Second-hand Liebherr LTM 1130-5.1 joins Belize Sugar Industries

Second-hand LTM 1130-5.1 becomes one of the first Liebherr mobile cranes in Belize

Belize Sugar Industries has put a second-hand Liebherr LTM 1130-5.1 into service at its sugar factory, where the 130-tonne, five-axle machine takes over maintenance, repair and assembly duties that previously needed a hired crane alongside its own.

The company runs the largest sugar factory in the Central American country, employing around 600 people, and also generates electricity, roughly half of which is fed into the public grid. Lifting demand inside the plant has grown steadily, and the 33-year-old 110-tonne crane previously used for maintenance and modernisation work could no longer keep pace.

“Our need for lifting capacity for maintenance and modernisation work within the plant has risen sharply. The 110-tonne crane, now 33 years old, which we had previously used for these tasks, was no longer able to fully meet the plant’s requirements.”

— Immer Torres, buyer, Belize Sugar Industries

Available at short notice from Veracruz

Performance was not the only reason BSI settled on the LTM 1130-5.1. The used crane was standing at Liebherr’s site in Veracruz, Mexico, so it could be made available in the region at very short notice. The machine was handed over in mid-August at Tower Hill, Belize, where teams from BSI and Liebherr Mexico completed the delivery.

“Thanks to its versatile set-up and configuration options, the 5-axle crane with its 60-metre boom is suitable for a wide range of tasks within our plant,” said Torres. “With our ‘new second-hand’ crane, we will now be able to carry out maintenance work on the production plant, repair jobs and assembly work using a single crane. Previously, we regularly had to hire an additional machine for these tasks in addition to our own crane.”

First Liebherr in the fleet

The LTM 1130-5.1 is a model that has proven itself over roughly two decades of service across all continents. For BSI, the 130-tonner is the company’s first Liebherr crane and will cover the upper load-capacity class in its fleet. It is also among the first Liebherr mobile cranes anywhere in Belize.

Long-term support weighed as heavily as the spec sheet in the purchase decision. “For us, the available services and the long-term guarantee of spare parts supply were just as important as the crane’s technical specifications,” said Torres. “With a plant that produces both sugar and electricity, we need to be able to plan maintenance work reliably. Liebherr gives us the necessary assurance for long-term operation.”