Being a mixed farmer is quite a juggle at the best of times. Throw into the mix the additional challenges of land distances, the extremes of sandy and heavy soils, managing a hairy herd and rearing beef cattle, then time efficiencies become even more of a priority.
Find out how switching to Mzuri strip tillage has helped Alex Felgate of Tindall Farm on the borders of Norfolk and Suffolk to ease his mixed farm pressures.
Farmers Guide reports.
Various methods of oilseed rape establishment have been used over the years, but there’s a growing fan base for striptill drilling. Aimed at maximising yield by reducing weed burdens and increasing light interception, this method has been growing in popularity.
Striptill specialists Mzuri have shed some light on what works and what doesn’t.
Find out more – Scottish Farmer reports.
Mzuri, British manufacturers of innovative agricultural equipment, have announced the launch of Razorback Auto-Level 550 – a vertical-axis rotary hedgecutter with revolutionary self-levelling Co-Pilot technology. It will be presented on Mzuri’s stand 3054 at this year’s Cereals event which is taking place on 14th and 15th June at Boothby Graffoe.
Innovative rotary action delivers efficiencies
Delivering increased productivity, a superior finish and significant cost savings, Razorback Auto-Level 550 features a 1.5-metre-wide head with a SoftStart triple rotor and additional mulching blades and hydraulically controlled front hood and rear roller.
The unique design means the blades are in contact with the growth during their entire 360° cycle, awarding a much faster and cleaner cut and a superior mulching technique.
The rotary action and side deflectors ensure that the debris is efficiently contained by the hood with considerably less material throw onto the road or the tractor cab.
Smart self-levelling Co-Pilot system
Razorback’s Auto-Level Co-Pilot technology ensures that the head and the main frame of the machine remain level at all times, irrespective of the tractor angle in relation to the undulating ground. This unique feature awards an exceptionally smooth finish regardless of the terrain, making for a more comfortable and trouble-free experience.
Operation is simple and precise thanks to Razorback’s electronic proportional controls which incorporate a 3-axis joystick. The main control box features rotor on/off, level sensitivity and Auto-Level Co-Pilot on/off functions.
Versatility and high standard of finish
With a 5.5 metre reach, Razorback is at home with all types of verge mowing and hedge cutting tasks, and can easily tackle two to three-year-old growth.
It allows users to top and side hedges in fewer passes compared with its conventional counterparts, leaving a highly professional finish at double the output.
High specification as standard
A standard Razorback Auto-Level 550 machine retails at £28,480 and is expected to become available at the end of 2017. The specification includes the 1.5-metre-wide head complete with hydraulically controlled front hood and rear roller, Auto-Level Co-Pilot with electronic proportional controls and a fully independent hydraulic system with an oil cooler.
Mzuri, specialists in conservation farming equipment, will be launching a precision seeder option for its Pro-Til range of striptill drills at Cereals 2017, stand number 3054. This year’s event takes place at Boothby Graffoe, Lincolnshire, on 14th and 15th June.
Precision seeding in one pass
The new precision metering feature on the Pro-Til drill offers accurate seeding depth and spacing from a single pass system, resulting in huge cost savings.
Pro-Til’s advanced precision seeding option eliminates the need for prior cultivations and enables users to precision plant crops directly into previous crop residue or grassland, thus conserving moisture and soil’s natural structure.
Creating optimum establishment conditions
Retention of moisture, fertiliser placement and soil reconsolidation at seeding time have been proven to play an essential role to successful establishment of precision crops. The Pro-Til precision drill places the seed into moist, friable and nutrient-rich seeding environment and reconsolidates for maximum soil-to-seed contact, creating a perfect environment for successful germination.
Independently operating leading discs cut through surface residue. A breaker leg prepares a strip of clean, friable soil and places a band fertiliser to provide a nutrient boost for the developing roots. Each band is reconsolidated by a following press wheel to remove clods and air pockets.
The seed is precision placed behind Mzuri’s latest design low disturbance coulter which is followed by a second reconsolidation wheel for perfect soil-to-seed contact.
Precision metering with additional functionality
Each Pro-Til seeding unit boasts its own individual height and depth control.
Hydraulically-operated seeding legs exert constant down pressure that can be adjusted on each individual leg.
The system uses adjustable-pressure vacuum metering to accurately space crops, regardless of seed size. Each unit contains a metering disc and a singulator to prevent skips or doubles and is driven by an electric motor which maintains the same seeding distance at variable speeds.
A bulk fill system continually replenishes the mini hoppers on each metering unit directly from the Pro-Til’s dual 3400 litre tank (split 2040 litre seed/1360 litre fertiliser capacity) for reliable non-stop drilling.
Multiple drilling operations from one drill
The precision seeding kit should be available for the 2018 season as an option on new Pro-Til drills or for retrofitting to older models, further extending the drill’s versatility to carry out striptill, direct drilling and now, precision seeding operations with one drill.
Mzuri, specialists in strip tillage, have recently conducted a customer care survey as part of the company’s continuous improvement programme. Sent to the entire UK customer database, the questionnaire returned a high number of responses, highlighting the manufacturer’s technical and service excellence.
The survey measured user satisfaction levels at various customer touchpoints, from the initial contact and product demonstrations through to product performance and after-sales service, with the company being awarded consistently high marks across all areas. The team’s knowledge and expertise was particularly appreciated, with a staggering 98% of the respondents rating it as excellent or good. Furthermore, 9 out 10 customers were impressed or very impressed with their machine demonstration, and the service back-up received the same high score. 95% thought staff professionalism, communication and speed of response was excellent or very good.
Mzuri drills were awarded equally good marks with 9 in 10 users being satisfied or very satisfied with the system. Specifically, the survey measured the product’s performance in the areas of crop establishment, yields, fuel savings, labour reduction and soil health improvement.
Finally, the survey found that 100% of the respondents would recommend Mzuri to a friend, indicating deep levels of loyalty and trust in the brand.
Mzuri, UK-based manufacturer of specialist strip tillage equipment, have announced the opening of a manufacturing facility in Poland to meet the rapidly growing demand in export and home markets. A joint venture with the Polish company AN-AGRO, the new factory will be built in Bydgoszcz region, Poland, with the site’s production mainly destined for Eastern and Central European customer base. Mzuri’s UK operation in Pershore will continue to manufacture, market and service machines for the UK, Scandinavian and Western European regions.
Martin Lole, managing director at Mzuri, said: “These are very exciting times for the company and we look forward to pooling our resources with AN-AGRO to grow the European region further. The business has been going from strength to strength with the demand more than doubling this year, both in the UK and overseas. With the interest being particularly strong in Poland, Russia and Ukraine, the decision to open a factory close to market will help us to better service the area. The additional capacity in Poland is intended to free up some of the UK’s production which will allow us to be more responsive to the rapidly expanding UK market.”