The headline drilling technology from Amazone’s pre-Agritechnica launch event was EasyTram, a new system that allows tramlines to be pre-planned on application maps for year-on-year accuracy. Available on drills with the MultiSwitch single row control system, users can use the AmaConnect platform to place tramlines in the desired location and send the application maps to the AmaTron 4 terminal.
The key advantage of this is that it means operators do not have to follow the tramline direction during drilling. According to the company, this is particularly useful in areas prone to erosion or on hilly terrain, as the soil is not worked in the same direction as the tramlines and does not create channels for water to run down.
While some growers were already sowing at an angle to the tramlines to keep seed rates low, until now, Amazone states that this was done without tramlining, leading to rows of crops being driven over. Now the combination of MultiSwitch and EasyTram means that tramlines can be established without crop losses.
New Cirrus Grand and Condor models
There were also updates to the Cirrus range, with a new 8m 8004-2C Grand drill joining the portfolio. This features a 5,900-litre hopper split three ways (40:50:10), allowing three products to be sown at once using the established Single-Shoot system. A new row spacing option has been added, with both 16.6cm and 12.5cm available, the latter suiting spring cropping and farms with a high weed pressure.
AutoPoint has been integrated into the drill, in which sensors monitor the time from the metering unit to the coulter. Using section control, it adjusts the shut-off time for each row based on these timings to minimise overlaps or over-sowing at the headland. It’s now also possible to add a front crushboard to break up soil clods ahead of the coulters. All the new features will be integrated into the 9m 9004-2C Grand model.
Amazone then showed off its revamped Condor trailed drill range. Dubbed the ’02’, it’s available in working widths of 8m and 9m, with 25cm or 20cm row spacings and a 4,100-litre hopper split 50:30:20.
As with the previous generation, it uses the ConTeC tine coulter, with the option to increase the coulter pressure up to 120kg. This can now be automated, as an option, to ensure consistent seed depth even in hilly conditions.
Also updated on the new generation Condor range is its precision farming capabilities, with the ability to opt for the MultiSwitch single row control, as well as the factory-fit option of very high flexion tyres up to 750mm wide to minimise ground pressure and compaction.
