Background information, product tests and user reports.
Built on experience.
On sure ground.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Healthy and fertile soil is the basis of a good harvest. No agricultural or cultivation measures will succeed if the soil is not in optimal condition. The reality is that it is necessary to meet the narrow time windows for tillage, drilling and harvesting perfectly – and to do so with the highest possible level of machine performance.
The CLAAS research and development teams have been meeting these challenges for over 30 years. Every day, our engineers are faced with the task of reconciling soil protection, high performance and statutory requirements. Although the range of demands made on our machines is extremely diverse, we always place special emphasis on maintaining soil health.
Driving comfort combined with high on-road speed, smooth front attachment guidance and excellent directional stability: these are the characteristics that have convinced farmers and contractors around the world for over 20 years. Today, CLAAS TERRA TRAC crawler track units stand for the best possible combination of traction and efficiency, low soil pressure and protection of the grass cover.
Drawing on the experience acquired in more than two decades of hard, real-world use with CLAAS LEXION combine harvesters, we are now taking the next step. At Agritechnica in November 2017, under the heading “It’s All About The Soil”, we shall be presenting the enhanced TERRA TRAC crawler track units on our JAGUAR forage harvester and our AXION 900 large tractor.
I have been accompanying the development of this technology for years and I am convinced of its practical benefits for agriculture.
Kind regards,
Helmut Claas,
Dipl.-Ing. Dr. h. c.
Our soil – a precious resource.
The soil is the most important basis for production in the agricultural sector. As it is impossible to create more of it, the increases in yield necessary for the growing world population have to be produced using the existing land. The greatest challenge in this respect is that of reconciling efficiency and sustainability. Farms are increasing in size and the time windows for cultivation and harvesting are becoming ever shorter. At the same time, machines are getting bigger, more powerful and, therefore, also heavier. Soil compaction is the result.
The soil is our workplace.
Soil compaction caused by tractors or harvesting machines reduces the pore spaces in the soil
Oxygen deficiency and the risk of waterlogging as well as reduced soil micro-organisms are the result. These effects are manifested in subsequent crops in the form of delayed development, lower yield and inferior root growth. The harm done in just one harvest lasts for years. Of course, the damage is not irreparable. Deep tillage, catch crops or liming will restore arable land to its original level of productivity in the long term. But all these measures cost money. Would it not be easier to avoid the damage in the first place? At CLAAS, we make a point of addressing the need to minimise adverse effects on the soil right from the start of our machine development process. We have set ourselves the goal of preserving and protecting the most precious resource of all farmers. Because for us, like them: the soil is our workplace.
TERRA TRAC on LEXION
The TERRA TRAC crawler track system has proved itself on combine harvesters in more than 20 years of use in the field and is undergoing constant development to meet the exacting requirements of our customers. Today, about one third of all LEXION combines and half of LEXION HYBRID machines are equipped with TERRA TRAC.
TERRA TRAC on JAGUAR
Building on the well-recognised advantages of the TERRA TRAC crawler tracks with regard to soil protection and traction, CLAAS is the first forage harvester manufacturer to launch an optimal factory-integrated solution for the protection of soil and grassland against driving damage: the newly developed JAGUAR TERRA TRAC with headland protection.
TERRA TRAC on AXION
The AXION 900 TERRA TRAC from CLAAS is the first half-track tractor with full suspension. Its key innovation is the inclusion of the suspended TERRA TRAC crawler track system. This is based on the technology currently in use with combine harvester but has been specially adapted to meet the requirements of tractors.