Compact, Economical Package

Taking a look back at one of my articles previously published in Earthmovers magazine focusing on a long established LiuGong customer.

Having been quite early adopters of LiuGong construction machinery in the UK, Beccles based Norfolk & Suffolk Plant Hire are quite clearly impressed with the Chinese-built and more recently UK designed machines, so much so that with the latest order of four machines, comprising of 2 x 909E CR and 2 x 913F CR models, this brings the total of LiuGong’s in the N&S fleet to a staggering 52 units at the time of writing.

Among the most recent additions were the first two 13-tonne class compact radius, 913F CR models to be sold in the UK, which were supplied by Tobin Plant Services, the new dealership for the region run by Simon Tobin who was previously working directly for LiuGong Machinery UK covering that area for 6 years, who invited us along to take a look around the new machines and to spend some time in the seat.

The F-Series 913F CR which has an operating weight of 14.700-16.500kgs depending on specification, along with its larger brother the 915F CR are the first compact radius models to be introduced by the manufacturer, having been penned by the UK based construction equipment design legend Gary Major and his team, who have been working across the board on the new range of machines being produced by LiuGong.

We were joined on the day by LiuGong UK’s Technical support supervisor Andrew Millen, who was keen to show us around the new model, which I felt looked really good with stylish curved bodywork.

Starting up on top of the machine and opening up the tiniest of bonnets partially reveals the 3.8 litre Stage V emissions compliant Cummins F3.8 engine, which is the same power pack as fitted in the larger 915F CR but in this application down rated to 69.5kw (93.2hp). Visually you can’t see that much of the engine from this point, but you can check and top up the coolant level and add any engine oil from this point, to work on any other part of the engine you would need to unbolt panels to gain access.

Decent handrails and a fully enclosed boxing ring provide safety for the operator when climbing up and demounting the upper-structure.

Back down at ground level, and opening the rear offside panel we discover the engine oil dipstick, enabling easy checking of the level before the start of the shift. Following the industry trend this is also home to the fluid filters which are clustered around the heart of the machine, the latest Kawasaki twin variable displacement hydraulic pumps.

On the opposite side it’s the usual fair, of cooling packs, air filter housing which contains the very latest long life Fleetguard air filter, coolant expansion bottle and a battery isolation switch, with the batteries stored down below in the depths of the counterweight, as is the windscreen washer bottle.

The massive panel door on the off-side front opens outwards to reveal the main Kawasaki hydraulic valve blocks and associated pipework, while neatly stowed inside the door is the pipework for the electric refuelling pump. Nicely located at the front of this area is the 25 litre DEF tank, which is really accessible for topping up. The 200 litre (52.8 gallon) fuel tank is situated just along the chassis.

LiuGong cab interiors have come a long way since the early C-Series models that we first started seeing when the brand entered the UK market nearly a decade ago, and these F-Series models represent the next step up in the evolution of them.

Starting with the seat, you get a full air-suspension version which is also heated, and is integrated with the joystick control consoles which rise and fall with the seat, ensuring that the operator is always comfortable and in control at all times.

A combination of grey and black composite materials has been used inside for the interior panelling which give it a nice feel, and there are no less than four adjustable air vents at the front and four to the rear of the cab supplying all around air-conditioned ventilation/heating as required. They have even provided that all important cup holder for the essential morning brew.

The cab floor is a nice clean-cut affair with an easily removable mat for the clean conscious operators out there.

Extremely comfortable track pedals are provided, and they are of a decent size too, so great for those big footed operators out there. The T-bar style track levers are set at a lovely angle too making them very comfortable to use.

The layout on the right-hand side is what I would call basic and workmanlike, I can’t lie when I say it still looks a bit on the budget side, but as I say, it all does what it should, and offers everything that anyone would expect to find in a modern-day excavator, the old saying, “you get what you pay for” springs to mind.

Incorporated in that right-hand console just behind the throttle dial, is a bank of 10 x push button selection switches, consisting of 2 speed tracking selection, auto idle selection, wiper and wiper wash, work lights, cab temperature selection, radio mute, home menu selection and work modes.

Most of these functions can also be accessed via the new I-Pad style touch screen monitor, remotely by using the toggle switch on the right-hand side console. Like so many we see these days, this monitor can be used to do a whole host of tasks including selecting hydraulic flows and pressures for various different hydraulic attachments. The monitor also provides various camera views which can be selected by the operator including the birds-eye 360-degree view.

The cab is spacious width wise, but is lacking in space to the rear, I noted that there is virtually nowhere to store a lunch bag behind the seat in this model, as is often the case in compact radius machines in general.

There are some nice touches with the forward sun visor that pulls down, while on the right-hand side window, there is a curtain that can be drawn to keep out the ravages of the sun on hot days, that certainly beats taking an old towel into work to pin up during the summer, something I have definitely done in the past on some machines!

I took the machine out onto some wasteland at the back of Norfolk & Suffolk’s yard to put it through its paces, all be it quite briefly as it turned out.

As is so common these days the machine features electro hydraulics, which in all honesty I am not a fan of, but they are all going that way so we have to get used to them. Selecting Eco mode initially, I tracked up onto one of the heaps of spoil, accompanied by that familiar and lovely thrum of a Cummins engine.

I set about throwing a bit of dirt about, my initial reaction was that this example, sitting on UK spec 700mm track pads and with a 3-metre dipper, was well balanced, quick and powerful in operation under normal operating conditions. A good footprint is assured with a track length of 3,660mm and a width with the 700mm shoes of 2,690mm, while the machines tail swing radius is just 1,525mm.

For this demonstration the machine was provided with a 1829mm grading bucket attached to a Miller PowerLatch TwinLock hydraulic quick coupler, not what you would normally go digging with, but even so, it made light work of pulling through what was a mixture of topsoil and subsoil.

Feeling I wanted a bit more poke, I selected the (P) power work mode and the machine instantly felt more alive and responsive. A slew speed of 11.3rpm with a quick take off makes it a lively beast, not the fastest out there but definitely up there with the contenders in the high-performance bracket.

I found all the services worked well together with hardly any drain when using 2-3 or more functions simultaneously thanks in part to the top quality Japanese hydraulic system, my only criticism in that department would be when pulling into grade at just under full stretch I noticed the stick dipped in slightly creating a divot in the graded soil, this I’m pretty sure was down to me needing more time to get the feel of how the machine reacted.

In common with most compact radius excavators, I found her to be a little light on the back-end when reaching out at full stretch with a full bucket over the side, but a slight adjustment in how you operate soon sorts that out.

Overall, I found the 913F CR to be a very capable machine and an enjoyable drive, which is sure to be a great addition to the LiuGong range.

LiuGong 913F CR Basic Stats

Digging reach on ground 3m stick 8585mm

Digging depth 3m stick 5890mm

Minimum front swing radius 3m stick 2400mm

Norfolk & Suffolk Plant Hire

Norfolk & Suffolk Plant Hire has been running for the past 6 years and is part of the Saint Vincent Holdings group of companies, who operate in the commercial haulage, automotive and engineering sectors.

The business is run by Managing Director Chris Amis who took on the role some 3 years ago having worked for the owners for over 30 years in other areas of the business. The company provides excavators from 1.5-tonne up to 25-tonne, wheeled loaders, site dumpers, attachments and crushing and screening equipment, which is hired out on a national basis

In addition to the LiuGong machines the company also run machines from Hitachi, Case, Hyundai, and according to Chris there are some new Doosan machines joining the fleet soon.

Talking about the LiuGong brand Chris said, “As I say we are currently running 52 LiuGong machines, which in all fairness have been really good, we have had the odd niggly problem along the way but you get that with all makes. The back up and service we get from LiuGong UK has been excellent so we can’t fault them for that!”.

Chris continued, “We have decided to invest in the compact radius machines, mainly down to the fact that a lot of our customers have been asking us for them, this is mainly due to the sites becoming ever more restrictive and congested, so naturally we felt it was a good thing to do for the business, to meet that demand. Last year we invested £5m in plant and equipment and I expect to be investing a similar amount this year”.