IAgrE present awards at LAMMA

This year the Institution of Agricultural Engineers presented three awards at LAMMA 2011.

LAMMA was the platform for the Institution to launch its new annual Safety Award.  Promoting the importance of safety issues, the award has been established to encourage and recognise innovation in safe design or operation of equipment or processes by students studying agricultural engineering or subjects related to the application of engineering and technology to the land based sector.

T J Slack from the Institute of Technology, Tralee, Ireland is the first student to receive this award and it was presented to him by Alan Plom, IAgrE council member and head of the  Health and Safety Executives Agriculture Safety Section.

TJs project was the design of a universal bale handler for large square or round bales.

The judging panel were impressed by TJs project approach to increasing safety when handling heavy bales.  He used a sound, quantified risk assessment based approach to the project, undertaking local market research, investigating accident history and taking into accounts comments made from users of conventional handlers.   He then applied the principles of safe design  said Alan.

Another student from the Institute of Technology, Tralee,  Patrick McInerney, received the Johnson New Holland Trophy award.  This award encourages and recognises innovation by students of agricultural engineering or subjects related to the application of engineering to the landbased sector.

Patricks project designed a hydraulic mixer attachment for a mini digger, capable of emptying content at high or low positions with a mixer frame that fits securely onto the quick hitch of the digger.  Inexpensive to run with little maintenance, the IAgrE awards panel praised the idea as original and innovative and one that would be relatively simple to put into production.

The winner of IAgrEs prestigious Ivel Award for a product or innovation with the most positive impact on the environment went to AGCOs MF 9280 DELTA hybrid combine harvester.   The IAgrE judges commented they felt that this years entries were stronger than in previous years, possibly suggesting that many agricultural machinery and equipment manufacturers were seriously interested in developing products which are more environmentally friendly.

The judges also concluded that the clean exhaust emissions and reduced fuel consumption were major considerations in their decision making and these benefits resulted from not only engine technology but also the design of the threshing and separation area which keeps the crop flowing well throughout the machine.  The award was presented to  AGCOs sales support specialist harvesting Alan Haines,  by Sarah Barnett of the University of Lincoln.

Further guidance on the safe design of agricultural machinery is available on HSEs website at:  http://www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/topics/machinery/index.htm

1. IAgrE is the professional body for scientists, technologists, engineers, academics, managers and students working in the landbased sector and has an international membership base.

2. As a licensed body of the Engineering Council (UK) and a founding Constituent Body of The Society for the Environment, IAgrE registers suitably experienced professionals as Chartered Engineers, Chartered Environmentalists, Incorporated Engineers and Engineering Technicians.

3. This is the third year of the Ivel award.   In 1902 Dan Albone, a Bedfordshire inventor, designed and patented the first practical and successful light internal combustion engine agricultural tractor setting up Ivel Agricultural Motors Ltd in Biggleswade in 1903.  This set in motion a revolution in mechanical farming. He was a decade ahead of Henry Ford and Harry Ferguson.  The IAgrE awards committee decided it would be appropriate for the Institution to celebrate the name of Dan Albone and the memory of the Ivel tractor by making an annual award using the Ivel name.