If you have ever wondered just what is the most optimal way to work a field, then help is at hand from machinery company AGCO, and, what is more, it’s free.

This is a brand new service from the company and it is very much in its embryonic stage with much more to come, or so we are promised, although future features are likely to be available only on a subscription basis.

The app is not officially launched until April, but the service is already up and running under the name of Geo-Bird and it was being introduced to the market in Co. Cork.

New tool for machinery users

As a basic tool it allows the user to select their fields, either from a pre-existing database, or draw them out again on a satellite image.

Geo bird at millstreet show Cork
Optimising field working patterns is just the start of what Geo-Bird will be able to offer in future, according to AGCO

Various implements, with their working widths and speeds, can then be applied and the optimum work pattern will then be displayed.

The result may be transferred to an existing GPS system and the tractor instructed to follow the way lines or the use can simply take note of how best to cover the field.

AGCO has obviously noted that the small, lively business units are better placed to develop digital tools and so has created such a movement within its own ranks, rather than continue with a relentless campaign of purchasing start-up companies with an idea.

Easing the strain on loaders

Push-off buckrakes are nothing new, the concept has been around for as long as pit silage, but folding forks with a push-off facility for mounting on loaders is something of a novelty.

MDE Machinery of Co. Armagh has developed just such an implement that, the company claims, is far easier on the operation of a loader’s hydraulics than the usual tipping and shaking.

MDE buckrake at Millstreet
MDE push-off folding fork

Called the Falcon Buckrake, it is designed primarily for loaders, but another advantage of the design is that it can be easily mounted onto a tractor’s front or rear linkage, enabling the filling of a pit to continue if the loader breaks down.

There are already several in use in the UK. At present, it is only available as a 14ft unit but other widths are planned as demand increases.

Still a demand for 2WD

Two-wheel-drive (2WD) is generally consigned to the bin of history in Europe despite them making up an astounding 98% of the tractor market in America.

Yet, there is still a limited demand in Ireland according to Pat Lawrence of Cahir 4X4, based in Tipperary.

Cork show millstreet tractor turkey
A brace of Cases sourced from Turkey, including a 2WD model, were up for sale through Cahir 4X4

Above is an example of a Case JX65C 2WD, which was sourced in Turkey and is now five years old, but still in remarkably good shape.

Pat has already sold a handful to users who do not necessarily need 4WD, pointing out that they they make excellent tractors for yard loader work, being compact with a very tight lock.

Other makes and models are also available which, having spent their first years in a Mediterranean climate, are likely to be free from the ravages of soggy Irish winters.

Slurry boom mounting

How best to mount a dribble bar onto an existing slurry tanker is a subject that is becoming ever more relevant with the accelerating switch to ground level application.

Up until recently, the trend has been to bolt the bars onto either the rear of the tanker’s chassis, if it has one, or the back plate if it has not.

newtown engineering slurry dribble bar
Newtown Engineering has developed a method which allows a slurry boom sit just behind the rear axle of the tanker

This is not always the ideal solution as it can adversely affect the tankers balance or put undue stress on areas of its construction, which were never intended to bear weight.

Newtown Engineering of Knocklong, Co. Limerick, has applied some thought to the problem and has developed a system which utilises a subframe rather than direct attachment of the boom.

This not only relieves the stress on the backplate but also allows the boom to sit further forward, as close to the axle as possible, minimising the weight reduction on the rear wheels of the tractor.

The company also offers the the option of mounting the boom on the drawbar, placing its weight firmly in the centre of the tractor-tanker combination.

Other machinery news

In other news, we learned that McHale has been trialling a tedder last season with further machines likely to be made available this year.

This product, along with its latest mower, which comes without a conditioner, is not yet listed on its website so supplies of either might be limited while the machines are given a thorough workout before general sale.