A weighty issue or not?

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By Dwain Duxson

A weighty issue or not? - Croppers, I need your input here. I see the Case Steiger 715 Quadtrack has arrived on our shores, ready to be rolled out to a paddock near you. Massive Machine weighing 32 tonnes. 

The three questions for the Croppers are. 1) With tramlines, is weight an issue? 2) Is weight an issue without tramlines? 3)What percentage of the paddock is lost for growing Crop due to the tramlines?

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Andrew Bate, the founder of SwarmFarm Robotics, wrote a piece on Linkedin and said, "One recent study reported that soil compaction from heavy Machines had reduced yields in some fields by as much as 50 percent". If current trends continue, the combination of soil compaction and erosion may eventually reduce global crop yields by as much as 20 percent". Andrew's SwarmFarm Tractors are much lighter, and I guess he is comparing them to the beasts we have today. 

I love what Andrew and his team are doing with his SwarmFarm Tractors. They have a place in the market, but I am sure he can find a better unique selling proposition than that. Surely, the weight of the Machines isn't affecting yields this much. Over to you, Croppers, to set the record straight. Reply to dwaind@farmtender.com.au

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