LaPrairie Invests in Liebherr LRT Cranes

Sep. 26,  2019 – The LaPrairie group of companies, based in western Canada, has recently invested in nine new Liebherr machines. The new Liebherr LRT rough-terrain cranes have been important add-ons to the fleet, as they’re used in long-term jobs to free the existing fleet of all-terrain cranes for their typical taxi crane jobs.

Rough-terrain cranes are usually requested by LaPrairies’ customers without crane drivers. Therefore, the ease-of-use and safety were some of the top qualities for LaPrairie during the selection process.  

“We chose the new cranes based on Liebherr’s superior factory products, and long-term value and utilization that we have experienced in their all-terrain cranes and the LTR fleet that we have in use,” explains Reagan LaPrairie, director and vice president operations, LaPrairie. “Liebherr provides the best product when it comes to cranes and how they keep working in extreme cold operating conditions.”

During the decision to order the four new rough-terrain cranes, the Liebherr LRT 1090-2.1 type was carefully selected. With VarioBase, the variable outrigger system, as a standard, the camera monitoring system, and the large cab size, as well as the deck layout, the Liebherr LRT cranes are the safest in the class. Another crucial point was the supply of spare parts, as well as the customer service. “For the North American market, I think the combination of the Cummins engine and the drive train is the best combination – also for service, parts availability, and reliability in the long-term,” adds LaPrairie.

The LRT cranes were presented to the North American market at the 2017 Conexpo in Las Vegas. With more than 100 units sold within just one year after the start of delivery, the rough-terrain cranes are being used worldwide in different industries.

“It was an easy transition from our current fleet of Liebherr’s all-terrain cranes when it came to training our people on the new LRT cranes due to the similar systems on their AT cranes,” said LaPrairie. “The features on these cranes are really operator-friendly. So the operators are happy, the mechanics are happy, and our customers are happy – that’s why I have to say the LRT is clearly a winner in my books. I think Liebherr really got it right on these RT cranes. They were listening to the crane guys when they designed it.”