ALL THE McCORMICK POWER AT THE SERVICE OF SUSTAINABILITY
Table of contents:
Agriculture 4.0 and sustainability
In recent years, we all hear talking more and more about sustainable agriculture programmes, and rightly so. Are we sure we really know what this is about?
These programmes aim at satisfying the food needs of human beings (which has always been the goal of agriculture) without this penalising the needs of future generations.
Therefore, it is a new approach to an activity that has always seemed the most reluctant to change and the most bound to traditional methods and technologies of the past.
However, today it is increasingly clear that, if we want to achieve sustainability goals in agriculture, the latter must innovate, changing techniques and processes, embracing new technologies. Technological innovation, which in recent years is reaching unprecedented peaks, can easily (and with great results) be put at the service of traditionally “non-technological” activities, so as to make them more efficient and above all with a lower impact on the ecosystem and the environment.
We are hence talking about Agriculture 4.0, i.e. a series of new technologies, which have already been applied in other sectors, such as process digitalisation, the Internet of Things (IoT), geolocation and data sharing in the Cloud.
These are all innovations that McCormick decided long ago to install in its tractors to improve work in the fields and reduce the impact on our planet.
McCormick’s commitment to sustainable agriculture
McCormick takes ecological and ethical issues very seriously and wants to make a concrete contribution to achieving its goals.
This also comes from being part of a larger group, namely Argo Tractors, which for years has been investing resources in the research and development of products and manufacturing processes capable of having a reduced polluting impact and positive consequences on people’s lives.
In the production plants, for instance, tractors are manufactured with reduced waste production, in line with the required standards relating to emissions and low ecological impact. 52% of the waste produced re-enters the production cycle thanks to accurate waste separation, while 44% is treated and rendered inert, with zero environmental impact.
In addition, in machining, we have been using for more than 13 years a system named Water Wall for the recirculation of cooling lubricants. This saves up to 400,000 litres per year of oil-water mixture, while also reducing the use and disposal of the relevant filter cartridges.
McCormick technology for sustainability
Another tangible contribution McCormick wants to make to sustainable agriculture is found in the technological innovation embedded in its products.
McCormick Fleet and Remote Diagnostics Management, accessible from MyMcCormick, is a telematic system through which the entire fleet of tractors can be monitored: from geofencing to tillage efficiency, from monitoring speed, fuel and urea consumption to engine revs and productivity and yield calculations. In this way, consumption can be optimised and the carbon footprint of the work site can be reduced.
In addition, diagnostics enables the immediate identification of any problems so that they can be promptly solved, avoiding working with a tractor that is not at peak efficiency.
Another important productivity-boosting feature is Precision Steering Management (PSM), a satellite-assisted guidance system that saves up to 13% in diesel fuel, machine and fertiliser consumption costs by working without overlapping passes in the field. Furthermore, thanks to the ISObus protocol, implement management is simple and accurate via a touchscreen monitor that allows the implement to communicate with the tractor to ensure maximum efficiency at the work site at all times.
In short, Agriculture 4.0 is already a reality with McCormick!
Only One: one tractor, one mission
One Earth.
One ambition.
One spirit.
These concepts are very clear to McCormick, which makes Only One its philosophy in terms of social, environmental, economic and industrial sustainability. The aim is to improve the work of our customers and the environment in which we all live.
Together with you, we become creators and leading players of this change thanks to constant and intensive investments in technological innovation and in digitalisation. We firmly believe that technological innovation, connectivity and the Internet of Things are drivers of a positive evolution that can benefit everyone’s work.
McCormick tractors offer an unprecedented level of operating efficiency, thanks to specially developed digital technologies.
Monitoring crops and yields, verifying increased productivity, and achieving real cost, water and pesticide savings are just some of the many benefits to be gained.
McCormick, power and technology at the service of agriculture and the environment.