IFOY AWARD 2018: Liebherr MK 140 is the Best Crane of the Year

• International jury of trade journalists selects Liebherr MK 140 tower crane as the winner in the IFOY category "Crane and Lifting Appliance".

• Sascha Schmel, Managing Director VDMA Materials Handling and Intralogistics Sector Association, presents IFOY trophy.

• Glamorous IFOY Award Night at the CeMAT in Hanover.

The IFOY Award 2018 in the "Crane and Lifting Appliance" category goes to the MK 140 tower crane from Liebherr-Werk Biberach GmbH. The international jury selected the green crane as the best new product and the cheering was overwhelming when Sascha Schmel, Managing Director VDMA Materials Handling and Intralogistics Sector Association, revealed the traditionally well-kept secret about the winner at the CeMAT opening ceremony.

Crane of the Year 2018

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Prior to the election, the innovative value of the fully electric green crane was examined in particular. Decisive for the jury's vote was the VarioJib concept, with which Liebherr sets a new standard in the mobile construction crane segment. “With the MK 140, the company is fulfilling its pioneering role in terms of efficiency and innovation and also offers significant added value compared to its competitors,” the jury says.

The 5-axle model is only 15.97 meters long and is the first crane to combine VarioJib, the trolley mode for fast and all-electric handling and the luffing mode for special applications. With this extremely innovative solution, considerably higher lifting heights of up to 94 meters and outreaches of up to 65 meters are possible for loads of up to 1,900 kilograms. Previously, this was only possible with larger or more complex equipment. The IFOY Innovation Check classifies the quality of implementation as excellent in every respect.

Only one person is required for assembly and dismantling. In the test, the IFOY winner needed less than 20 minutes for the entire setup. Rebuilds, such as an increase of the counterweight or the change from trolley to luffing jib also lasted less than 20 minutes. With a turning radius of only 11.5 meters, the vehicle is very maneuverable. For comparison: The turning circle of a VW Golf is 11.1 meters.

Another innovation is the automatic detection of the setup status, which primarily contributes to higher operational reliability. As the first mobile construction crane, the MK 140 knows its complete set-up state and supports the crane operator in selecting the right load curve. Incorrect entries during configuration are thus a thing of the past.

The green crane receives outstanding ratings for its high customer benefit. The IFOY Innovation Check notes that the compact dimensions and fast set-up times are of great advantage, especially in urban areas, the typical operational areas of mobile construction cranes. The lower vehicle weight, combined with a lower number of axles and the separately drivable additional weight enables an equivalent load capacity to considerably heavier cranes, yet the handling, permit issues and route planning are much easier.

The IFOY Award has established itself as an indicator of economic efficiency and innovation. Due to its specialised expertise it is regarded as the most important innovation award in intralogistics. The decision is based on the IFOY audit. The devices and solutions are subjected to individually tailored driving or function tests, including the IFOY test protocol comprising around 80 criteria and the scientific IFOY Innovation Check. In addition, jurors and their advisory teams assess the finalists personally before voting. Above all, it is crucial that the nominees are compared not with each other, yet with their competing devices on the market.

The IFOY Award, which is sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy, is presented by the Association for Materials Handling and Intralogistics within the VDMA. IFOY partners are CeMAT, the world's leading trade fair for intralogistics, Hanover, and Messe München with its trade fairs transport logistic, bauma and IFAT. Pallet partner of the IFOY Award is Chep, world market leader in the pooling of pallets and containers. The technology partner is battery charging specialist Fronius.