Bigger.Faster.Smarter?

Larger machines can boost productivity, but consider these factors first.

- Karen Jones

Farm equipment continues to grow in horsepower and physical size. Shorter windows to complete farmwork and the challenge of finding enough qualified operators make covering more acres in less time more important than ever.

2024 saw the introduction of the 830-hp John Deere 9RX, the Class 10+ Case IH AF11, and New Holland CR11 combines, and a range of other large implements, from planters to air seeders. But is bigger always better?

"It really depends on your operation and what fits best," said Blake Bullinger, senior marketing product specialist for Fendt. "If you're in Canada or out west, with wide-open spaces, your needs are going to be different than if you're out east, where you don't have rectangular fields. Maybe you have odd-shaped fields, with tight corners or the roads are more winding. A feedlot would be another setting where something more compact and maneuverable would provide greater benefits."

The Advantages of Bigger Equipment

The main benefit we're trying to unlock is efficiency how can I cover the most amount of ground in the shortest time?" said Michael Porter, large tractor and tillage marketing manager for back to John Deere. "It goes Mother Nature and the agronomic benefits that come with hitting prime seeding windows, or getting all the stalks ripped up in the fall before the ground freezes."

Smaller windows of time make every day matter when it comes to profitability, said Derek Reusser, tactical marketing manager for Massey Ferguson tractors.

"Our farmers have 12 suitable days or less every year to maximize their yield potential," he said. "We want to make sure we deliver that planter pass, tillage pass, fertilizer pass, at the right time."

David Brennan, planter marketing manager for Case IH, said he sees two ways to increase productivity: Get bigger, or get faster.