by Kyle Molyneux | Wed 24 Mar 2021
New Liebherr R 9600 mining excavator
Following years of development, Liebherr Group’s Mining Division has launched the new R 9600 hydraulic excavator, a 600-tonne successor to the R 996B. Based on the 800-tonne R 9800, serial production will commence at the end of this year.
After testing the first prototypes at the factory proving grounds in Colmar, France, in early 2020 the first R 9600 pre-series excavators started operating in iron ore and coal applications in Australia. Liebherr, together with its two very important customers BHP and Thiess, started the partnered validation of the first two units in the field. Backed by this validation phase, the R 9600 is ready to enter the global market.
The R 9600 is equipped with two QSK50 Cummins engines with advanced combustion technologies. For emission regulated regions, a US EPA Tier 4f / EU Stage 5 compliant version is available with the latest SCR after-treatment technology. An electric drive version will be available soon.
The R 9600 attachment makes use of smart component design such as the patented ‘Evo’ backhoe bucket, hydraulic cylinders, shift levers, bucket links and attachment pins. In standard backhoe configuration with a Heavy Duty wear package, the R 9600 comes with a 37.5-cubic-metre bucket. It loads 190-tonne trucks in three passes, T 264 240-tonne trucks in four passes, T 274 300-tonne trucks in five passes and T 284 375-tonne trucks in six passes. The excavator is also available in face shovel configuration equipped with a 37-cubic-metre shovel, as standard with a Heavy Duty wear package.
The R 9600 is built to last over 80,000 machine operational hours. The uppercarriage structure is a completely new development. Its fatigue resistant steel structure is enhanced by a new hydraulic track tensioning system. The standard sealed for life heavy-duty carrier and track rollers incorporate the patented roller path design and registered track pad design.
The R 9600 has a brand new cabin with state-of-the-art 14-cubic-metre working space. The cab design reduces vibrations and limits noise to 69dB, providing a comfortable working environment for the operator. Liebherr says the R 9600 offers a superior machine perimeter visibility system comprising of four cameras at strategic locations on the rotating uppercarriage. The dedicated monitor inside the cabin provides continuous 270-degree vision around the machine.
The R 9600 is also equipped with the Liebherr Assistance Systems, on-board applications designed to support the operators in becoming more efficient through analytics and actionable insights from live data. Ease of maintenance has been improved, too.
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