Thinking Outside the Circle, Part 1 | by John Kastl

Many growers today are asking how they can become more efficient within their operation. With lower crop prices this year, that question is more important than ever. As many of you know, center pivot irrigation is a great way to increase your yields and ensure a good crop year in and year out, without depending on Mother Nature to provide the right amount of moisture at the right times. But for growers already taking advantage of center pivot irrigation, are there additional ways to become more efficient?

Fortunately, Valley_® offers a number of products growers can use to irrigate additional acres on fields they already own. Today, let’s take a look at the Bender30™, Bender160™, and DropSpan™ to see how they can help you increase the productivity of your operation.

Valley Bender products allow a center pivot to “bend” at any drive unit on the pivot, allowing the machine to wrap around in-field obstacles. For example, if you have a feed yard or farmstead in the middle of the field, a Bender will allow your center pivot to wrap around the obstacle and irrigate those acres behind the obstacle.

Bender160

Valley Benders include an exclusive Speed-Up Timer. This is important because your sprinkler package is designed to provide maximum uniformity in non-bending or “straight machine” mode. When the machine is bending, the bending spans are covering less area, increasing water application depth. The Speed-Up timer minimizes this effect by increasing the speed of the machine while it’s bending. Some growers prefer to shut off the sprinklers on the stopped spans. Your dealer can design a custom shutoff package for the Bender on your machine.

Of course, Valley Benders operate automatically so you don’t have to spend time monitoring your machine’s operation.

The Valley Bender30 can bend the machine up to 30 degrees in either or both directions, allowing you to pick up as many as 6 acres per side. The Bender30 is simply a special tower box that can be easily retrofitted onto any Valley 8000 or 7000 series drive unit. It’s also available on PolySpan^® machines, so even if you have corrosive water, you can take advantage of the benefits.

The Valley Bender160 allows your machine up to 160 degrees in either or both directions for up to 32 additional acres per side. Unlike others, the Bender160 uses a toothed belt during bending to constantly monitor the bending angle. This ensures the machine doesn’t over-bend. It also allows you to control your end gun during bending with two end gun cams built into the Bender160 tower box.

DropSpan

Maybe you have a rectangular field, a small area at the edge of the field you just can’t reach with an end gun, or just some grain bins near the edge of the field. The Valley DropSpan offers an excellent solution for those situations. 

The DropSpan is designed to “drop off” one or more spans from the end of the machine, allowing you to irrigate behind obstacles at the edge of the field. While you do have to manually drop the spans, the process only takes 15 minutes and doesn’t require any special tools or equipment. The DropSpan is designed to automatically re-align with the dropped spans, making it very easy to re-attach them.

Read "Thinking Outside the Circle, Part 2" to find out what Valley Corner options can do for you.

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John Kastl Product Manager - Equipment John joined the Valley Irrigation Engineering Department in 2000 after having spent 11 years at General Electric Aircraft Engines. Today, he manages the equipment products for Valley (center pivots, corners, and gearbox, to name a few), helping develop the next generation of Valley Irrigation machines. John enjoys photography, home renovation, and travel. On his third birthday, John watched the first moon landing!

Need More Irrigated Acres? You Can Irrigate More Land to Increase Yields!

Originally published in Spring 2013 edition of PivotPoint.

The value of farmland in the Corn Belt rose 13 percent for the year ending October 1, 2012, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago survey₁, as commodity prices rose to record and near-record highs. This environment makes it more important than ever to make the most of cropland to get the highest possible yield. Valley_® continues to respond to this need with products to help growers accomplish just that.

"We recently did a study and found that growers can increase their profits by at least $600 per acre on corn in Nebraska, just by irrigating more of the land they already have,” says John Kastl, Valley Product Manager. “That’s why we offer Bender, DropSpan™, and corner products.”

Bender30

For a low investment, growers can gain up to six acres in each direction. The Bender30 can be placed on any drive unit, providing the ability to bend around trees, feed lots, roads, wells, or other obstacles. If the Bender30 adds just 3.5 irrigated acres, it will pay for itself in one year.

• Available with PolySpan^®, for use with corrosive water
• Bends up to 30 degrees in either or both directions
• Uses existing structural components, so it’s easy to retrofit with no structural change required
• Completely automatic, no operator input required

Bender160

As the name indicates, the Bender160 can bend your machine up to 160 degrees, allowing irrigation around large obstacles, like houses, grain bins and barns. Exclusive to Valley, the Bender towerbox controls the end guns and allows the machine to always know the bending angle. It takes only an additional nine irrigated acres for a one-year payback – and the Bender160 can irrigate up to 32 additional acres.

• Bends up to 160 degrees in either or both directions, in forward and reverse
• Uses custom structural components
• Provides integrated end gun and auxiliary controls for bending mode

Valley Corner

The Valley Corner is the original corner machine, introduced in 1974. It is the simpler, more mechanical corner, efficiently and economically irrigating the corners of square, rectangular, or odd-shaped fields.

• Low-profile track and roller joint connects the corner arm to the machine
• Field-proven, rugged structure handles tough field conditions
• Sprinkler sequencing is based on corner angle and is controlled with a simple cam stack and microswitches
• Available with GPS Guidance

Valley Precision Corner^®

The Valley Precision Corner is the leading corner in the industry. It has variable drives for smooth operation, more accurate water application, and efficient use of electricity.

• Water transfer connection and hose eliminates pressure losses from multiple 90 degree bends
• Industry leading 8000 series span and wide drive unit wheelbase for the toughest field conditions
• Available with GPS Guidance
• Angle sensor and computerized sequencing assures water uniformity

DropSpan

With DropSpan, growers can drop the outer spans, so the rest of the machine can irrigate acres behind barriers. At the edges of the field, DropSpan allows growers to drop as many spans as necessary, and then reattach them as the machine returns.

• One person can attach or drop spans in only 15 minutes – with no tools!
• Winch and support leg system is used to easily drop and reattach outer spans
• Simple electrical connector manages span cable and control logic, so no rewiring is necessary
• Optional end gun can be mounted at the DropSpan drive unit

For more information on the Valley Bender30, Bender160, Valley Corner, Precision Corner, and DropSpan options, visit www.ValleyIrrigation.com. Or, if you have questions or comments, please use the Comments box below!

1 What happens next to farmland prices? Randall Hertz, president, Hertz Real Estate Services, January 10, 2013, http://www.agprofessional.com/agprofessional-magazine/What-happens-next-to-farmland-prices-186338041.html.