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The Claas Lexion 700 combine harvester.
The Claas Lexion 700 combine harvester has won 2016 Machine of the Year at the biennial European trade fair Agritechnica.
The title is awarded each year by a panel of 19 technical journalists from eight European countries, alternately at the German event and SIMA in France.
The jury made special mention of the many technical innovations in the Lexion 700 series, such as the 4D cleaning and automatic crop flow monitoring, both recognised with a DLG Silver Medal.
4D cleaning enables efficient harvesting on uneven terrain, providing a continuous airstream over the return pans, preparation floors and sieve – consisting of slope-dependent rotor cover plates and an automatic blower. A third pair of rotor cover plates automatically open or close depending on the lateral and longitudinal angle of the machine, while the blower speed is automatically adjusted to operating conditions.
Claas has also introduced an automatic crop flow control that monitors the rotation speeds of the engine, the APS threshing mechanism and the Roto Plus residual grain separation system. The feeder, threshing, separation and grain tank discharge systems are automatically shut down if critical load peaks are detected.
Other improvements include the company's award-winning Cemos system which automatically optimises harvesting operations for maximum throughout, grain quality or fuel efficiency to suit prevailing conditions.
Initially available for wheat, barley and canola, the system can now be used in maize and soybeans and controlled directly via the CEBIS operating system rather than a separate terminal.
The recently released Claas Jaguar 1000 Series has seen its flagship 1200 set a new official Guiness World Record in forage harvesting, harvesting 4096 tonnes of whole crop silage in 12 hours, alongside an efficiency record of just 0.49 litres of fuel consumption per tonne of silage harvested.
In an already crowded market, Polish machinery manufacturer Samasz is set to unveil a prototype of its Z4-1550 four-rotor rake at Agritechnica.
Innovation awards at international agricultural events are always on the wishlist of manufacturers.
Like many manufacturers around the world, European agricultural machinery and tractor manufacturers are currently operating in a difficult market environment. But they are heading to the world’s largest agricultural machinery event in Hanover next month with a degree of cautious optimism.
Claas has announced the arrival of its new Jaguar 1000 series forage harvesters, taking power delivery beyond 1100hp, aimed at achieving 20% more throughput, better chop quality, greater efficiency and more operator comfort.
Three New Zealand agritech companies are set to join forces to help unlock the full potential of technology.
As the sector heads into the traditional peak period for injuries and fatalities, farmers are being urged to "take a moment".
Federated Farmers says almost 2000 farmers have signed a petition launched this month to urge the Government to step in and provide certainty while the badly broken resource consent system is fixed.
Zespri’s counter-seasonal Zespri Global Supply (ZGS) programme is underway with approximately 33 million trays, or 118,800 tonnes, expected this year from orchards throughout France, Italy, Greece, Korea, and Japan.
Animal owners can help protect life-saving antibiotics from resistant bacteria by keeping their animals healthy, says the New Zealand Veterinary Association.
According to analysis by the Meat Industry Association (MIA), New Zealand red meat exports reached $827 million in October, a 27% increase on the same period last year.
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