Construction equipment manufacturer, LeeBoy India is gearing up to capitalise on the infrastructure sector’s demand for high productivity machines. It has recently unveiled a crawler excavator (523i), two backhoe loaders (699i and 679i) and a motor grader (985i). The company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore Technologies (ST) Kinetics, the land systems arm of ST Engineering, has already experienced success, with its 12.5-tonne, motor grader, 785i. The product has already captured a double-digit market share in its first year. Kamal Bali, President and CEO, LeeBoy India Construction Equipment, hopes that the 985i will help continue the winning trend. The new 523i crawler excavator, is a 23-tonne machine powered by the Cummins 6BTA5.9 litre, water-cooled engine, equipped with a turbocharger. The 169hp engine puts out peak torque of 660 Nm. Among other stand Story and Photography: T Murrali out features, the 523i has a centralised lubrication system, which directs precise amounts of grease or oil, to bearings and other lubrication points, at regular intervals. They thereby reduce the incidence of expensive downtime. The 523i comes with Berco undercarriage for improved safety and durability. LeeBoy India’s design team has optimised the excavator, in such a manner, that it displays better stability, turning and side slope capabilities.
Coming to the 699i backhoe loader, it is powered by the Cummins 4BT 3.9 litre. The BS III compliant engine which puts out peak power of 99hp and torque of 429Nm represents a versatile power pack for the 14-tonne excavator. The machine comes with electrically actuated four forward, and three reverse, manual power shift ZF transmission. The rear axle comes from the same stables too. LeeBoy offers options like 2WD or 4WD, centre pivot or side shift, extended dippers, safety features and multiple attachments to suit specific applications. Also, an 80 hp de-rated engine, powers the 679i, which is available in only a 2WD option. The 985i, is a 15.5-tonne, motor grader that boasts of high torque, performance and reliability. The machine is designed to undertake just about any construction work ranging from road building, digging of ditches, fine grading and earth moving. Powered by the Cummins 6BTAA 5.9 litre, 150 hp, BSIII engine, the 985i boasts of an automatic power-shift transmission, and a direct drive from ZF. The tandem power drive system, and 6-speed automatic power-shift transmission features six forward and three reverse speeds, lock up clutch and stator freewheel as a standard feature. The press button toggle, facilitates manual and auto manual power shift transmission. The automatic transmission enables most grading operations to be carried out in the first and second gears – thus, minimising the need for multiple steps.
The machine is also fitted with an intelligent transmission control unit, which possesses various interlocks to prevent transmission damage and facilitates easy diagnostics. The 985i comes equipped with an advanced electronic gauge display, which contains a single, electronic LCD display, mounted in front of the steering column. The multiple screens allow for unobstructed visibility. It displays critical gauges on the default screen in day and night modes.
To ease pressure on customers towards maintenance and repairs, LeeBoy India, has introduced its comprehensive Operation-Repairs-Maintenance (ORM) initiative in India. Through ORM, the company will take on the complete responsibility of the equipment’s uptime and performance, throughout its life cycle. ‘Directed at select customers,we will provide integrated solutions, which will help them focus on their core business,’ concludes Bali.
Story and Photography: T Murrali
