Vantage, part of the Grasstec group based in Co. Cork, has just been appointed the Irish distributer for Stocks Ag, a company traditionally associated with dual wheels and rims.
The Cambridgeshire company has also been producing seeders and applicators for over 30 years and it is these that Vantage is initially bringing into Ireland with the first machines having just arrived.
Slug pellets to fine seeds
There are four distinct ranges of feeders and applicators produced by Stocks Ag, which range from standard spinning-disc type applicators to metered seed units.
The range starts with the basic Fanjet machines, which are of the single-spinning disc type of applicator and are typically mounted on quads or UTVs for applying slug pellets, and, more commonly nowadays, cover crops.
Next in line is the Rotor Meter range which is designed to be fitted to a cultivator. It can feed both seed and granules, either by gravity or air assisted, down to ground level for incorporation into the soil.
Stepping up a level, Stocks Ag offers its Turbojet range which it describes as a versatile and accurate pneumatic applicator, distributing seed up to a 10m working width when mounted on cultivation equipment.
Finally, there is the Micro Meter and Maxi Meter seeders, which are gravity-fed 1m-wide units designed to accurately meter and apply seed in tillage, root crop and groundcare situations.
Precision planting with Stocks Ag
This is a new venture for Vantage which believes that the accuracy by which it can guide tractors, through the use of Trimble GPS systems, is perfectly suited to applying high-cost seeds, especially root seeds and fine grasses.
Although Vantage has been appointed as retail supplier of Stocks Ag, the products are already fitted to implements produced within Ireland; this arrangement will continue as before.