Fall 2020. The station wagon MES-330, converted from a car, has lost its potential for three years, and it works tirelessly all year round like a tractor...
In the post-Soviet era, the Ukrainian company AvtoKrAZ tried to bring its own tractor to market. In 2017, engineers at the College of Agricultural Mechanization and Agro-Mechanization have launched the MES-330 agricultural car on the KrAZ-6322, which has 6×6 drives and 330 horsepower. The automakers' novel press conferences have spread throughout the previous alliance and overseas media outlets, and the video has garnered millions of views. And then – quiet.
More than three years after its debut, Avtopark decided to figure out where the future of mes-330 agricultural technological innovation is headed. Officially, the project has been shut down by producers. What makes the informal other producers seem more dynamic is interesting that the project is still ongoing and evolving. And the source of the project and all the work is under their control.
Ural-4320565" tried to break into the market after the "Golden Autumn 2011" exhibition, but years later its mass production could not be defended ...
It turned out that the initiators and executors who "transformed" the chassis into a tractor car almost completely did not matter at all, and to this day remain scientists at the aforementioned Agricultural Mechanization and Electrification Institute. The KrAZ-6322 type 8-speed transmission chassis (5-speed transmission for road configuration) supplied by the automobile plant for agricultural production test adaptation was modified and tested by the National Research Center. To this day, with all its glory and strength, this machine works on farms all year round, including the experimental fields of the Institute. Plow the ground like a tractor. In the autumn, the MES-330 vigorously carried out autumn ploughing and spring sowing operations. With the current warming climate, he once again ventured into the fields, sowing seeds and feeding crops.
Kremenchug robots are no strangers to the agricultural sector. Since the 1990s, nine KrAZ vehicles have been operating in the small village of Teplyk in the Vinnytsia region and have been converted for field operations. This technique, in particular, requires the introduction of organic matter and the fertilization of crops with ammonia. Sergei Pogorelli, head of the mobile energy division and head of the mobile energy division at the NSC's Agricultural Mechanization and Electrification Institute, gave the example of how the tractor project continues — this spring, gaz-66 conversions to agriculture require farming.
"We are not manufacturers, we are not buyers, we are not sellers," Sergei Pogorely told Avtopark. — The company's activities are aimed at the study of agricultural engineering sciences. I would like AvtoKrAZ to organize the production of such equipment so that we can advise the factory ourselves, but for now it is not up to us. If there is no domestic tractor performance chassis, that is, MAZ, TATA, etc., take them to research and development. ”
Recognition in the same field
European commercial vehicle manufacturers are the undisputed leaders in agricultural solutions based on truck chassis, but they can't boast about the excellent sales performance of such designed vehicles. Let's not mention the legendary Mercedes-Benz Unimog, which has long been loved by EU farmers: there was no rush to buy such a station wagon for agricultural work, but they accepted it. Devices under the Paul brand have not gone unnoticed. Paul Nutzfahrzeuge Agro Mover, a small production company, does not have a large number of orders from agricultural operators, although it regularly offers modifications to Mercedes-Benz and MAN chassis throughout Europe.
The management of professional bodies can confidently look to the future and constantly improve its development, adapting it to almost the entire Euro VII series of models. If today they had an automated tractor line, the business would definitely go bankrupt. Ordering to develop, modify or manufacture other means of transport, specialized self-propelled and towed wheeled vehicles helps to survive.
The Aktros, modified by the German company Paul Nutzfahrzeuge, has the same problems as Russian and Ukrainian modified cars
The situation is almost the same for the Russian company PK ''Agromaster'', whose designers teach KAMAZ vehicles how to use tractors. So far, no factory in China has the experience of converting trucks into special field equipment. Of course, if there is only one product there, they will not survive anyway. Unlike Paul Nutzfahrzeuge, when the automotive theme prevailed, the production of the Agrator wide-band joint sowing complex Agrator, soil tillage, disc cultivators, discs, other towed self-propelled devices and vehicles helped Tatarstan enterprises to sustain their livelihoods.
Today, the plant's product range includes three versions of the Agrator Avto automotive seeding complex. The wide-cut models Agrator-8500 and Agrator-9800 have working widths of 8.5 and 9.8 m, respectively, and are used with kamAZ-43118/65224 with 10 m of seeding strips for the Agromaster-10000 Auto-P and Camas Tractor-65221. In addition, there is a tractor technology tool based on the KAMAZ-65115 chassis, the Autotrac U-260. However, Russian consumers still don't queue up for this particular device. Gulnara Khatbullina, Sales Manager of Avtopark Editorial Office LLC ''Agromaster'' directly stated that "... Such orders are rare for us."
The Aktros, modified by the German company Paul Nutzfahrzeuge, have the same problems as Russian and Ukrainian modified cars, with limited visibility.
Still, the factory didn't cut in that direction, and developers were sure there would be demand. All three versions of their "Agrator Auto" series are complete simulations of wheeled tractor-towed seeding complexes. Agricultural technical characteristics that preserve all working parameters of high-quality tillage and sown crop seed doses. But the cover of the automatic tractor had to be changed in configuration and geometry to make it fit the desired dimensions of the car's bodywork structure, while maintaining its access to public roads.
The most powerful seeding unit ,"Agromaster-10000 Avto-P", is paired with an all-wheel drive three-axle truck tractor (400 hp) on the KAMAZ-65221 tire as part of a semi-trailer with a two-size two-section hopper. If in the usual version, the capacity of the bunker does not exceed 10 "cubes", then in the car seeding semi-trailer it is 21 m3.
As for the Autotrac U-260, a tractor technology tool based on the KAMAZ-6511 chassis, it is similar to the "unimog" series, although it belongs to a different scale group, but it has much less functionality. For example, there is no bowl with a pull-out power output shaft in the front, and its spline is ready to interact with hundreds of drive mechanisms of various front-mounted implements.
However, developers in Tatarstan did not see the U-260 as an alternative to German cars, and they created their own stylish, powerful station wagons. In fact, it is almost a tractor, although visually all the functions of the KAMAZ-65115 car are presented here. But its rear tires were larger than the front tires: the big wheels replaced the rear two-axle balanced bogie with double-tire tires, turning the three-axles into a two-axle machine. As a result, the main gear is also strengthened – the large wheels need to increase the gear ratio.
To date, the above-mentioned autonomous tractor sowing and farming complex is rare in Russian fields. For example, in the Republic of Tatarstan, the Press Service of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan told Avtopark magazine, "... The vehicle is used as a traction for agricultural units in the farmer's farm 'Islamov field'. There are no other examples of the use of freight transport in combination with sowing and tillage units. ”
Since when?
If recognized manufacturers try to give car tractors functionality, some craftsmen will not consider it shameful to cross tractors with cars. Some people do it better, some people just do it. In the Ulyanovsk region, for example, they began using the K-701 Kirovets tractor of the Swedish Volvo FM sedan, a walking device from St. Petersburg. An energy tool called the "Southerner" appeared and did not arouse much enthusiasm among the villagers.
In the Zaporozhye region, Kulibins, a Ukrainian from the Bizon state of emergency, demonstrated a makeover of the old K-701 tractor, which installed the cab of the DAF CF main truck on the tractor instead of the standard cab. Admittedly, to give such equipment the usual tractor performance, they used the English version of the right cab, just like the standard Kirovets. Visually the results were good.
This is not a swamp truck, but a common modification of the K-701 Kirovets tractor with a DAF CF cab.
Since the cab is suspended above the front half of the frame, the characteristics of a powerful off-road convertible truck can be seen. However, the broken half-frame design points to the legendary Kirovitz. However, the K-701 Series tractors with MAN truck cabs are easier to identify in their usual location.
Although the work on the "Bizon" has begun, their circulation is still small. To some extent, this technology is superior to the factory version in terms of comfort and ergonomics in the working environment, but it does not bring the luster it deserves or reduce the fatigue of the operator. Drivers don't need to make u-turns on asphalt, they can turn directly on the pavement, and can even avoid cab shaking mounting pads and seat suspension starters that reduce the amplitude of vibration. No matter what they do, it is impossible to take the place of the tractor.