These are 5 modern giant machines with continuous cutting and grinding capabilities that can harvest nearly 3,000 tons of corn biomass per day on TH true Milk’s 150ha raw material field in Nghia Dan, Nghe An.
With an area of 150 hectares, TH true Milk’s biomass corn fields have a yield of about 40 tons/ha and the output of the 2019 crop is 35,000 tons. With the need for similarities when making food for cows, corn harvesting must be done in the shortest time possible.
During the harvest at the end of December, experts and workers of TH true Milk set a target of harvesting in 3 days, an average of 2,000 tons per day, equivalent to 180 large trucks carrying finished biomass corn. Cow feed production facility.
To do this, TH invests in modern machinery systems, increasing the rate of mechanization in the fields during the harvest season. On the TH field during the harvest season at the end of December, there are 5 John Deere SPFH combine harvesters with many different codes such as 7350, 7380, 8500.
According to Mr. Nguyen Le Thang, the person in charge of TH true Milk’s cultivation department, during this year’s crop harvest, he and his colleagues set a new record when in 1 day with 5 John Deere machines harvested and crushed 2,840 tons of corn biomass.
This combination harvester from TH true Milk costs about 10 billion VND each and is considered a “super car” in the agricultural equipment world. These are considered the most modern harvesting machines in Asia at this time.
According to machine drivers, every hour the machine can harvest 7-8 hectares of corn or more, depending on the rotation of trucks carrying finished corn products. If there are many trucks, the process of changing trucks is shortened, so the harvest productivity is even higher.
The 6-row wide Kemper cutting head can cut 1.5 tons/minute, controlled by computer. In addition, the machine also has a Kernel Processor that grinds corn kernels and mixes them evenly into the leaves to help make the silage process more effective.
When harvesting, machines move along the corn field, cutting and grinding wherever they go. After being crushed, the biomass corn is transferred to the truck using a sprinkler system installed right on the roof of the harvester. The two drivers of the harvester and the truck must coordinate smoothly with each other, moving in parallel while keeping a distance so that the corn does not spray out.
To operate effectively, the trucks are staggered, meaning the rear of the outer row will be close to the front of the truck in the second row because the truck always has to drive a few meters ahead. Just like that, every time they complete one direction of the field, the vehicles will turn around at the same time.
The mower operator not only has to walk in a straight line but also has to skillfully control the nozzle to each area of the truck, avoiding the situation where the truck is full and empty. Every time the truck is full, it will quickly move outside, cover it with tarpaulin and move it to the processing area, making room for another truck to replace it.
Inside the cabin of the John Deere mower is very modern. Besides the air conditioning system that always ensures a comfortable temperature for the operator, the button and screen system is also very convenient for operation. Control of cutting blades, cutting angle, cutting speed can be adjusted on the touch screen, as simple as using a mobile phone.
After being cut and crushed, the biomass corn will be transferred to the cow food processing center. There, corn is mixed with concentrate (bran) and some ingredients and then fermented before being fed to cows.
These John Deere machines are not only responsible for harvesting corn, depending on the season, they are customized to cut additional grass and sunflowers to serve TH true Milk’s dairy feed processing plant.
After harvesting, the fields will be limed, fertilized with organic fertilizer, then plowed and sown for the new crop.