Eleven Metres of Clearance, One Shot at the Lift, and a Crane Four Days Out of the Factory

Kuiphuis put its new Liebherr LTM 1400-6.1 straight onto a 73-tonne precast basement in Oldenzaal. The margin for correction was zero

A crane’s first job is rarely the one you would choose for it. For Kuiphuis Kraanverhuur, the new Liebherr LTM 1400-6.1 went to work four days after delivery, lifting a 73-tonne precast basement element off a trailer and into an excavation pit in a single movement, on a site where a second attempt was not realistically available.

That matters because the constraint was space, not weight. A 450-tonne class machine has capacity to spare for a 73-tonne element. What it does not automatically have is somewhere to stand. The crane had to be set up on raised ground directly beside the pit, with roughly eleven metres between the edge of the excavation and the outriggers, reached by a three-metre-wide road with a tight bend.

The configuration

The precast foundation measured about 12 metres long, 4.6 metres wide and 3 metres high. The six-axle machine worked with 130 tonnes of counterweight and the telescopic boom extended to 19.8 metres. At a working radius of around 13.5 metres it moved a total load of 75.2 tonnes including hook block and slings.

During the lift the element had to be swung from one side of the crane to the other. Liebherr’s VarioBallast system was used to vary the ballast radius through the movement, keeping the load under control rather than relying on a fixed setup chosen at the start.

Where the job was actually won

The interesting part happened before anything left the ground. The team ran the configurations through Liebherr’s Crane Planner 2.0 to confirm the LTM 1400-6.1 suited the site, and had every sling individually calculated in dedicated software.

“The precast foundation had to be moved into its final position in a single lift, without delays or risks to the surrounding area. That is why the entire lifting operation was carefully planned and calculated in advance,” says Bart Welhuis, operations planner at Kuiphuis.

In practical terms, that is the transferable lesson for any crane hire firm taking delivery of a new machine. The lift was carried out by operators with four days of familiarity, supported by Liebherr operator training and on-site technical support. Confidence came from the simulation, not from time in the seat.

What it buys the fleet

For Kuiphuis, the machine widens the range of work the company can quote for: tower crane assembly and dismantling, wind energy, and relocating heavy industrial machinery, alongside construction lifts like this one. The family firm, founded in 1908, acquired Van Marwijk Kraanverhuur in April 2026, consolidating its position in the western Netherlands.

“Even under these changing conditions, the LTM 1400-6.1 delivered an exceptionally good performance,” says Welhuis. For a crane hire business, that judgment on job one is what determines how quickly a new asset starts earning against the jobs nobody else can take.

Eleven Metres of Clearance, One Shot at the Lift, and a Crane Four Days Out of the Factory published on The HeavyQuip Magazine.