Over the past few years, Volvo Penta has become a more well-known name in the agriculture segment, winning numerous customers that produce machines for a variety of applications. Already installed in sprayers, beet harvesters, irrigation pumps and mixer feeders, Volvo Penta engines are now powering potato harvesters made by 165-year-old Belgian manufacturer AVR. Volvo Penta provides Tier 4 Final/Stage IV D13 engines for the company’s 23.5-ton self-propelled four-row Puma 3 bunker harvester, which is now available.
Prior to the enactment of Tier 4 Final/Stage IV legislation, AVR evaluated four premium engine brands, including the one it had used in its harvesters for Stage IIIA. But AVR was in the market for a compact system that would easily fit inside its machines, and Volvo Penta’s competitors, which use a diesel particulate filter (DPF) and/or a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) to achieve Stage IV compliance, didn’t suit the application. Volvo Penta uses only selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology to reach Stage IV — a far more straightforward, easy to install, compact system.
“Compared to the other engines we looked at, Volvo Penta was the easiest to install — it’s plug and play,” says Steven Paesschesoone, R&D Director at AVR. “But it’s also the simplest system and takes up the least space. Size and simplicity were our greatest concerns, and Volvo Penta met our needs. Fuel consumption, noise level and power were also significantly improved over the previous engine.”
“The integration of our system into the potato harvester went very smoothly, thanks to the professionalism of the AVR team,” says Rogier Morang, Volvo Penta Benelux Account Manager. “Volvo Penta’s excellent parts availability enabled AVR to reduce their service parts stock. This, in combination with our 24/7 Action Service support, will secure maximum uptime for AVR’s customers.”
Three prototypes went for testing last autumn, one of which is currently in use and logging excellent fuel consumption. More machines, destined for European markets, will be produced and sold this year.