TEAM – How much energy is low energy?

The presentation of the TEAM tractor and other research machines at the Technical University Dresden was the conclusion of the joint project “TEAM”. The project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and organised by the city of Karlsruhe, aimed at developing technologies for energy-saving drives for mobile work machines (Technologien für energiesparende Antriebe mobiler Arbeitsmaschinen = TEAM), presented interesting and exciting results this month.

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“The cooperation of academia and industry in research work enables us to realise ideas and create innovations,” says Thiemo Buchner, Project Manager in Research & Advanced Engineering at Fendt, explaining the motivation behind TEAM.
In Dresden, the project partners demonstrated how efficient drive technology and intelligent operating strategies can effect consumption. Some 130 attendees from academia, industry and politics were on site to inform themselves about the research results. “The research findings. which we were able to obtain for us, serve as the basis for advanced engineering projects that are targeted at increasing the efficiency of tractors and the entire working process, for example ploughing,” adds the mechanical engineer.

For three years, engineers and skilled workers at Fendt were busy analysing, testing, evaluating, adapting, refining and retesting. The long series of trials included field tests, fleet measurements, parameter variations and sensitivity analyses with a fleet of five tractors from different power classes, which operated in farming enterprises in various locations throughout Europe. “The TEAM tractor, which is equipped with sophisticated measuring technology, enables us to follow the flow of energy down to the component level. This allows us to detect any available potential for increasing the energy efficiency of the different working processes. Then we can derive concrete measures to optimise them,” explains Buchner. “The further development of these approaches is the next goal towards creating innovative products and exclusive benefits for Fendt customers.”