INNOVATION AWARDS The top new

The top new inventions

HERE ARE THE winners of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland’s 2022 Technical Innovation Awards, a highly respected award for manufacturers, distributors, providers and inventors. Two gold medals, five silvers and three certificates of commendations were presented at the recent Royal Highland Show.

The awards, which are the society’s most longstanding industry accolade, showcase and reward innovation and development within the agricultural sector.

RHASS chief steward of technical innovation, Christopher Shepherd, commented: “The focus on sustainability is clear this year, reflecting the importance those working within the agri and rural sectors place on looking for innovative solutions to reduce their environmental impact.”

The gold awards were presented to two previous silver award winners for continuous outstanding merit. This year, Pollock Farm Equipment took a gold medal for its Pollock Rope Scraper System. The innovative drive system uses a hollow shaft drive unit, fitted with a torque spring and a micro switch for animal safety. By using a rope with 12 strands woven in a particular way it also eliminates stretch to around 40-50mm in a rope of 100 metres length. The controller utilises the latest PLC technology, alongside inverted power from 1 phase 240v to 3 phase 415v, to eliminate troublesome single-phase motors.

Also presented with a gold award this year was Penderfeed Livestock Equipment, for its Arrowquip Q-Catch 86 Series Squeeze Cattle Crush. The Arrowquip Q-catch 86 series squeeze cattle crush claims to be the quietest crush ever manufactured. This is achieved by using nylon bushes on the hinges and rubber absorbers on the access panel slam bolts. Heavy-duty rubber flooring provides complete silence and sure-footing for the cattle, while the vet cage squeezes in with the crush, enabling you to narrow the crush before the cattle enter and preventing younger animals from turning around. The yoke gate handle can be operated from anywhere along the side of the crush, while the top and bottom access doors can be opened separately or together to make a full side exit. A hydraulic version is also available.

Merlo UK Ltd was awarded a silver for its Merlo eWorker telescopic handler. The innovative, fully electric telescopic handler reduces environmental impact without sacrificing iconic Merlo features and ease of use. The sustainable lead acid 48-volt battery offers up to an uninterrupted eight hours of working, with a nine-hour charge time means an overnight charge will see the eWorker ready to perform again the next day. It offers a 4wd configuration as standard, whilst offering exceptional manoeuvrability with a rear axle steering angle of up to 85 degrees. The compact dimensions are ideal for those working in confined environments. A lift height of 4.80m ensures no job is out of reach, coupled with a hefty maximum lift capacity of 2,500kgs. The familiar Merlo capacitive joystick offers the operator precise and safe operation, whilst three drive modes allow the operator to tailor output to the job in hand.

Also presented with a silver award was New Holland Agriculture for its T6 Methane Power Tractor. Invented by CNH Industrial, the New Holland T6 Methane Power is the world’s first 100% methane powered production tractor. With comparable power output to its diesel equivalent, the T6 delivers up to 30% lower running costs and can help reduce on-farm vehicle CO2 emissions. The high torque gas engine produces 99% less particulate matter, reducing CO2 emissions by ~10% when using natural gas (CNG). Overall emissions are reduced by 80%, if using farm supplied biomethane. Near-zero CO2 emissions would be possible if the gas comes from carbon negative biogas sites.

Soil Essentials Ltd earned a silver award this year for its SKAi a re-trainable smart camera solution for agriculture. With the use of artificial intelligence, the detection and targeted spot spraying of individual weed species has now become a real and viable option. Layers of digital data are transformed in the cloud-based platform (KORE) to provide information at the plant scale, generating re-trainable artificial intelligence models and the ability to share with smart sprayer systems. Working in unison and integrating with existing GPS and sprayer systems, SKAi can be trained to recognise and map any target species for individual treatment, as opposed to blanket spraying across whole fields. The system is poised to revolutionise farming practices, vastly reduce agri-chemical usage (up to 90%), increase efficiencies, reduce costly inputs, and possesses huge environmental benefits.

A silver was also awarded to Stewart Agricultural Limited for its PS 22 29 H Carrot Trailer. The PS 22 29 H Carrot Trailer is designed to deliver high performance, reduce wastage and operate more safely in the field and on the road. Featuring hydraulic suspension, hydraulic-electric spool valve, electric steering, automatic lubrication, hydraulic rear door, drop-down sides, a Hardox Body and a Central Tyre Inflation system, the trailer was designed specifically for specialised growers to transport carrots with minimum breakages. Root crops are normally harvested in wet conditions; these trailers with flotation tyres operating at optimal pressure, three axles and powered steering reduce soil compaction and damage.

Opico was awarded a silver for its FarmDroid FD20. Invented by Jens and Kristian Warming of FarmDroid ApS in Vejen, Denmark, the FarmDroid is the world’s first fully automatic robot that both seeds and mechanically weeds. Solar-powered, it offers pesticidefree weed control with zero fuel bills and a zero-carbon footprint. The FarmDroid uses ultra-accurate GPS to record exactly where it places each seed. It can start the weeding process before the crop has emerged because camera recognition is not required. Capable of working within 5mm of each seedling between the rows and 20mm in the row, there is no need for hand-rogueing problem weeds, saving about £250/ha. Weighing just 800kg, FarmDroid has the lightest footprint possible, headlands aren’t run down and so yields are maintained across the entire cropped area. Growers in Europe are reporting increases in organic sugar beet yields of 40-60% over tractor-hoed crops and are putting this down to the combination of precise seed placement and intra-row weed control, making for uniform crop development.

Pollock Farm Equipment New Holland Soil Essentials

Stewart Trailers Opico Penderfeed

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