Following dealer demand from markets around the world, Pöttinger has joined the round-baler market with a range of balers, adding to its extensive lineup of grassland equipment.

The new Impress round-baler range will consist of both variable and fixed chamber balers, either as standalone balers or as combination wrapper machines.

And while the industry is not short on round-balers to choose from, Pöttinger’s UK general manager Shaun Groom reckons there is plenty of room for the Austrian manufacturer.

“The baler market is a high-volume market, particularly in France, where round-balers are very popular. The trick for us will be to differentiate and set ourselves apart from the competition. With unique features, such as our reverse chopping system, we should be able to do this.”

As well as this, Pöttinger also sees an opportunity to capitalise on emerging markets such as Africa, as the cost-effectiveness and simplicity of a round-baler should appeal.

Pöttinger is no stranger to balers, having previously sold balers for certain markets built in the Italian Galligani factory, now wholly owned by the Kverneland group, which produces Vicon-branded balers.

The new range is the result of a six-year development programme and is designed and built from the ground up.

“We essentially started off with a clean sheet and made a wishlist of all the things we wanted and liked on a baler, as well as all the bits we didn’t like about other designs,” said Shaun.

The company felt that it was already halfway there and the pick-up and feeding technology were taken from the wagons.

In true Pöttinger ground-hugging style, the pick-up uses a cam track with crop brought inwards via two small augers. A novel over-the-top feed rotor then delivers crop through its 32-blade knife bank, which is mounted above the feed roller.

Pöttinger reckons that by taking crop over the feed rotor, a better crop flow is achieved and claims that it takes less power to drive. it is claimed that material also falls away from the knives, improving their service life.

For protection, the knives are spring-loaded, and the whole knife bank can be slid out to one side for service access. Knives are also reversible.

The wrapping unit is also a Pöttinger design, which uses twin satellite arms to apply film and comes with twin axles. Film storage is up to 12 rolls, six down either side of the machine.

Variable chamber models use three endless belts, which the firm claims reduces crop losses compared to multiple-belt machines. No specific bale dimensions have been revealed yet, but all the popular sizes will be catered for, from 1.25m up to 1.8m in diameter.

The balers will not be in Ireland for another couple of years at least. Agritechnica 2015 will be their first official launch.

Forage wagons upgrades

Pöttinger has also been busy improving the smaller end of its forage wagon range. These entry-level Faro models have undergone a refresh to give them the latest family styling and a new, shorter chop length of 45mm.

There is a new 31-blade knife bank, through which material is fed by a 750mm-diameter rotor, consisting of seven rows of 7mm double tines. The tines have also been moved closer to the blade, giving an increased shearing effect with claims of a better quality chop, as well as a reduced power requirement. For maintenance, the knife bank can be swung out.

For increased contour following, a newly developed support roller sits just behind and in the middle of the pick-up, in addition to the jockey wheels either side. The wagon scraper floor is also now 150mm lower at the front, which is claimed to allow easier loading. It means that tyres up to 710/35R 22.5 can be fitted.

The base machine is fitted with a 15t parabolic spring chassis and 560/45R 22.5 tyres. Power requirement is between 90hp and 150hp, while the PTO shaft is equipped with 1,600Nm of protection. To meet a variety of needs, it is also available as an open-top version with the option of fitting rear distribution beaters.

Smaller Novacat mower

Pöttinger has launched a smaller version of the Novacat S12, the new S10, with a working width of 9.52m. As it is a no-conditioner mower, the power requirement is just 130hp, with the potential to mow up to 11ha/hour, depending on conditions.

Working width can also be reduced to 9.1m by relocating the mowing units closer to the tractor via another set of mounting holes. This allows the rear units to be adapted to various widths of front mowers and/or it can be used to alter your overlap.

Mowing units are suspended via centre pivots, which allows for plus or minus 22° of travel. Additionally, for ground following, the pressure of the mowers on the ground can be altered hydraulically using accumulators.

Raising and lowering of the mower is taken care of by a double-acting remote valve. This allows the operator to control individual mower units singly or together, or fold to transport. For transport, the mowers fold to the rear. The front guards of each mower fold up automatically to reduce transport width to 2.2m. A full lighting package is also included.

Hydraulic folding rakes

Pöttinger used the occasion to launch its new twin-rotor rake, the Top 824 C. This is a hydraulically adjustable working width machine from 7.7m to 8.4m. The hydraulic adjustment helps lower the rotors for transport, achieving a transport height of less than 4m with the tine arms still attached.

A five-wheel chassis is located under each rotor. The rotor wheels are mounted very close to the tines for better contour following and for reduced soil contamination. A leading wheel in front of each rotor is also key to following the ground as the tines are prevented from digging. Rotors consist of 13 tine arms, each loaded with four, dual-sprung tines.

*James Rickard is machinery editor of the British Farmers Guardian.