The 2022 show season can’t come soon enough for North Yorkshire-based JF Hudson Ltd, which is looking forward to finally showcasing the new products it developed during lockdown.
Unable to travel for demonstrations, the company put confinement to best use to hole-up in the workshop and focus on product development. As a specialist in bespoke design and a manufacturer of agricultural machinery and attachments, it came up with more practical kit to help farmers be more profitable.
During lockdown, the company constructed its new Compact Front Boxes that attach to a front linkage when folded up, to solve the problem of lack of storage space within the confines of a tractor cab. The boxes allow operators to safely carry all they need to make the most of their time out in the field.
The second lockdown invention was the Silo Crab, an attachment for a materials handler/loader built for collecting leftover material from the feed fence designed to give dairy and beef farmers greater control of their operational costs.
“The lockdowns offered a good opportunity to get in the workshop, now we’re looking forward to getting the new products in front of people, starting at Lamma 2020,” owner and managing director James Hudson said. “You want to share what you’ve been working on with farmers so they can get using it.
“There’s satisfaction in developing products that are practical and problem-solving. We know the Compact Front Box and Silo Crab serve a purpose and will work well for people. They both save time, money and hassle. They cut wastage and will improve the general day-to-day efficiency of your farming operations.”
JF Hudson has built one of its Compact Front Boxes to carry silage wrap, net and twine.The Compact Front Boxes can accommodate and protect all the tools and equipment needed out in the field. They offer a large and secure space to store a wide variety of essentials from grease guns and baler string, to fuel and oil, spray and herbicides, to water and seed.
The range provides the additional space to prevent running back and forth to the farm to top-up, cutting downtime and unnecessary expenditure. There’s also a wrap, twine and net model designed for the silage and baling season so farmers and contractors can equip themselves with the right quantities of materials to maximise their time out in the field.
Operator safety is a key factor taken into consideration in the design of the boxes. The low-profile design provides excellent stability and a good line of sight. The front linkage when folded up ensures the box is kept as close to the tractor as possible to prevent it from sticking out and obscuring vision, a particular potential danger pulling out of fields and gate posts. With contents safely stowed away in the enclosed box, this also removes the danger of flying objects if a tractor rolls over.
The Silo Crab’s innovative design was recognised during lockdown being Commended at the British Dairying 2021 Cream Awards. Judge Paul Tompkins said the Silo Crab’s application stood out immediately to any dairy farmers who had spent too much energy on manually sweeping feed passageways.
“This innovation offers a tool to farmers that’s simple and straightforward, but offers a practical time-saving solution and can help improve cow performance,” he added.
Using the Silo Crab, leftover feed can be gathered and weighed, allowing farmers to calculate the total intake. Adjustments can then be made to the next feed based on what the cows consumed and therefore need. By monitoring feed intakes, instead of relatively expensive guesswork, the Silo Crab makes it possible to keep surplus to an absolute minimum.
