Machinery & Equipment

Oxfam CNH project in Tunisia. (Image source: CNH)

CNH recently announced its partnership with Oxfam to support two social projects in Tunisia and South Africa 

The two projects namely, the Sumud Project and the Social Factory Initiative are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDGs 8, 10 and 12. While the former project is focused on micro, small and medium sized farms in Tunisia, the latter is dedicated to creating a new model for plastic recycling and social inclusion in South Africa. 

The Sumud project will aid with implementing resilience and development plans for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as well as social enterprises, led by the youth, women and disabled people. The objective of this project is to support around 1,000 people in the most vulnerable Tunisian communities. The project is spread over a total duration of three years and is focused mainly on promoting sustainable and inclusive economic growth in the governorates of Sfax, Mahdia, Siliana, and Tozeur. 

Financial, technical and training support for these businesses will be provided by CNH and Oxfam Italy. Moreover, this initiative is also suported by several private and public Italian bodies and Tunisian associations including Fondazione AVSI and APAD (Association for Sustainable Agriculture), among others. It is also co-financed by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation. 

CNH will actively involve in the project selection phase of agricultural enterprises and provide its expertise and technology, as well as training and coaching programmes to support participants- development and promote the socio-economic integration of youth and women.

"We believe that there’s no economic, social, and environmental justice without gender justice. This is why through our programmes we work to ensure that women and girls are able to defend their rights and build a better future for themselves," said general director of Oxfam Italy, Roberto Barbieri. "Thanks to CNH's contribution in our SUMUD project in Tunisia we are aiming to positively change the lives of women agricultural entrepreneurs and local communities."

The Social Factory project on the other hand, is based in the South African city of Ekurhuleni and will focus on the development of skills and job creation in waste collection. Given the challenging working conditions of waste colectors in South Africa, the project aims to provide direct support to 1,200 people, while also improving the living conditions of more than 300,000 people and households.

Both the Solitair and the Zirkon rotary harrow will be available in series production from 2025. (Image source: LEMKEN)

The new mounted LEMKEN Solitair having a working width of 3-4 m, when mounted on the roller of the new generation of LEMKEN Zirkon MR rotary harrows, results in a powerful duo

The LEMKEN Solitair MR series features a 1,500 litre tank, which is suitable for fertiliser even in its basic configuration. The tank is optionally available with a 2,000-litre capacity, which can be split 60:40 on request for simultaneous application of several components. When the 200-litre MultiHub  is added to the tank, the Solitair takes efficacy and flexibility to new heights. This allows mixed crop sysems to be cultivated in a single pass. 

Seeds from the MultiHub are placed through the existing seed lines or through a baffle plate in front of or behind the harrows. The MultiHub offers the same number of width sections as the seed drill. Moreover, the MultiHub control is fully integrated into the user interface of the ISOBUS terminal as an additional seed line, making it very user-friendly. 

The Solitair MR is equipped with the maintenance-free OptiDisc coulter bar with row spacings of 12.5 or 15 cm and features parallelogram-guided double disc coulters and trailing depth control rollers for absolutely uniform field emergence. To achieve this, the coulter system is available in a hydraulic version (up to 70 kg coulter pressure) and a mechanical version (up to 45 kg coulter pressure). Both coulter pressure and seed depth can be adjusted independently of each other and do not affect each other. This is particularly useful in the increasingly popular cultivation of mixed crops. The correct placement depth for the different crops can be set by applying a separate drilling depth setting to each second row. Seeds are always placed at exactly the same depth, even at high forward speeds and in changing soils. The depth control roller then presses the seeds down to ensure rapid and even emergence.

The distributor heads ensure excellent transverse distribution. These are positioned directly above the coulter bar and do not require a seed return function. The new Solitair is equipped with two metering systems, with each of these supplying one distributor with seeds, so that even the basic configuration offers width section or half-width control. A hydraulic tramline mechanism can be added as an option. The LEMKEN iQblue Drill software supports the work in the field, for example by checking if tramline control is possible.

If customers choose the single or double shot version, the LEMKEN Solitair MR comes with four metering units for two width sections each. To ensure that drilling is sucessful and produces high yields, the seedbed must be prepared carefully and adapted to the individual conditions of the farm. In this case, a combination with a rotary harrow is often the best solution.

Following numerous field trials and measurements, the new LEMKEN Zirkon MR is now approved for tractors up to 240 hp, depending on the working width. Moreover, it can also be used in even more versatile applications. When mounted on the new LEMKEN Solitair, it results in a powerful duo. 

By ensuring that the working depth of the rotary harrow and the sowing depth pf the seed drill are not influenced by each other, the new mounting system makes it easier for customers to set up the machine to suit their needs. Moreover, the Zirkon also offers greater convenience with hydraulic adjustment of the levelling bar and working depth.

Both the Solitair and the Zirkon rotary harrow are available in limited quantities and will be available in series production from 2025.

Expected battery cycles required per machine lifetime. (Image source: IDTechEx)

IDTechEx’s new report, ‘Battery Markets in Construction, Agriculture and Mining Machines 2024-2034’, showed that CAM machines require a diverse range of battery solutions to cater to their individual needs

It has taken around 15 years to convince car owners that battery power is a viable alternative to their fossil fuel comfort blanket. In the construction, agriculture, and mining (CAM) industries, electrification is an even steeper uphill battle. In these industries, if a machine runs out of battery, the operators will soon start losing money. Moreover, these industries have a broad spectrum of machines, each with unique use cases. In case of agriculture machines such as tractors, electrification presents some unique challenges.

Energy consumption

The first challenge is that the use case of tractors is incredibly energy-intensive. For the most part, the purpose of a tractor is to drag machinery through a field. Sometimes, this work is low intensity, such as mowing grass in large fields. Here, the mower attachment isn’t too heavy and creates little resistance with the ground. On the other hand, plowing a field creates lots of resistance and, therefore, uses lots of energy. Additionally, if a field has soft mud, the tractor will lose energy due to the tires slipping. When we compare a tractor and an excavator for example, although both machines have hard and similar workloads, the excavator is at its peak load only momentarily as it breaks through the ground while a tractor works at a constant near-peak capacity. From a battery standpoint, this means that the tractor needs substantially more storage to give the same run time.

Chassis size

While large construction machines have large chassis to incorporate the battery, tractor chassis are a little more compact. Additionally, large excavators can handle the weight of the battery, with many already having concrete ballasts for balance. Excessive weight however, could be an issue for tractors, especially when operating in wet mud. Tractors are also more sensitive to the location of the weight, preferring an even weight distribution across the wheels for the best stability in the mud. So, not only do tractors need more battery power per hour than other similarly sized CAM machines, but they also have tighter constraints on where that battery can go.

Uptime

Construction and mining machines tend to be in almost constant use, but many tractors have very seasonal work. They could sit dormant for large portions of the year, but come harvesting time on a large farm, they could be running 24/7 for days at a time. High uptime in peak season means that the battery needs to be capable of rapid charging to minimise downtime. This is typically tough on batteries, as regular fast charging can degrade their cycle life. However, on the positive side, sporadic usage means fewer cycles are needed over a vehicle’s lifetime. Many tractors have life expectancies of around 2,000-5,000 hours, whereas large excavators might operate more than 10,000 hours over their life span. A shorter life expectancy, with fewer cycles required, opens up battery options to more cutting-edge and emerging technologies.

Battery technologies

Today’s dominant battery technologies are Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) and Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP), used almost ubiquitously throughout the automotive industry. NMC offers good energy density but typically recharges slower compared to LFP. LFP has compromised energy density but is cheaper and can be recharged more quickly. Both have plenty of cycle life for agricultural applications, but IDTechEx suggests that other emerging options with higher energy density could offer a better fit.

Solid-state batteries (SSBs) and silicon anode batteries are two emerging technologies that might work well in tractors. Both offer improvements in energy density when compared to NMC and LFP, making it easier to put more kWh of battery capacity onto the tractor. Both offer good to high recharging performance, minimising downtime. Finally, both offer the equivalent or higher safety than LFP and NMC. Unfortunately, both technologies are also very new, still in the early stages of commercialisation, and therefore are very expensive. Solid-state batteries and silicon anode batteries make a good fit for agricultural machines from an engineering perspective, but unfortunately, they don’t quite make the business case, for now.

IDTechEx’s report considers a total of 15 machine types across construction, agriculture, and mining, evaluating the needs of each and matching them up against ten existing and emerging battery technologies. The report forecasts that SSB and silicon anode will have a small market share of battery demand for agricultural vehicles once they are more mature, but demand will still be dominated by NMC and LFP, even in 2034.

The Axial-Flow 260 series offers the new ActiveTrac four-roller hydraulic suspended track system having a larger footprint. (Image source: Case IH)

In May this year, Case IH announced the new Axial-Flow 260 series that offers unparalleled productivity, while also allowing growers to access subscription-free, integrated technology to meet the unique needs of their operations

Equipped with Harvest Command combine automation, the Axial-Flow 260 series automatically optimises settings to boost throughput and grain quality. Operators can also get easy access to real-time machine metrics, field performance and grain quality through high-resolution Pro 1200 Dual Displays.

Moreover, the all new RowGuide Pro and AccuGuide autoguidance systems enable growers to experience improved on-row accuracy, minimised header losses and less operator fatigue. These tech solutions, including AccuSync with in-field data sharing between multiple machines, are all provided with no subscription requirement.

The Axial-Flow 260 series also offers the new ActiveTrac four-roller hydraulic suspended track system which has a larger footprint that reduces compaction and increases flotation by 14% compared to fixed track offerings. Operators are also entitled to additional privileges like luxury seating that includes massage, heating, and new air conditioning technology, along with simple seat controls, to easily optimise the operator's comfort level during long harvest days.

“The Axial-Flow 260 series combine represents a significant leap forward in integrated technology throughout the harvesting process for growers,” said Leo Bose, harvesting segment lead at Case IH. “We purposefully bundled precision technologies so there are no subscriptions or activations required to run the machine. The subscription-free connectivity gives customers the ability to remotely view machine and agronomic data via the new Case IH FieldOps platform, which will launch later in 2024. The technology stays for the lifetime of the hardware, boosting resale value.”