ZHD Stevedores (ZHD), a docking firm, has ordered Liebherr‘s first fully electric crane that blends driving technology with Liebherr’s in-house designed crane management system ‘Master V‘.
At the time of contact between ZHD and Liebherr during the earliest project phases in 2021, the prototype of the CBG 500 E was still in development phase.
ZHD has worked closely with Liebherr on this project to incorporate its many years of experience in transshipment and specific requirements for the machine into the process.
As a result, additional features were added to the crane, such as the external comfort access to the cabin, the optional enlargement of the cabin to 10 cubic feet and an optimised boom design.
The prototype of the all-electric CBG 500 E will remain on the test rig at Liebherr’s factory in Rostock
until Q3 2023.
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Thereafter the crane will be installed on ZHD’s refurbished barge ‘Ahoy 50’. In the future, the crane will be used for bulk handling in sheltered waters of the Netherlands.
The new all-electric crane CBG 500 E reportedly offers a handling performance of up to 2,000 tonnes per hour and a maximum outreach of 50 metres.
According to Liebherr, the constructed lattice boom makes it extremely robust and light, which increases turnover performance while also lowering energy needs, resulting in a hook lifting capability of up to 105 tonnes and a maximum grab ability of up to 90 tonnes.
The cabin’s length and lofty location guarantee that the crane operator has an ideal view of all procedures.
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This layout is especially valued by ZHD given the crane’s concentration on dry bulk operation, where it will load and unload barges and ships.
To meet ZHD’s criteria, the CBG 500 E will be optimised for a configuration of 50 tonnes safe working load at maximum outreach to meet operational requirements.
Yves Bornet, Creator, Manager of the Project and Partner in ZHD, said: “Our collaboration with Liebherr over the past two years to develop and construct an all-electric crane for our transshipment operations has exceeded our expectations.
“We were able to test-drive early prototypes and incorporate our own industry experience that ended up defining practical options and benefits that are now part of the final product. Our investments in infrastructure and new products are based on current and emerging market needs.”
“We want to meet competitive loading rates, but also do so in an environmentally and operator-friendly
manner. Our collaboration with Liebherr and the resulting creation of the CBG 500 E on our
pontoon Ahoy 50, help us to achieve this,” added Bornet.
In June 2023, Liebherr delivered its new cabinless ship-to-shore (STS) container crane to Patrick Terminals in Brisbane, Australia.
