An Improved System for Moving and Storing Small Rectangular Bales

Final Report for FNE03-478

Project Type: Farmer
Funds awarded in 2003: $9,949.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2004
Matching Non-Federal Funds: $5,000.00
Region: Northeast
State: New Jersey
Project Leader:
Richard McDermott
Neptune Farm Company
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Project Information

Summary:

Note to readers, attached is the complete final report for FNE03-478

The goal of this project was to construct a tool which could be used to reduce time, labor, and storage requirements in harvesting small rectangular hay bales. Dick designed the hay lifter and had it fabricated at a local steel fabrication company. Modifications of the original design were made to the lifter before taking it to the field for testing.

Upon testing in the field, the hay-lifter easily moved pallets of hay out of the field and backed them into a shed, taking about half the time that Dick would normally spend on the same operation with hay wagons. Dick calculated that adding a hay-lifter to mechanized harvest would save about six hours of farmer time per 500 bales of harvested hay. He feels that some value should also be assigned to the reduced risk of weather damage afforded by speedier transport out of the field and to better-quality storage. Dick believes the system is still slower than moving round bales, but it is also more flexible.

Dick created spreadsheets that compare six scenarios of moving hay and made scaled drawings of the hay-lifter for other farmers to examine. He also presented the system at a NOFA summer conference and has discussed the system with farmers on an informal basis.

Cooperators

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  • David Lee

Research

Participation Summary
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.