Agricultural
During last week’s Agritechnica exhibition, German agricultural publishing group Deutscher Landwirtschaftverlag, or DLV, held its ‘Machine of the Year 2014’ awards. The publisher acknowledged machinery manufacturers in 16 classes of award and, additionally, presented a ‘special prize’ category – which was awarded to Trelleborg for its ProgressiveTraction technology.
The performance of equipment in the field can greatly impact productivity, and thus, bottom line. Titan International points out that tyres are a very important part of this equation, and with regular inspection, and – if necessary – minor adjustments, agricultural machinery operators can see great improvements in the durability and performance of the tyres in the field. Titan says that following the completion of spring planting, the time is right to inspect tyres and make necessary adjustments to ensure the rest of the season goes off without a hitch.
Scott Sloan, agricultural product manager for Titan and Goodyear Farm Tires, says it’s as simple as following the ABCs.
Amongst the news announced at the Agritechnica 2013 show was that Netherlands-based truck and off-road tyre specialist Heuver Tyrewholesale has obtained exclusive rights in a number of European countries to distribute the agricultural range from one of China’s best-known tyre makers. Heuver will initially focus on distributing the LingLong agricultural range in Germany and the Benelux markets.
To accommodate growing demand for all types of agricultural tyres from professional end-users, Apollo Vredestein B.V. is investing heavily to expand production capacity for these products. The production schedule and unit production at the company’s Enschede plant in The Netherlands will thus increase by 50 per cent from January 2014. This augmentation, which was first announced in August 2012, has already decreased delivery times, and thanks to improved production capacities the development of new tyres is progressing more rapidly than planned.
Road lope is a rhythmic, ‘porpoising’ motion that develops at higher speeds or in road gear when a tractor is not pulling any significant load. It often occurs because a tyre or rim is not truly round. And it’s annoying; according to a recent US survey conducted on behalf of Titan Tire Corporation, approximately 47 per cent of growers (regardless of tyre brand they’re running) identify road lope as a problem they’re currently experiencing with their tractors and combines. This physical swaying and bouncing of the machine during road transport can result in extreme rider discomfort and inhibit the grower’s productivity between fields, however there are some simple solutions that growers should be aware of in order to rectify their road lope issues.
At Agritechnica Mitas unveiled its Very High Flexion (VF) tyre for sprayer applications, the VF HC1000. The company displayed the new VF 380/90R46 173D HC 1000 TL on its show stand ahead of the range’s 2014 commercial launch.
Indian off-road tyre manufacturer TVS Srichakra has unveiled its latest TVS Eurogrip tyre at the Agritechnica show. The Tigertrac is a newly-developed range of agricultural radials suited intended for both farm and on-road use.
During the Agritechnica show, Mitas reported that its new factory in the Czech Republic town of Otrokovice has commenced full capacity tyre production. The company built the 24,000 square metre plant within one year and invested approximately CZK 1 billion (£30.9 million) in the project. The new Otrokovice plant produces Mitas and Continental-branded agricultural radials and has a 42,000 tonne per annum capacity.
With its new SprayBib VF420/95R50, Michelin says it has introduced a size that is unique in the crop-conditioning segment. The new tyre is on display at Agritechnica this week and the tyre maker says this extension of the range demonstrates its “ability to integrate innovative technologies that satisfy farmers’ needs throughout the crop cycle.”
Enjoying its international trade show debut at this week’s Agritechnica is a concept tyre from Michelin. The manufacturer says it has “reinvented” agricultural tyre tread with the design of the new tyre and while the company says “only the future will tell whether or not this concept tyre will one day be brought to market” it says it may be commercially available by 2020.
Amongst the Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks range on display at Agritechnica is a version of the Arocs retrofitted by the manufacturer for agriculture. The 310kW (421hp) tractor Arocs 2042AS is fitted with permanent all-wheel drive in order to facilitate the efficient transportation of heavy loads at speed – an application that requires specific tyres.
Next year, Michelin plans to extend its tyre line-up to fully cover all phases of the crop cycle and adapt to new types of use, and at this week’s Agritechnica show the tyre maker is presenting the new products joining its portfolio – on of these is the BibLoad Hard Surface, a new range for compact and telescopic loaders.
It’s neither a traditional tyre, nor is it a rubber track – the latest agricultural product from Mitas, the PneuTrac, is described by its creator as “bringing together the best of both worlds.” The tyre concept displayed at the Mitas booth during Agritechnica 2013, combines a traditional pneumatic tyre with a rubber track – and the result, says Mitas, is a 53 per cent larger footprint compared with a standard tyre.
As reported yesterday, Bridgestone intends to introduce Bridgestone-branded agricultural tyres in Europe. The first products will be launched at next year’s ‘Reifen’ show in Germany and enter the market in the second half of 2014.
Bridgestone Europe will introduce the Bridgestone brand into the European agricultural tyre market, targeting the growing high-end segment. The brand, which will focus on meeting the special needs of the largest, most powerful agricultural vehicles and equipment according to Bridgestone, will be previewed at Agritechnica in Hanover this week (12-16 November 2013), while the company will launch its first product during May 2014’s Reifen show in Essen, Germany, making it available for sale in Europe during the second half of the year.
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