Industrial Agriculture
Equipment Categories
Before we discuss
types of equipment, there are several categories of industrial Ag (agriculture)
equipment to know:
- Tillage Equipment: Tillage machines till the soil by cutting
it into smaller pieces to break apart clumps and refine the soil. Tilling
digs deeper into the ground than cultivators to prepare a new field or
when adding large amounts of fertilizer.
- Cultivation Equipment: This includes plows, harrows, and
cultivators. This equipment helps prepare the ground for planting by
turning and loosening the soil. Only the first couple of inches are
loosened to prepare the soil for crops.
- Planting Equipment: Planting equipment prepares the soil for
planting and distributing seeds, and they also firm the ground after
seeding.
- Irrigation Equipment: Equipment that waters vast swathes
of crops.
- Harvesting Equipment: Harvests crops and prepares the fields for
winter.
- Material Handling & Storage Equipment: Moves and stores all the crops, hay,
and other materials.
5 Types of
Grain/Agriculture Industrial Equipment
Without the right
industrial equipment, tools, and parts, your operation can come to a quick
halt. The following types of grain and agriculture equipment are essential in
creating efficient and profitable operating processes.
1. Tractors
Tractors are an
extensive category of vehicles that can be set up to handle many tasks on the
farm. Pulling attachments behind allows tractors to switch equipment
attachments to match the required task.
Some attachments
tractors pull are:
- Plows
- Fertilizer Spreaders
- Harrows
- Seeders
- Balers
- Cultivators
- Transplanters
- Wagons & Trailers
With so many
attachment options, tractors are the workhorse of the farm, transitioning from
one task to another.
2. Combines &
Harvesters
Combine harvesters are
primarily used for harvesting grain crops such as cereals. They are
purpose-built for harvesting and threshing simultaneously. Combine harvesters
can be pulled behind a tractor, but the self-propelled models are more commonly
used.
The conventional
combine harvester uses shakers to separate the grain from the chaff. The number
of shakers they have can vary from four to eight.
The less conventional
combine harvester uses rotors to separate the chaff. This design is more
compact, less cumbersome, and requires less maintenance. The finished product
is superior, with less broken grain. However, the equipment is sensitive to the
mass and humidity of the straw, which can create inopportune harvesting
windows. It also has a higher fuel consumption.
There are a few hybrid
models, though they are less available on the market than the other two
types.
Factors in choosing
the right combine harvester are the type (shakers versus rotors), field size,
storage capacity, wheels versus tracks, and price.