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XtraBlatt Issue 01-2019

  • Text
  • Contractors
  • Farmer
  • Farms
  • Agricultural
  • Forage
  • Silage
  • Farmers
  • Machinery
  • Krone

TITLE THEME LANDTECHNIK

TITLE THEME LANDTECHNIK IGL, PFREIMD ROUTINE FROM PRACTICE Alois (l) and Günter Igl are convinced that only open systems and absolutely compatible interfaces will be acceptable to farmers and contractors as digitization increases. The rising proportion of electronics and digital applications opens new possibilities in fieldwork – but means a challenge for machinery dealerships in their role as “interface” between manufacturer and end customer. Günter Igl is convinced that this increases the importance of specialist competence and practical experience. Jhe easier a technical product is to operate, the greater the acceptance by the user and, with that, its expansion in the market. Günter Igl who, with brother Alois, represents the second generation managing the family agricultural machinery dealership near Pfreimd in the Bavarian Oberpfalz, is certain of this. “For me, the obvious examples are smartphones or the messenger service WhatsApp. Both are intuitive and immediately usable. No one needs to read a user manual and a training course is definitely not required. The products usually function problem-free without any such input”, reckons Günter Igl. “One cannot always say this with the same level of confidence for modern farm machinery, especially the electronics involved”, he cautions. COMPATIBILITY IS INDISPENSIBLE Hereby, Günter Igl realises he’s “comparing apples with pears “, at least to a certain extent. After all, the functionality of a mobile phone can’t compare 1:1 with the working conditions and demands on management electronics on a crop sprayer or combine harvester. “And it has to be said that, over the last three or four years, a tremendous amount has been done with farm machinery in this sector regarding ease of operation and functionality”, he adds. “However, not all the problems have been dealt with by any means, especially those of compatibility between various tractors and implement makes.” This aspect is very important from the Igl brothers’ point of view. Their dealership, after all, features a broad spectrum of very different agricultural machinery makes. In first place with this family-owned firm stand Case IH, Krone and Amazone. “Alongside the tractors, we have purposely concentrated on implements from manufacturers that are specialised in in their respective segments because only so is it possible to offer our customers the best available technology. For the so-called long-liner it is impossible to be a leader in all sectors. For this reason, we see in our mix of market-relevant top makes the right way ahead for our customers”, explains Günter Igl. On the already-mentioned critical points of compatibility in electronics and digital applications, he reckons that the three manufacturers fit well together. Among other reasons, because none try to bind their customers forcibly via digitization. “This does not mean that everything always functions perfectly. But, in my opinion, there exists with all three firms a consensus that only open systems with absolutely compatible interfaces will, in the long run, win acceptance from farmers and contractors. Only then will the advantages of digitization in agricultural machinery fully develop. MORE EFFICIENCY This acceptance on the part of his customers has in the meantime markedly increased, at least when purchasing tractors of 150 HP upwards and/or with younger farmers. “Some of them get really deeply involved in the theme”, he reports. The first step for many customers is via steering systems or automatic track guidance. Here, the Igl brothers apply marketing strategies to get their customers interested in the concept through pre-configuration of tractors for automatic guidance and then offering the appropriate software with a purchased tractor at no extra cost over an initial period. This approach appears to reduce customer resistance to the new technologies and proves a good stepping stone towards digitization. “The inherent advantages are then quickly recognised”, smiles Günter Igl. Also a focus of interest is digital field mapping, a concept that fits with implement working width based precision tractor steering or permanent tramlines. He feels that automatic partial spreading or spraying width controls achieve measurable advantages from precision steering, for instance with fertiliser spreading or crop protection spraying. Measuring forage dry matter content on the silage harvester is another precision aid in great demand, says the 12 13