New Holland Agriculture unveiled two new prototype tractors (the T7 Methane Power Liquefied Natural Gas and the T4 Electric Power) and new autonomy features at the CNH Industrial Tech Day event, which was held in Phoenix, Arizona, on December 7th and 8th, 2022.
The two-day event was organized by CNH Industrial to demonstrate the progress the company has made in the area of Precision Technology. It provided investors, media and opinion leaders with the opportunity to discover more about the upcoming projects of CNH Industrial brands, including New Holland Agriculture.
New Holland Agriculture presented important advances in its long-standing commitment to sustainable agriculture, and in particular alternative fuel and electrification technologies. New Holland’s Road to Carbon Neutral Farming project aims to provide customers with machines running on non-diesel fuels while working on a wide-ranging approach to reducing the farming carbon footprint.
T7 Methane Power LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) prototype tractor
The world’s first LNG tractor unveiled at the event is a prototype developed to meet the increasing need for high horsepower machines that combine excellent performance with lower emissions and operating costs. With its LNG power solution, New Holland will more than double the autonomy of its current methane products while increasing overall farm sustainability. This is because using liquefied methane delivers four times as much fuel storage capacity when compared to using compressed gas (CNG). This greatly increases the tractor’s autonomy, even when performing power intensive applications. With a 270hp model, the T7 Methane Power LNG delivers the same power and torqueas the equivalent diesel tractor.
Carlo Lambro, Brand President New Holland Agriculture said: “This prototype shows the world that our commitment to sustainability is here to stay. We believe the best solution currently available on the market to lower emissions and costs is natural gas – especially biomethane. Farmers still need powerful tractors, this is why we are offering all the benefits of this solution to our customers on our high horsepower tractors above 200 hp. We also know that autonomy is very important for our customers: we have already improved it in our existing T6 Methane Power tractor, and we have further extended it with the new T7 Methane Power LNG. This premiere complements New Holland’s existing T6 Methane Power and CNH Industrial’s wider alternative power portfolio.”
The T7 Methane Power LNG features the patented active temperature-controlled fuel system. It incorporates a stainless-steel Cryogenic tank that is moulded to match its diesel counterpart, maximizing space and effectively storing liquified methane on board the tractor. The system has a self-supporting vacuum space that insulates the fuel within and reduces the tank’s thickness. Once out in the field, the tanks’ active temperature control ensures that the engine runs smoothly.
The T7 Methane Power LNG can be powered by Liquefied Biomethane sourced from livestock manure and slurry, meaning that it is even more sustainable. This solution perfectly integrates with the approach proposed by Bennamann, the UK-based start-up partnering with New Holland that focuses on innovation around the collection, processing and storage of fugitive methane with the aim of unlocking circular economy benefits for customers and delivering a local, clean energy revolution.
Bennamann’s approach can significantly reduce the carbon footprint of an average dairy farm as well as reducing the use of CO2 intensive chemical fertilizers, it displaces the use of fossil fuel in tractors, electricity generation and heat provision, and reduces the need for slurry spreading.
It also provides new opportunities and revenue streams to monetize or repurpose waste. These include: fuel production at a stable cost; sale of excess biomethane on the open market; generation of 100% natural fertilizer; and conversion of excess methane into electricity for export to a grid or local use. The opportunity for electricity generation is key – this can be used to run electric vehicles (future agricultural machines alongside existing cars and vans) as well as powering the farm, which in remote rural areas, with restricted electric power, could unlock future expansion.
Oscar Baroncelli, Head of Tractor and Telehandler Product Management New Holland Agriculture stated: “Sustainability is at the core of everything we do, and the new T7 Methane Power LNG tractor is our latest step towards a truly energy independent farming future. The collaboration with Bennamann has brought many important innovations to our products, such as their patented active temperature-controlled fuel system. We are aligned in our approach to the circular economy in farming and share our commitment to bringing our customers all its environmental, operational and financial benefits.”
The prototype’s design features new generation styling combined with the classic New Holland brand aesthetics, with a new ‘Clean Blue’ colour, powerful LED taillights with incorporated signature leaf, a C-Pillar illuminated leaf, gloss black wheels and front fenders with custom Clean Blue accents. The cab’s full length skydome roof provides enhanced visibility and a greater sense of space.
The innovative SideWinder™ Ultra armrest, the new larger customisable IntelliView™ 12-inch touchscreen and the Unique CentreView™ fixed hub steering wheel mounted display provide excellent ergonomics and intuitive operation. The ergonomically shaped seats in leather and Alcantara with contrasting stripe and embroidered logo look sporty as well as being comfortable. The T7 Methane Power LNG also comes with New Holland’s advanced precision farming technology (PLM Intelligence) and PLM Connect uptime support.
T4 Electric Power
The second major innovation unveiled at the event is the industry’s first all-electric utility tractor prototype with autonomous features, the T4 Electric Power. This tractor, ideal for lower horsepower operations, marks an important milestone on New Holland’s path to electrification.
Carlo Lambro said: “The T4 Electric Power is the result of our extensive research and investment focused on electric solutions in agriculture, supported by CNH Industrial. With this new multipurpose tractor, we add an important piece of the puzzle to our full liner strategy, providing our customers with the ideal electric tractor for lower horsepower operations: a highly cost-effective, carbon neutral solution perfectly suited for mixed farms, livestock, municipality, orchard and specialty applications.”
Oscar Baroncelli added: “We are proud to present this first full electric tractor in the utility segment. We believe that this technology is ideal for lower horsepower machines such as this new T4 Electric Power. These alternative sources of energy are already here and very soon they will be available for the world’s farmers to buy, for a more sustainable future. The T4 Electric Power joins the New Holland T7 Methane Power LNG and T6 Methane Power tractors for a wider alternative source portfolio.”
The T4 Electric Power was developed by CNH Industrial’s team of experts in the USA (Burr Ridge, Detroit) and Italy (Modena) with the collaboration of Monarch Tractor – an electrified agriculture innovator based in California, USA. The project prioritized two key features: runtime of the battery and performance, while maintaining a sustainable approach that would reduce the machine’s emissions, noise levels and its overall environmental impact.
The tractor’s battery offers excellent runtime, up to one full day of use, and it can be recharged in just one hour with fast charging systems. The machine can also be used as a backup power source for other devices and machines, or to provide energy for implements.
The noise level has been reduced by up to 90% and vibration has also been substantially dampened. The T4 Electric Power meets the stringent noise regulations set out by municipalities, allows for night-time operation, and improves livestock’s wellbeing, especially when working inside covered areas, such as a barn.
The new T4 Electric Power delivers excellent performance with great control and responsiveness compared to a diesel machine, together with significant operating and maintenance cost savings, and a carbon neutral footprint. During tests, the T4 Electric Power showed great responsiveness, with efficient performance, great traction control plus smoother shuttling and gear shifts, making it a pleasure to drive. Tests also showed a reduction in operating costs by up to 90%, as well as eliminating diesel fuel costs and associated maintenance fees.
Precision intelligence and the road to autonomy
The two prototypes presented at the Tech Day are equipped with the latest precision technology features. The T7 Methane Power LNG inherits the best features from New Holland’s PLM Intelligence suite of solutions, which integrates digital technologies to deliver a smart and connected agriculture, enabling customers to maximise their machine’s productivity while optimising yield and input costs. In particular, PLM intelligence enables farmers to easily command cutting-edge guidance programs, analyze field data, and remain wirelessly connected with both the field and key locations across the farm thanks to the MyPLM Connect Platform and advanced support initiatives.
The T4 Electric Power marks an advance towards autonomous driving with automated features guided by sensors and cameras on the tractor that allow operators to synchronize multiple machines, detect and avoid obstacles, and check the status of processes.
Shadow Follow Me mode enables the operator to synchronize machines to work together. A 360-degree perception system detects and avoids obstacles. Telematics and auto guidance keep all functions in check for operators. Fleet Management allows the farm manager to assign tasks to each machine. Implement recognition ensures the tractor seamlessly links up with the required attachment.
Offboard digital services enable farmers to operate the tractor from anywhere, at any time, and monitor its performance and battery level remotely.
During the two-day event, New Holland also displayed important automation technologies currently available in its product range, such as the New Holland Baler Automation System on the BigBaler High Density, winner of an Agritechnica 2022 Silver Medal. The technology combines automatic swath guidance with automatic speed control and automatic bale weight control, increasing productivity with more bales per day and greater bale quality, with benefits also in the tractor’s fuel consumption and improved operator’s comfort.
As for combines automation solutions, New Holland displayed the IntelliSense™ automation system available on the CR Revelation combine. The New Holland IntelliSense system selects the best action out of 280 million possibilities to optimize the harvest – every 20 seconds. It makes pre-emptive adjustments, it maximises throughput, minimises losses and damaged grain through precise measurements of the load. Based on this data, the system can constantly adapt Twin Rotor™ speed and vane angle, fan speed and the opening of the pre-sieve and the upper and lower sieves to automatically deliver the desired result.
The Raven brands is significantly accelerating the progress on the road to autonomy in New Holland’s overall offering. Earlier this year New Holland Agriculture launched the new line-up of Guardian front boom sprayers integrating advanced precision technologies from Raven. These technologies enhance New Holland’s high horsepower and self-propelled sprayers’ efficiency in and out of the field while covering more acres per hour in the field.
Carlo Lambro said: “New Holland’s developments presented at Tech Day are very much in the name of innovation while maintaining a sustainable approach in agriculture. We have been leading the way in sustainability since we established our Clean Energy Leader Strategy in 2006, committing to renewable fuels and emissions reduction systems. We launched the world’s first mass-produced methane fuelled tractor, the T6 Methane Power, and recently unveiled the upgraded version with DCT transmission. We believe that investments in research and industry partnerships are the way to provide our customers the tools to optimize their work, enabling them to be more efficient, more in control and more able to make sustainable choices. What we showed at the Tech Day event is the tangible outcome of our approach to Carbon Neutral Farming.”
