liebherr also offers the LR 1700-1.0W with a luffing jib. This option was not available for its predecessor.

As ESEASA intends to use the new crane in the wind energy sector as well as in industrial, oil and gas applications, the wide standard chassis was also ordered. This allows the crane to be driven on-site with a load on the hook.