Massey Ferguson has unveiled a new generation rotary combine harvester range which they promise is a major step forward in performance and productivity.
Among a host of exceptional new features, models in the IDEAL range from Massey Ferguson offer the biggest integral grain-tank capacity that is now currently available across Australia, according to a company spokesman.
The new IDEAL features the fastest unloading rate and the largest threshing area - all focused on delivering significant gains in efficiency and output.
"The IDEAL combine is a brand new design built from the ground up," director of marketing Australia and New Zealand, Fergal Meehan said.
"When developing the new IDEAL combine, the customer was at the centre of the process.
"We wanted to create a machine that was driven by the customer and not the manufacturer.
"The farmers operating these machines know what works and what doesn't and we really wanted to give them a machine that was based off their knowledge and experience rather than what we though they need."
Built at AGCO's European Harvesting Centre of Excellence in Breganze, Italy, the development of the new combine was a collaboration between AGCO's key machinery brands.
"We wanted to make the best combine possible and to do that we pulled all the resources at our disposal," Mr Meehan said.
"The scale of this project is like nothing we had ever done before, we produced 45 prototypes and conducted continuous lab and field testing for over six years.
"In some respects the IDEAL had a flavour of everywhere but what we wanted to ensure that it could perform in Australian conditions.
"To ensure that the new IDEAL had an Australian feel extensive testing was conducted locally with almost 5000 hectares harvested across Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria.
"It was incredibility important to us that we tested the IDEAL across different crops, so we harvested wheat, barley and canola mainly but also tested the machine in lentil and chickpea crops.
"We wanted to ensure the Ideal had the features local farmers were looking for and that's why we took our time speaking to and developing it alongside them.
"What we discovered was that technology was a key area and that they wanted a machine that has fully integrated guidance, full yield mapping and automation.
"Australian farmers are innovative which is especially necessary in such challenging conditions and providing farmers with the most up to date technology and software enables a more productive farming experience."
- Visit: www.masseyferguson.com.au
