The German Cruiser in Ukrainian Fields: the First Presentation of Fendt 1000 Vario at Agro LV Limited
Behind the best things in life there is always a masterpiece
"Behind the best things in life there is always a masterpiece", a German farmer declares from the screen, breaking a freshly baked bread crust in two. Against the background of a stunning sunset on the video, the conceptually new Fendt 1000 Vario looks like the top of the engineering ideas of AGCO Сorporation.
In 2017, the whole agrarian Ukraine, besides resolving the issues of the land market, taxation and visa-free regime, was expecting another special event: the presentation of the new Fendt 1000 Vario. After all, in Germany, it was already conquering the fields like a real "German cruiser" as early as in 2014.
In April 2017 Fendt 1000 Vario officially appeared in the fields of Ukraine. The first joint presentation of AGCO Corporation and Zeppelin Ukraine distributor was held in Kamenka-Bugsky district of Lviv region on the basis of Agro LV Limited company. It triggered 6 thousand hours of demonstrations that will be held all over Ukraine. This will be executed by 4 maximally equipped Fendt 1000 Vario tractors from different distributors of AGCO in Ukraine.
We also made a start together with the Fendt 1000 Vario in Lviv region to cover a series of demonstrations and are ready to share our first impressions. Besides, in such a way we have preserved the tradition of opening a new 1000-series. The thing is, three years ago we were lucky to attend the annual Fendt conference in Germany, where a new vehicle was presented in the Neuschwanstein Castle.
The German cruiser in the fields of Ukraine
The Fendt 1000 Vario series is offered in 4 different power segments:
- Fendt 1038 Vario (396 hp)
- Fendt 1042 Vario (435 hp),
- Fendt 1046 Vario (476 hp),
- Fendt 1050 Vario with maximum capacity (517 hp)
It is equipped with a 12.4-liter MAN engine, a continuously variable Vario Drive (highest capacity in the range of 6 to 18 km/h), front axle damping (travel amplitude 300 mm), has low specific fuel consumption, pneumatic compressor and pneumatic braking system, the Vario Grip system (rapid tire pressure adjustment depending on the type of work) and the VarioDrive (intelligent all-wheel drive), as well as a highly productive hydraulic system (up to 430 l/min, up to 7 hydraulic valves).
"The main achievement of engineers, in my opinion, is the intelligent Vario Drive all-wheel drive system this tractor possesses. It enables the tractor to identify where and how much power to direct. If the turn requires more power to the front axle, the vehicle can "pull" itself into the turn. The operator now does not need to manually select the transmission mode, the all-wheel drive system automatically distributes the torque, and the operator's task is to select the direction of travel and the speed of movement", says AGCO tractors specialist Nikolay Garmash.
The tractor can be equipped with navigation, a seed drill control system, automatic seeder section shutdown system, VariableRateControl system for differentiated fertilizer application. To perform the tasks for precise farming, the tractor is equipped with an antenna, which makes it possible to work with an accuracy of up to 15 cm. If you want to work with a higher accuracy of up to 2 cm, such possibility is also provided. For this purpose, special modules are installed and the tractor operates, for example, using Real Time Kinematic (RTK) technology.
"Fendt 1000 Vario is very maneuverable, it has a width of up to 3 m even with a tire width of 900 mm. Due to this, it can be used both in the field and as a transport vehicle. Due to its small weight of 14 tons, the tractor possesses a wide range of ballasting possibilities. Also, the operator can manually change the tire pressure to the current conditions via the Vario Grip terminal. When moving or performing transporting works, it is possible to quickly pump the wheels to the desired pressure and quickly automatically switch from working mode in the field at low pressure to the transport mode at normal pressure. Besides, TMS (tractor management system) selects the engine operating mode to save fuel", says Alexey Kopylov, Fendt Business Development Manager at AGCO.
Having learned the major vehicle advantages from the specialists, we are going to inspect its operation in the fields where the Fendt 1000 Vario has already managed to roll up a decent layer of dust.
In the fields: performance test from a Danish engineer
As we have already informed, the presentation took place at Agro LV Limited, an enterprise with foreign investments, which has been operating in Ukraine since 2006. Initially, it specialised exclusively on potatoes cultivation, later they performed the smooth transition to grain and industrial crops. The company currently works for export, selling products to global traders. Our team has several times visited the Agro LV Limited fields within the framework of AgroExpedition crop tours.
Several years ago, the company was purchased by investors from Saudi Arabia, who preserved the British management. This year, Agro LV Limited will sow 43 thousand hectares, but the company plans to expand.
"As for self-propelled machinery, we use only short-term and long-term lease services. Our new tractor operates minimum 6,000 working hours during three years. After that, we return it", says Konstantin Seleznev, Agro LV Limited Deputy Financial Officer.
The enterprise vehicle park contains about 55 tractors — Fendt, Challenger, Case and John Deere. The 500-horsepower tractors are represented by Challenger and Case. Agro LV Limited has their replacement strategy, hence they were the first to demonstrate the new 517 horsepower Fendt 1000 Vario series. The tractor will operate in the fields of the enterprise with a 12-meter-long harrow, a 12-meter roller, a large ripper and a cultivator with the length of 6 and 7 metres. The company's engineers view it as a good replacement for tractors with articular frame.
"For two days of using Fendt 1050 Vario for the field works, I can confidently speak about its fuel efficiency compared to other 500-horsepower tractors — 10.8 l/ha with the Horsch Tiger 10 LT unit. The price per hour of this machinery operation is the first and foremost important thing for me, as an engineer. This is calculated for the first 6 thousand operating hours: the tractor with the lowest indicator will be the most suitable for us. But at the same time we do not want to buy cheap tractors, in order not to waste too muсh time for their service", says Esben Nielsen, Chief Engineer of the company.
We met with the Chief Engineer of Agro LV Limited Esben Nielsen. He has been working in the company for 3.5 years already, so he is used to Ukrainian fields. Previously he worked in Danosha and Agrocultura. Esben was the first to demonstrate the new 1000-series in the field and willingly shared his impressions. Although for the full picture, says the Dane, he needs to operate the tractor for at least 2,000 more hours.
He also noted that for the last 3 years Agro LV Limited had been cooperating mainly with Zeppelin Ukraine on the lease of tractors. Since the company owns tractors of 700- and 900-series, it is not necessary to retrain operators to work on the 1000-series, which is very convenient.
"Agro LV Limited has very hard soils, and uneven terrain. We started the presentation by choosing the most complex unit on the farm — Horsch Tiger 10 LT, which has been used with the crawler tractors. Our Fendt 1000 Vario demonstrated an average diesel fuel consumption of 10.8-10.9 liters. Today it is aggregated with the Carrier cultivator from Vaderstad and the indicator makes 9 l/ha. Another advantage is that the tractor is maximally protected from the human factor, due to the automatic switching of the transport mode and the operating mode in the field", says Igor Tkachuk, Sales Manager at Zeppelin Ukraine.
28 years of demonstrations, or knowledge is power
Hubert Martin, a professional demonstrator of tractors with 28 years of experience in AGCO, visited the first demonstration to the Ukrainian colleagues.
"This is the best tractor for large fields. Ukraine has the best soils I have ever seen, why not develop an appropriate tractor for them? It is made for Ukraine, and is already sold in the USA, Kazakhstan, Latin America and other countries with their endless fields. In Germany, besides agriculture, Fendt 1000 Vario is actively used in steel mills, woodworking factories and cargo shipment. And the engine was used even in shipbuilding", says Hubert Martin proudly.
Hubert came to Ukraine to train the AGCO machinery demonstrators. The corporation along with managers, sellers, engineering service, introduces the position of a demonstrator, a person who is not only capable of correct management and operating this machinery, but also knows how to represent it to the market. Along with this, the distributors also conduct free training of tractor operators.
At present, there are five official distributors of the Fendt 1000 Vario series in Ukraine: Zeppelin Ukraine, ABA ASTRA, Agrospace, Agrostructure and Volyn Fund Company.
The Agro LV Limited operators do not start using the machinery without completing the internal training program: first a theoretical course followed by a 30 hours of operating the tractor under the supervision of the instructor and passing the exam to Esben Nilsen.
The new Fendt 1000 Vario series has already passed its first exam in the fields of Ukraine.
For several days a powerful new machine has been proving its effectiveness in difficult field conditions of Agro LV Limited. Working with Horsch Tiger LT (working width — 10 m, working depth — 20 cm, speed 10 km/h), Fendt 1050 Vario used an average of 9.2 l/ha of fuel. When working with the Vaderstad Carrier (the working width is 12.25 m, the working depth is 13-15 cm, the speed is 11-12 km/h), the average fuel consumption of the tractor was 8.7 l/ha.
Follow the new 1000-series on the Fendt 1000 Vario online map!
AGCO Corporation together with Latifundist.com launches the Fendt 1000 Vario Online 2017 map, where all demonstrations of the new 1000-series will be marked. There are still 6,000 hours of demonstrations ahead. Keep track with us, it will be interesting!
Daryna Kozoriz, Latifundist.com
