News@MF - Massey Ferguson

QUALITY RELIABILITYLEADERSHIP VISIONMF IN ACTIONFUEL ECONOMY AND EASY MAINTENANCEADD UP TO COST SAVINGSOperating in the dry conditions of Prinçay,mid-west France, for farmer and contractorJean Jacques Roux, top features on hisMF 7270 AL BETA combine are itssimplicity, fuel economy, ease of operationand maintenance.“We’ve definitely made financial savingsin terms of fuel consumption andmaintenance costs,” Jean Jacquescomments. “The MF 7270 averages only15 litres/ha.”Jean Jacques runs his own 170 ha farmand works under contract on a further145 ha. Wheat, oil-seed rape, sunflowerand maize are his chief concerns. “Ourharvesting window is around 15 days andwe work the combine about 200 hoursa season,” he says.The MF 7270 AL with 6m table isjust one element in his powerfulMassey Ferguson fleet whichalso includes MF balerstogether with MF 7495 andMF 8240 tractors.While yields tend to be lowerin this region compared tothe wetter northern parts ofFrance, crops are easier toharvest because of the dryenvironment.BRUCE HITSA CENTURYThere was a time when farmers weredelighted when their harvesters reaped 50tonnes in day but the new MF 9895 rotarycombine fitted with 13 m table has brokenthe 100 tonnes an hour mark.During field trials in Queensland, Australia,contractor Bruce Estens regularly recordedoutput of above 100 t/hr while harvesting acrop of 9.5 tonnes/ha Buster sorghum. Atone stage, it hit a peak output of 108.6 t/hr!Bruce put 500 engine hours on theevaluation combine before it was released“We opted for the Auto Level version of theMF 7270 because we work in a hilly area,while the 4WD performance is a great help.We also really appreciate the RotarySeparator feature which suits our dryconditions,” reports Jean Jacques.The Auto Level system levels the combinerump across slopes by pivoting the frontfinal drives. This correction feature makes itpossible to work across slopes up to 20%.In addition, the combine rump can alsolevel up and down slopes up to 4%,allowing you to work as if the machine wason the flat. These AL models also comefitted with powered rear axle giving real4WD performance, more positive steeringcontrol and greater traction in difficultconditions. MF BETA combines areequipped with an electrically-adjustedrotary separator as standard. Featuringadjustable concave and speed, thisvirtually gives you two combines in one. Itprovides the operator with the ability tomatch combine settings to the condition ofthe crop, thereby optimising separationand straw quality. What’s unique about theMF rotary separator is the ability to rotatethe concave up over the top of the rotaryseparator when it is not required. Thisboosts throughput and maximises themachine’s performance in dry conditions.The separating system performs atmaximum capacity according to thetype of crop being harvested and strawquality required.“For us the MF 7270 engine is economical,powerful and with excellent accessibility,”continues Jean Jacques. “The Freeflowtable gives even crop feed and we like thefacility to adjust the concave at the frontand rear to suit conditions. The machineis very easy to operate and maintain.Indeed, we are very satisfied withour purchase.”AL (Auto Level) versions of the MF BETA combines mean corrections can be made across slopes up to 20%.for market. “The key point is that thismachine did these speeds while still takinga perfect sample with no grain losswhatsoever, and that takes some beating,”reports Bruce.The 459hp MF 9895 is fitted with amassive 0.8m diameter x 3.55m longrotor. Hydrostatically-driven, it allows youto harvest at a constant rotor speed forimproved efficiency. The rotor is reversiblefrom the comf ort of the cab in the event ofany crop blockages. This results in lesscrop damage and maximised grain quality.A 3-speed gearbox provides more gearselection, allowing an optimum speedrange to be found.Bruce Estens (front) achieved more than100 t/hr with the new MF 9895 rotary combine.He’s seen here with a representative fromPacific Seeds, whose trial scales were usedto verify that the yield meter readings.MF BALES ARE FUELFOR WORLD’S LARGESTBIOMASS BOILERBig square bales made by MasseyFerguson balers produced in Hesston,Kansas are key to efficient biofuel energyproduction at the Avedøre 2 power stationon the coast south of Copenhagenin Denmark.Avedøre 2, owned by DONG Energy is oneof the world’s most energy efficientcombined heat and power (CHP) plants. Itutilises up to 94% of the energy in the fuelfor electricity and heat generation –meeting the heat demands of 130,000households and supplying electricity to onemillion homes. The power station’sbiomass boiler plant is also the largest inthe world.Nearly 100 new MF 2100 Series balershave been ordered for Danish customersthis season, many of which will be makingbales for power station use. “The higherdensity and heavier packages made bythe new MF 2190 will be a great benefitto us, helping to further improve efficiency– simply because the straw lines willbe able to handle more material,” saysPernille Harder Andersen, informationofficer at the plant.The commissioning of Avedøre 2 in 2001replaced a number of older coal-firedgenerating units in eastern Denmark,resulting in a 10% reduction in carbondioxide emissions. The power station isdesigned specifically as a ‘multi-fuel plant’,which allows it to use a number of differentfuels from natural gas and oil through to arange of biofuels, including straw.The plant consumes around 172,000tonnes of bales including rape, cereals andryegrass from 500 different farms in easternDenmark. Every day Avedøre 2 handles65 lorry-loads of 24 bales. Currently theseloads weigh about 12 tonnes, but withthe increased density from the newMF 2190 baler the payload is expected toincrease by at least 20%, further improvingthe efficiency of the operation.The straw-fired biomass plant consists of aboiler, straw store, ash separator and asystem for handling the bottom and fly ash.The straw store holds enough bales to runthe plant for two to three days, withdeliveries arriving from Monday until noonon Saturday, every week.The whole biomass side of the plant –cranes, straw lines and feeding system –are designed exclusively to handle baledimensions of 1.2m x 1.2m x 2.5m longsquare bales.MF IN ACTIONMF 2190 balers will help to further improveefficiency at the power station becausethe straw lines will be able tohandle more material.The bale size choice also reflects years ofexperience from farmers and contractorsbaling straw for industrial and other uses.The legendary MF 190 is not only provento be the most reliable and productivebaler on the market, it also produces thebale weight and density that theircustomers demand.Avedøre 2 supplies electricityto one million homes.10 11