Bourgault’s 3420 PHD Paralink Hoe Drill has been crowned the Henty Machine of the Year.
With a width of 24m, the Canadian-built drill’s ability to fold to a 5.4m transport width in 3.5 minutes impressed the judges, ultimately giving the Paralink the edge over its competitors.
The Henty Machinery Field Days held this week was the 3420’s first public display after it was debuted to Australian dealers at Howlong in June.
A total of 18 machines were in the running for the ‘farmers choice’ Machine of the Year prize, which is presented to the most outstanding new piece of agricultural machinery exhibited at the field days.
Bourgault NSW territory manager Jonathon McKenzie says there are few manufacturers who can offer drills similar to the 3420 PHD Paralink.
“It takes (other drills) hours to get them ready for transport whereas the 3420 can be folded and unfolded in less than four minutes,” McKenzie says.
An independent judging panel of regional primary producers decided the winner from its judging criteria which includes the machine’s purpose and suitability, scope of application, construction (durability and design), ease of maintenance and service, ease of operation and adjustment, availability of parts and overall value for money.
Judge Mark Bowyer is impressed by the Paralink’s engineering and design.
“The folding mechanism was quite complex – for a big machine like that it takes a lot of engineering,” Bowyer says.
“There has been several prototypes tested in Canada – we were impressed with the overall quality of the machine,” Bowyer adds. “For a machine that is 80 foot (24m) wide, it folds up quite narrow and the rear wheels have steering allowing it to track along nicely on the turns.”
A Highly Commended award was given the Henty-unveiled Coolamon All Rounder multi-purpose chaser bin entered by Coolamon Chaser Bins’ Bruce and Heath Hutcheon.
In many cases the winning machines have gone on to become standard pieces of equipment on farms throughout Australia.
Last year’s winner was the impressive flexible sheep handling system, Back Up Charlie, by Urana farmers Charlie and Tana Webb.