Movable field bins or “mother bins” are used in Australia to alleviate bottlenecks in grain movement off the field at harvest. Rather than waiting for a truck to arrive, a grain cart or combine can dump into the mother bin at the end of the field, and vice versa — a truck doesn’t have to wait for the grain cart if there’s enough grain for a load in the mother bin.
Several companies have pursued bringing the concept to North America, including Demco, who recently announced its taking orders for its 3,000 bushel Harvest Link for the 2016 harvest.
Demco’s unit (56′ long, 12′ wide and 12.5′ high) rests on a steel frame when in the field and is raised for transport. The 36′ auger and gates are operated from the tractor PTO and hydraulic system, with a joystick control in the cab giving the operator the ability to load a semi without moving it. The Harvest Link also features a scale system in which the weight to be loaded onto each truck can be programmed to avoid over-filling.
The company says the Harvest Link can also minimize truck traffic on fields, as the long auger can reach across a road ditch to fill trucks on the road.
What do you think? Would adding more grain storage capacity in-field make your harvest more efficient? Would you rather use a bigger (and more mobile) grain cart? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.
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