Liebherr

Liebherr-International AG
	Current logo since 2021
	Liebherr in Gillette, Wyoming, U.S.
Company type	Aktiengesellschaft
Industry	Heavy machinery; Domestic appliances
Founded	1949; 75 years ago; Kirchdorf an der Iller, West Germany
Founder	Hans Liebherr
Headquarters	Bulle, Switzerland
Key people	Jan Liebherr, President; Stéfanie Wohlfahrt, Vice President;
Products	Construction and agriculture machinery, refrigerators
Revenue	€14.042 billion (2023)
Operating income	€603 million (2019)
Net income	€367 million (2023)
Total assets	€16.404 billion (2023)
Total equity	€8.901 billion (2023)
Number of employees	53,659 (2023)
Website	liebherr.com

Liebherr is a German-Swiss multinational equipment manufacturer based in Bulle, Switzerland, with its main production facilities and origins in Germany.

Liebherr consists of over 130 companies organized into 11 divisions: earthmoving, mining, mobile cranes, tower cranes, concrete technology, maritime cranes, aerospace and transportation systems, machine tools and automation systems, domestic appliances, and components. It has a worldwide workforce over 53,000, with fourteen billion euros in revenue for 2023.^[2] By 2007, it was the world's largest crane company.

Established in 1949 by Hans Liebherr^[3] in Kirchdorf, Württemberg-Hohenzollern, West Germany, the business is still entirely owned by the Liebherr family. After his death in 1993, Isolde and Willi Liebherr, Hans' daughter and son led the company, becoming vice president and president of the administrative board respectively of the Switzerland–based Liebherr-International AG in 1999. In March 2023, Stéfanie Wohlfarth became vice president and Jan Liebherr president of the administrative board.^[4] Isolde Liebherr and Willi Liebherr remain members of the administrative board^[1]^[5] and several other family members are actively involved in corporate management. In 2005, Forbes magazine listed them as billionaires. In 1974, the Franklin Institute awarded Hans Liebherr the Frank P. Brown Medal.^[6]

History

Hans Liebherr was drafted for military service in World War II. During the war, Liebherr served with the Ulm Pioneer Battalion 101, which was subordinate to the 101st Light Infantry Division and fought under Army Group South in the German-Soviet War. After the war, he started by building affordable tower cranes; Liebherr expanded into making aircraft parts, it is a significant supplier to European Airbus airplane manufacturer—and commercial chiller displays and freezers, as well as domestic refrigerators. The group also produces some of the world's biggest mining and digging machinery, including loaders, excavators, and extreme-sized dump trucks. The T 282 B is the world's second-largest truck (after BelAZ 75710). The group's nine-axle mobile crane, the LTM 11200–9.1—with a 100-metre (328 ft) telescopic boom—in 2007 received the heavy-lifting industry's Development of the Year award for being the world's most powerful example of such a machine.

Over the years, the family business has grown into a group of varied companies, and has locations in many countries, including Germany, Australia, Britain, Ireland, Turkey, and the United States. Since 1958, its Irish factory in Killarney, County Kerry, has built container cranes, exporting them worldwide through the port of Fenit. In Australia, the group in 2013 commenced an AU$65 million expansion of their local headquarters in Adelaide. The development includes adding a new three-storey office, workshops, warehouse, component plant, and distribution centre to the Para Hills facility.^[7] In the U.S., the group in 2012 started spending US$45.4 million (about €34.1 million) on a three-year renovation and expansion of its Newport News, Virginia, factory, offices, and warehouse. The company sought to increase its production there beyond 100 mining trucks a year. On 19 February 2013, representatives from the Commonwealth of Virginia and the cities of Newport News and Hampton announced that they would make grants and incentives available for transport improvement, training, and property investment.^[8] In addition, the Liebherr Group owns six hotels in Ireland, Austria and Germany.^[9]

In April 2014, Liebherr announced that it would invest €160 million at its production site in Bulle.^[10]

By 2017, Liebherr had expanded its workforce to 43,869 employees.^[11] That same year, the company announced it had achieved the highest turnover in the Group's history, with sales of €9,845 million.^[12] In 2018, Liebherr generated a turnover of €10,551 million, exceeding €10 billion for the first time in the company's history.^[13]

In March 2020, Liebherr launched their first APAC HQ in Singapore,^[14] alongside their bespoke $35,000 SGD Bespoke Luxe Refrigerator.^[15]

Controversies

Liebherr has faced widespread criticism for continuing its business operations in Russia following the country's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Advocacy groups, including 'Leave Russia' and B4Ukraine, have highlighted Liebherr's ongoing activities in Russia, accusing the company of indirectly supporting the Russian economy amid the conflict. The B4Ukraine report notes that Liebherr's decision to maintain operations contradicts international calls for businesses to withdraw from the Russian market as a form of economic pressure against the invasion.^[16]^[17]

Products

The line of products manufactured by the company includes:

Earth-moving equipment
Mining equipment
Cranes: mobile, crawler, tower, maritime, mobile construction
Diesel engines
Deep foundation machines
Concrete-handling equipment
Material-handling equipment
Electric motors
Port (container-handling) equipment
Machine tools
Automation systems
Domestic refrigerators and freezers
Aircraft equipment
Hotels
Mechanical, hydraulic, electrical, and electronic components and subcomponents^[18]

Liebherr has the world's most powerful and tallest crawler crane in its LR 13000. It is capable of lifting 3,000 tonnes (2,953 long tons; 3,307 short tons) and has a maximum pulley height of 248 metres (814 ft). This is achieved with the attachment of an additional 126-metre-long (413 ft) lattice jib to the 248-metre (814 ft) main boom. The height of the crawler chassis is an additional 2 m (6 ft 7 in), which gives the lattice structure a total height of 248 m (814 ft). The maximum hoisting height is 245 m (804 ft) and the total ballast used is 1,900 tonnes (1,870 long tons; 2,094 short tons), including 1,500 tonnes (1,476 long tons; 1,653 short tons) of derrick ballast.^[19]^[20]