Who keeps the world’s highest motorable road motorable? The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) – aided by machinery like L&T’s sturdy wheel loaders.
A wheel loader is a heavy vehicle that loads and carries materials across a work site and are integral to road construction and upkeep. To strengthen road infrastructure in the northeast, north and north-west, BRO recently ordered 70 WL9020 wheel loaders manufactured by L&T Construction Equipment Ltd (LTCEL). Out of this, 25 have already been deployed.
These wheel loaders are now working on the world’s highest motorable pass – Umling La in eastern Ladakh. At 19,024 feet – the pass is higher than Mt Everest’s North and South base camps. There, the temperatures drop to minus 40 degree Celsius and the oxygen level is almost 50% lower than that at sea level.
The L&T wheel loaders are ideal for such harsh terrain. The sturdy machines are fitted with ‘cold starting kits’, enabling them to work in sub-zero temperatures. Part of L&T’s contribution to Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative, these machines were designed and developed by LTCEL’s Product Development Centre at Coimbatore. In line with the Government’s vision to promote local manufacturing, over 90% of their content is indigenous.
The range of LTCEL’s road construction equipment is large and diverse. It includes vibratory compactors, pneumatic tyred rollers, asphalt pavers, skid steer loaders, wheel loaders and hydraulic excavators, as well as attachments such as crusher buckets and slope compactors.
LTCEL also manufactures high-precision hydraulic components, customised systems for applications in construction equipment, industrial machinery and other engineering sectors.
The company owes the high quality of its products to smart manufacturing technologies such as CNC machines, welding robots, precision machinery and a multi-modal assembly line. It is ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 certified and shares a legacy of continuous innovation in manufacturing know-how and technology.
L&T Construction & Mining Machinery business (CMB) markets and provides after-sales support for all LTCEL machinery.
