Splendimo MC

"Simple, but then again brilliant in its simplicity"

"Being a contractor, you have to be able to count on reliable equipment. Due to the Lely Splendimo mower the customer can count on us while operations are always quickly finished." In 2006 Holger Nöhrnberg, a contractor of Stuhr, bought a Splendimo 900 MC Triplo mower conditioner combination with a Splendimo 320 FC fitted on the front.

By now he has mown at least 1,000 hectares with this machine and he has just changed his knives for the very first time. For twenty years Mr Nöhrnberg has been mowing the 140 hectares of grassland of the airport of Bremen. This operation requires a reliable mowing combination with a tremendous output and Lely's Splendimo 900 MC meets that requirement perfectly.

Decisive factors for Holger Nöhrnberg were the modular cutter bar concept of the Lely mowers as well as the fact that they require 20% less power than comparable products. "On average we achieve an output of 10 ha/h. This is also true for the smaller fields that we mow as a contractor and if allowed by conditions we even achieve an output of 18 ha/h. We manage all of these operations with a 200 HP tractor." The mechanical control of the Lely mowing combination always was, and still is a major benefit, according to Mr Nöhrnberg.

The combination can be easily folded up and down. The front mower Splendimo 320 FC is coupled by means of the front lift arms, which provides ample clearance for moving over swaths as well as for road transport.

"Product progress for sure; we are contented"

From 2001, Agrar GmbH Lichterfelde - Golzow have been using the Splendimo Triplo 801 C combination for mowing their 800 hectares approx. of grassland. All material harvested from the grassland is processed as silage and hay, which is fed as roughage to the 400 milk cows, 300 breeding cows and 200 bulls. In total, the farm includes 2,000 hectares of land, on which - in addition to forage - cereals and maize are grown.

In the spring of 2007, operator Jörg Haarbach used a Splendimo 900 MC mower combination with a working width of close to 9 metres as a demonstration machine over a number of days. This demo machine was made available by the farm's dealer, Meyer Landtechnik in Lichtgerfelde - Buckow. Throughout the operation of this machine combination, Jörg did not fail to notice a number of features that clearly set the new Splendimo 900 MC mower combination apart from the Triplo 801 C that he had used before. "Despite the fact that the 900 MC unit works one metre wider, its weight is significantly less. This means that the wetter fields can be dealt with earlier in springtime, in addition to the fact that the machine allows easier manoeuvring in the field." The simpler construction with fewer gearboxes and drive shafts means less need for, and reduced costs of maintenance and servicing. The Splendimo Clip quick knife change system - fitted as standard on the machine - means a major step forward as compared to the previous knife fixation. Despite the fact that the knives can be exchanged considerably easier and faster - pretty significant when all 48 knives of the combination need to be changed - the knife fixation is still as reliable as ever. The built-in stops for raising the cutter units on headlands provide increased ground clearance to the Splendimo 900 MC, which is also favourable when it comes to manoeuvring.

Agrar GmbH Lichterfelde - Golzow also operate two Splendimo 320 T mowers for their smaller fields. Tedding of the crops is done by a Lotus 675 Stabilo tedder, while a Hibiscus rake 735 Vario is used to rake the crop together; for harvesting they use a forage harvester or a Welger RP 220 or 235 round baler. Between them, the two Welger round balers turn out a total of 10,000 round bales a year.

"Practice tests are very important to the development of new machines"

At the farm Agrar GmbH Sonnenberg in Schönermark - with land in excess of 1,700 hectares - roughage for 300 milking cows and 140 head of young cattle is harvested by means of a full range of Lely machines. After the grassland (540 hectares) has been mown with the aid of the Splendimo 320 F and 320 T mowing combination, a Lotus 770 Stabilo is used for tedding the crop. For the first time this year, the farm also uses a Lely Hibiscus rake to rake the dried forage together.

Manager Friedemann Karl explains "that the farm's preference for Lely equipment stems from the good impression that the first Lely machine has left at the farm". Shortly after the Fall of the Wall the company bought its first Lotus 675 Stabilo tedder, which was sold in the federal state of Brandenburg at the time. Ten years later this machine was replaced by its bigger sister, the Lotus 770 Stabilo. In the process, the presence of dealer Lamadi as well as the quality of the machines definitely had an influence on the decision of Agrar GmbH Sonneberg to opt for Lely grassland machinery.

For the 2007 season, Agrar GmbH Sonnenberg has undertaken to test a prototype of the new Lely Hibiscus 1315 twin rotor side delivery rake in practice conditions. "So far, we are pleased with this new model", says Friedemann Karl. The Hibiscus 1315 is based upon its bigger sister Hibiscus 1525 but it is fitted with smaller rotors and features a simpler construction and control. Operator Manfried Bloch explains that the machine ensures very clean raking, which is also due to the stable wheel assemblies underneath the rotors, the sophisticated three-dimensional rotor suspension and the rugged H-frame.

The construction of this machine makes it possible to rake at high speeds, which - in conjunction with the large working width - gives an outstanding output. Manfried uses the machine to rake grass together for both big self-loading forage wagons and Welger balers. The Hibiscus 1315 rake makes it possible to rake the appropriate amount of crop into an exceptionally even swath. These swaths can be handled very well by harvesting machines. Throughout the testing process, Manfred noticed some details that might be improved. This is exactly the type of input - emerging from working in real practical conditions - that Lely always greatly appreciates and consistently improves when going to serial production. Before any prototype is being tested in practice, it is subjected at Lely's to rigid strength gauge testing as well as arduous field testing. Consequently, all prototypes that are deployed for field testing are already in their final development stage.

All in all the prototype of the Hibiscus 1315 rake has done such a great job at the Agrar farm that manager Friedemann Karl was happy to purchase the machine at the end of the season.

Mower conditioner boosts productivity and quality

A MOWER with solid build quality was the biggest appeal behind Lely's Splendimo mower conditioner for Te Awamutu contractor Antony Metcalfe. As a partner in M & B Contracting with Werner Betschart, he runs a busy operation with six men in the field over the peak time. Much of his work is spent keeping things ticking over there, as well as keeping an eye on a large dairy operation. Antony needed equipment that was simple to operate by any of his staff, robust and productive.

''A front and rear mounted 3.2 metre combination was going to be the way to go to really get our productivity up,'' he says. However it had to be a combination that could handle Kiwi pasture and paddocks, not always the most forgiving on European designed gear.

''There has been a lot of input from the company including visits down to New Zealand to come up with a mower that really is capable of handling those conditions, and this is proof that it can be done,'' he says.
This is the company's first season operating the Lely Splendimo as a front and rear mounted 3.2 metre mower-conditioner and several features mean he would not look back.

''The mower set up is such that there are no gears and only one hexagonal shaft running the length of the mower.'' He attributes Werner's astute mechanical knowledge being one of the big factors in deciding on the Splendimo.

''He realised just this has meant that if you have any breakages there they don't compound right through the mower, it is just one unit you have to change, not all the gears which is time consuming and costly. So far though, we have not had any problems.''

The hydraulic dampener on the rear Splendimo mower is also a major feature. With its variable dampening ability, Antony says the system gives the mower plenty of adjustablility, depending on the terrain.
''If it is looking like a rougher job you can turn the dampener down, easing the impact across the machine and the tractor.''

Plastic conditioning tines have proved almost unbreakable, and offer a good level of grass wilt without over bruising.
''Certainly in the colder wetter weather you get in early spring, we see a far improved drying process. This makes it excellent for September and early October silage.''

He could not have picked a better year to benefit from the Splendimo's conditioning ability. The Waikato started off with a boomer spring in September, offering the opportunity for some farmers to get a crop in early, only to have conditions turn wet in October with twice the monthly average rainfall.

Close coupling of the front mower to the tractor means there is less overlap between front and rear mowers, due to less lateral movement when steering around a corner.

Coupled to a New Holland TVT 190, Antony says productivity is excellent, with one driver capable of mowing and conditioning 40 hectares in an eight hour shift. Last season he only ran a rear unit, so the combination has effectively doubled the productivity of his operator and tractor, for minimal increase in fuel consumption.

The savings carry through to the final stage of harvest with the New Holland self-propelled harvester the company uses. By increasing the output of the tractor mowing unit, there is no down time for the harvester waiting for the mower to get ahead. This has proved vital this season when the window for mowing and harvesting has been so limited due to poor and variable weather.

''You have to keep that harvester on the go, they are not cheap, and you simply have to have them harvesting plenty of grass before you switch them over to maize later in the season.'

This season he expects the mower- conditioner combination to do over 2000 hectares and given the high build quality he is confident of getting at least three seasons out of the gear.

''Even after that we would probably keep using it on our dairy unit,'' he says.