Agriculture news The latest from the industry

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New developments in the Agriculture industry

ABB pumping technology helps rescue parched farms in India

ABB has deployed five of its highest-capacity motors – each capable of pumping 23,000 litres per second – as part of the Mahatma Gandhi Kalwakurthy Lift Irrigation Scheme.

Years of severe drought have created a water crisis in the Mahbubnagar region in Telangana, a state in southern India where half the population of 35 million depends on agriculture to earn a living. The water table had virtually depleted and the monsoon rains now only last three to four months a year. The only option for providing adequate water for farming and drinking is to pump it from the Krishna River to a reservoir nearly 300 metres above. From there, through a gravity-driven ‘lift irrigation’ system, the water can be channelled through nearly 100 kilometres of canals to the parched farms and more than 300 villages that were at risk of turning to desert.

That 12-year-long project, the Mahatma Gandhi Kalwakurthy Lift Irrigation Scheme (MGKLIS), was recently completed. This was made possible only through considerable feats of civil engineering: industrial-strength water pumping technology and electric-power management systems that ABB, with decades of irrigation experience in India, provided. Visit: www.abb.com

Key technology expands capacity in the netherlands

Key Technology, a member of the Duravant family of operating companies and a leading producer of potato processing equipment, has completed its facility expansion in Beusichem, the Netherlands.

The upgrade increases Key’s production capacity at this location by 50% and features larger cranes with greater lifting capabilities, a thoroughly refurbished working environment, enhanced customer visitor experience and more.

Together with its state-of-the-art Innovation and Solutions Centre in Hasselt, Belgium, the Netherlands facility speeds delivery of Key’s optical sorters and vibratory conveying solutions to food processors in Europe, the Middle East, India, Africa (EMEIA) and elsewhere.

Jack Ehren, President and CEO of Key Technology: “Our ongoing investments in Europe reflect our commitment to delivering the greatest value to food processors throughout the region. By manufacturing our VERYX® sorters and Iso-Flo® conveyors in Europe as well as the US, we serve our customers more quickly and effectively.” Visit: www.key.net

Deere to acquire Spanish company King Agro

Deere & Company has signed a definitive agreement to acquire King Agro, a privately-held manufacturer of carbon fibre technology products with headquarters in Valencia, Spain and a production facility in Campana, Argentina.

“This transaction provides John Deere customers the chance to benefit further from King Agro’s unique knowledge, designs, and expertise in carbon fibre technology,” said John May, President, Agricultural Solutions & Chief Information Officer, at John Deere.

In 2015, John Deere and King Agro agreed to develop and distribute carbon fibre booms for John Deere application equipment in agriculture, offering growers the significant advantages of carbon fibre’s versatility, strength and durability in self-propelled spraying equipment.

May said the transaction will provide benefits in sharing best practices in product development, manufacturing, technology, as well as in scale as King Agro builds on a history of innovation.

King Agro has been a family-owned business with approximately 180 employees and an extensive 30-year history of developing various carbon fibre products. In agriculture, the company has targeted innovative designs that improve productivity and lower costs. Visit: www.deere.com

Apollo Vredestein makes new appointment

european premium tyre brand Apollo Vredestein’s uK office has just appointed Jon Cottrell as the off-Highway Tyre Specialist for the uK Agricultural & Industrial sectors, to manage that everincreasing side of the Netherlands-based marque’s product range.

Jon Cottrell brings with him over 30 years of tyre industry experience, from warehouse to sales management positions. “my career has mainly focused on commercial, agricultural and industrial/off-road sectors working with both manufacturers and retailers,” explains Jon.

“Apollo Vredestein has a solid background in commercial and agricultural tyres, with the top tractor segment tyre Traxion optimall having been added to the latter’s range only three months ago,” says Karl Naylor, Apollo Vredestein uK Country manager. “We have ambitious development plans to ensure market growth in those sectors, and Jon’s appointment is part of such plans to bring the very best to customers under the Apollo and Vredestein brands.” Visit: www.apollovredestein.com

INDUSTRYnEWs

CfT group launches new Milk & Dairy division

AT Anuga 2018, CFT Group introduced its new Milk & Dairy Division and highlighted its years of experience in producing sterilisers specifically engineered for the milk industry, as well as evaporators, batch systems, end of line machines and more besides.

To complete this wide offer, some of CFT Group’s solutions are also developed in collaboration with high-profile partners, enabling it to meet all market demands.

Thanks to its long-term experience the group is able to serve all the sub-sectors of the dairy industry, from drinkable milk up to cheese production, from whey/whey powder, milk proteins up to formulated products and other dairy by-products.

The visitors also had the opportunity to discover one of CFT Group’s premium sterilisers, the OMHIC machine, LEVATI’s highly compact and versatile PRIMA BATCH RETORT 800x800, and last but not least, the aseptic filler MACROPAK AF/2. Visit: www.cft-group.com

IN more and more agricultural settings, automation systems are superseding strenuous manual labour. As part of the EU’s CATCH project, the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology IPK is developing and testing a dual-arm robot for the automated harvesting of cucumbers. This lightweight solution has the potential to keep crop cultivation commercially viable in Germany.

Experts from Fraunhofer are studying the potential for automating cucumber harvests in the scope of the EU project CATCH, which stands for ‘Cucumber Gathering – Green Field Experiments’. Project partners are the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy in Germany and the CSIC-UPM Centre for Automation and Robotics (CAR) in Spain.

CATCH researchers want to develop and test a dual-arm robot system consisting of inexpensive lightweight modules. Even in adverse weather, the robot picker would need to be capable of first identifying ripe cucumbers and then using its two gripper arms to gently pick and store them. To this end, cutting-edge control methods equip the robot with tactile perception and enable it to adapt to ambient conditions. These methods also make it possible for the dual-arm robot system to imitate human movements. Visit: www.fraunhofer.de Oerlikon Graziano, worldwide leader in the field of precision gearing and transmission solutions and part of Oerlikon Drive Systems Segment, has presented its latest technologies during a roadshow at different customers’ locations. The company exhibited its latest advances in Shifting Solutions by focusing intensely on customised transmission solutions for loyal and new clients.

The company showcased synchronisers, clutch packs, gear shafts and bevel sets that helped it to deliver increased efficiency, improve vehicle performance and reduce costs. It is the market leader in tractor synchronisation and its solutions help farmers, particularly in emerging countries, become more efficient, focusing more intensely on customised transmission solutions. The new synchronisers save fuel by optimising the shift to minimise torque interruption and by reducing steady-state drag torque in the transmission, to increase performance, efficiency, and reduce operative costs.

To provide a complete design and manufacturing service, Oerlikon Graziano uses state-of-theart analytical tools and extensive test facilities. To maintain maximum control of quality standards, the company is extensively vertically integrated, including process steps such as metal-forming and heat treatment. Visit: www.oerlikon.com

Harvesting robot to aid Europe’s struggling farming market

Bayer-Monsanto merger receives US approval

The ongoing negotiations for the merger between Bayer AG and monsanto have received a boost as the uS Department of Justice appears to have approved the alliance. There had been some concern in both europe and the uS as to whether a newly formed agricultural giant could create a monopoly.

The merger was initially proposed by Bayer back in 2016, but the regulatory issues have been complex. Both companies have been required to sell off parts of their businesses to avoid the creation of a monopoly, but it now seems likely the much-discussed merger will be going ahead.

This news comes as agricultural commodity prices appear to be on the rise again after a half-decade of prices drops owing to weather conditions that created an abundance of crops. But with the ongoing growth of the global population – which has increased from 6 billion to 7.467 billion since 2000 – this situation could not be expected to continue. Visit: www.bayer.com