PHOTO: RANDY WILLIAMS
Profi le
Roberto “Joby” Javellana is working for John Deere at the tractor factory in Waterloo, Iowa. He is in a team responsi- ble for the development plan for the bigger tractor series (7R, 8R and 9R). His team draws up the development plan for the next 20 years. Half of his time is spent travelling around the world to identify customers needs.
probably introduce this technique in agricultural machines as well in the future.”
Will tractors still get bigger? “Tractors certainly increase in engine power. The demand has been proven with the introduction of the 8400 R and 9620 R artic- ulated tractors. This trend will continue. Standard and articulated tractors will get more horsepower in the future. First of all imple- ments become larger and wider. So more power is needed. Cus- tomers want to cultivate more hectares with the same number of people, and preferably want to finish all fieldwork in a shorter pe- riod. Second reason is that working speed increases considerably. That requires a lot of horsepower too. Large sowing combinations demand a lot of hydraulic power as well, and thus engine power.”
What about countries where farms typically have smaller fields? “Every country faces roughly the same challenges. No matter how big farms and fields are. Everyone knows that machines are large and heavy, but farmers still want to do more work with fewer peo- ple. Also on field of a smaller scale. All over the world we see agri- cultural companies increasing in size. Farms are getting bigger; by cultivating more hectares, they can spread costs and have lower costs per hectare.”
To what extent does precision farming technologies play a role in machine development? “It is essential to first build implements that deliver perfect work at those high working speeds. We have an ExactEmerge sowing machine that sows with precision at 16 km/h. Our cultivators are already working with that speed. Implements are becoming more important and smarter any- way. With new techniques, such as Tractor Implement Man- agement, the implements become smarter. Hydraulic and electrical functions will be operated autonomously, and that provides even more precision. That development is going really fast now. This also applies to tractors, that remain the power source.”
Can you give a concrete example of your work? “A good example is that we have recently been expanding fuel tanks. When the right moment for harvesting or sowing arrives, customers want to keep working. They do not want to stop at night to refuel. Diesel for 10 hours of heavy pulling work is not enough. Look at the shape of our plastic diesel tank in the artic- ulated tractors; we literally use every corner and hole in the chassis to store fuel. Optionally, we are now even building the chassis of a special new material. That takes up less space, so we have more room for diesel.”
▶ FUTURE FARMING | 1 November 2018 19
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