AGCO Innovations Earn Seven 2019 AE50 Awards

 

AGCO Corporation (NYSE:AGCO) received seven AE50 Awards from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) in 2019, more than any other OEM. Approximately 50 products, representing the best innovations in engineering and technology for agricultural, food and biological systems, are chosen for recognition each year by a panel of expert engineers.

 

This year’s winning products from AGCO include: Hesston by Massey Ferguson® WR9900 Series Windrower OptiRide™ Cab Suspension; Fendt® IDEAL™ Combine; TerraGator® C-Series High-Flotation Applicator; Amity Precision Shank Drill; GSI Z-Series™ Bins and Flexwave® Technology; GSI Dry/Cool Portable Quiet Dryer and GSI Quiet TopDry; and Recon SpreadSense®.

 

“AGCO is thrilled to be recognized once again for our advancing technologies, which help farmers around the world address their real-world production challenges," says Brad Arnold, vice president, Global Crop Cycle and Fuse Connected Services. “We’re particularly proud that these honors are for product lines with extreme diversity, which speaks to our vision to serve customers across all facets of agriculture. As the needs of farmers continue to change, we remain committed to developing state-of-the-art solutions for their new challenges.”

 

Winning products are selected based on their innovation, significant engineering advancement and impact on the market served. The AE50 award program is sponsored by Resource, the membership publication of ASABE, to emphasize the role of new and redesigned products and systems in bringing advanced technology to the marketplace. The awards will be presented in February during ASABE's annual Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference in Louisville, Kentucky.

 

 

The WR9900 Series Windrower OptiAir Cab Suspension incorporates a four-post air suspension system for ultimate ride, vibration removal and noise suppression. The OptiAir provides best-in-class ride comfort with 40 percent less vibration, which is a significant improvement over other systems that the operator will feel at the end of a long day. Self-leveling airbags on all four corners of the cab are automatically adjusted from the on-board air compressor and pneumatic system, providing the superior ride comfort of pneumatic suspension along with maintenance-free coil springs. The system even automatically compensates for weight variations such as when a second person is in the cab.

 

The Fendt IDEAL Combine is the first “clean-sheet” design of an axial combine in 30 years. In Fendt tradition, it is loaded with innovations that provide in-field efficiency, unfailing uptime, simple operation and excellent grain quality. An easy-to-use touch-screen tablet allows operators to select preferences for minimizing grain damage or loss and material other than grain in the bin. The IDEALharvestTM system automatically makes on-the-go adjustments to maintain pre-set harvest parameters and gives the operator real-time crop flow visualization. With an optional 485-bushel grain tank, the industry’s largest, and the IDEAL Streamer™ 6.0 auger, which empties the grain tank at 6.0. bu./second, users spend less time unloading and more time harvesting. The combine is available in Class 7, 8 and 9. Headers include the 9255 DynaFlex™ draper in 25-, 30-, 35- and 40-foot models and the 15-foot 4300 pickup head. Both chopping and non-chopping 3300 Command Series corn heads are available.

 

TerraGator® C Series High-Flotation Applicators are designed for the narrow application windows driven by tightening agronomic requirements. This is the first high-flotation application equipment with operator controls closely aligned with row-crop application equipment, so operators can move between machines with little or no learning curve. On the three highest horsepower models, efficient control software for the continuously variable transmission delivers 10 percent more power to the ground. In addition, the touch screen interface controls cruise speed, shuttle speed and acceleration/deceleration, so the operator can set the machine to perform to specific preferences. Agronomic enhancements for liquid and dry application focus on precise placement with finer section control, as well as maximum crop coverage and minimum environmental impact. The TerraGator C Series also was the 2018 MAGIE “Show Stopper” Award winner and the 2018 CropLife IRON New Product of the Year.

 

The 61-foot Amity Precision Shank Drill (PSD) is a highly productive air seeder that blends the best features of the legendary Concord air drill with today’s modern technology. The PSD row unit incorporates multiple features to make the drill perform as a precise seeding machine, even at higher operating speeds. The independent link row unit allows for precise depth control, exceptional ground following, smoother field finish and better packer wheel performance, all leading to better seed placement and emergence. Using active hydraulic down pressure, rippled coulters on each row unit slice trash and fracture the ground ahead of the opener to keep residue flowing and minimize soil blow out. The independent closing discs capture the soil displaced by the opener, returning it over the seed to be properly packed. The row unit requires zero daily maintenance, which contributes to a simple-to-operate drill.

 

GSI’s new Z-Series Bins with Flexwave Technology offer farmers a safer, more efficient and less labor-intensive option for unloading grain bins. Standard grain bins are typically emptied through a combination of gravity and sweep augers, but a level of grain always remains on the bin floor and needs to be removed using brooms or shovels. It’s hard, time-consuming, dusty work that can also be dangerous if farmers perform this chore while a sweep auger is still running. With the revolutionary Z-Series Bins, large liners made of durable fabric alternately inflate and deflate to gently push grain into a central reclaim for removal. The system provides 99.9 percent cleanout without requiring farmers to enter the bin.

 

GSI introduced two new grain dryers in 2018: the Dry/Cool Portable Quiet Dryer, which heats grain in the top plenum of the dryer to reduce moisture and cools it in the bottom plenum, and Quiet TopDry, a combined drying and storage unit that dries grain in an upper chamber, then drops it into a lower compartment for storage. Both models incorporate GSI’s Quiet Dryer technology, introduced in 2017, which reduces the noise level by 50 percent compared to conventional grain dryers. Two new components also have been integrated: the unique GSI UV Flame Sensor for both dryer models and industry-leading GSI TopDry Terminal Manual Batch Control for the Quiet TopDry. Both components are designed to promote improved dryer performance and harvest efficiency.

 

Recon SpreadSense from Intelligent Ag is the industry’s first blockage monitor for boom-type dry fertilizer applicators. Patented acoustic sensors easily install onto the back of each deflector, where they listen to the material flow and send sound pulses through auditory tubes, like a stethoscope. These acoustic signals are collected by an Electronic Control Unit, which transmits the information to an iPad® in the cab. If there is a blockage anywhere in the system, the operator will receive an alert. Operators will have more peace of mind knowing that the product they are applying is getting to the ground as they intended. Because they don’t have to visually detect flow issues, they can extend their run time into low-light conditions and increase productivity. Recon SpreadSense helps commercial applicators ensure that they provide their customers with consistent, high-quality application of dry fertilizers.