Event

It all starts with the soil, says Shaktiman.

Rajkot (Gujarat, India), 03 September 2024 – A thorough understanding of soil structure should be the most important learning for an agricultural engineer in the 21st century, claimed India’s largest manufacturer of agricultural equipment as it welcomed the first entrants to its purpose-built training academy.

Established to emphasize the importance of skill development, Shaktiman’s L.S. Gohil Learning Academy formally threw open its doors last month to its first class of Graduate Engineering Trainees (GETs).

“An agricultural engineer provides farmers with solutions,” says [INSERT NAME AND TITLE], “but if we – as a company – are going to succeed in our ambition to deliver the most technologically advanced agricultural implements, then our engineers must first understand why the engineering decisions they make will be influenced by the need to protect and nurture our soils.

“Soil is the single most important resource for agriculture. Without a thorough understanding of soil, we can’t expect our engineers to develop the technological breakthroughs that will keep agriculture productive yet sustainable.”

Twenty GETs attended the inaugural ANKUR Training Program, held between Aug 6 and Aug 31, 2024. In addition to soil structure, participants were also formally inducted into the Shaktiman company, with modules on company history, progress and future goals.

Making use of the purpose-built facilities of the Academy, the 20 new engineers also took part in a comprehensive program of product training and got to grips with the full range of Shaktiman implements and machines.

“This kind of learning opportunity is vital if we’re to achieve Shaktiman’s long-term objectives,” says [NAME]. “Of course it’s important for us as a company, but we believe it’s essential for the whole industry to improve its skill development and knowledge mobilization.

“Agriculture desperately needs innovation and advancement. When people are encouraged, through the acquisition of new skills and personal development, to think differently about the solutions they’re tackling – that’s when we can achieve great things.”

Following the three-week training program, graduates were formally allocated to their company departments. In post, they’ll continue to benefit from the Learning Academy with further personal and performance development as they progress through their careers with Shaktiman.

“The Academy’s vision is ‘Leading Transformation through Learning and Development’,” [NAME] emphasizes. “It’s there to meet the needs of all stakeholders as we strive to provide the technological and engineering advances that agriculture demands.

“As well as employees, that will also include suppliers, vendors and distributors.”

Notes to editors:
Founded in 1997 by the late Shri Ladhubhai S.Gohil, Shaktiman (Tirth Agro Technology Private Limited) started out with a core vision: to mechanize Indian agriculture entirely. Today, its success in its home market has prompted a shift in that vision: to be recognized as a global, leading farm mechanization solution provider to create sustainable value for all its stakeholders in a responsible manner.

Shaktiman prides itself on using high-quality raw materials and sustainable engineering designs to produce innovative agricultural machinery and equipment that meet international standards. The company has a diverse product portfolio, continuously expanding to cover all aspects of the crop cycle. This includes the introduction of advanced products like the Big Sugarcane Harvester, Pneumatic Planters, Subsoilers, Mini and Big Round Balers, Banana Mulchers, Armed Flail Mowers, and joint venture products focused on Root Crop Solutions, such as Rotary Tillers, Potato Planters, and Potato Harvesters.

Shaktiman emphasizes sustainable growth and aims to be a driving force behind farm mechanization while ensuring environmental and economic sustainability. To achieve this, it is committed to enabling farmers to access top-quality products, bringing prosperity through technologically superior solutions.

India’s largest manufacturer of agricultural machinery celebrates its grand EIMA presence by showcasing a slew of new models aimed squarely at Europe’s farmers.

Shaktiman says it’s introducing new technologies and innovations to European agriculture, ensuring that all farmers worldwide can benefit in the same way as Europe’s farms, regardless of their scale.

“It’s all about cutting-edge technology, increased efficiency and enhanced durability,” says Hasmukh Gohil, Managing Director at Shaktiman. “These are benefits that apply to all farmers.

Shaktiman offers fully featured farming solutions as a valuable choice customized to crops and soils.”

The company, which was founded in 1997, has grown from its inception as a manufacturer of rotary tillers to today’s engineering and technology-led farm mechanization solution provider, focused on the environmental and economic sustainability of its customers.

“In today’s agricultural climate, it’s possible to have both, environmental and economic sustainability, which is why we’ve focused on delivering top-quality innovative products that can help farmers to prosper,” states Mr. Gohil.

Among the new Shaktiman products making their debut at EIMA in 2024 are a variable chamber round baler, a vertical feed mixer, and a range of flail mowers. A twin-rotor hay rake tops off the product launches.

“The new variable chamber round baler gives hay farmers the opportunity to invest in a modern machine, with a highly appealing feature set including minimal maintenance requirements and a low total cost of ownership (TCO),” points out Mr. Gohil.

“And despite having all the features, farmers would expect from a larger machine offered by one of the more established manufacturers, such as full hydraulic control and automatic lubrication, the baler has a tractor power requirement of just 55HP.”

It’s a similar story for the flail mowers, Mr. Gohil says, with the smallest model – the AFM Light Duty – needing just 40HP to operate its 1.5m working width and hydraulic arm. Yet at the top of the range is a 6m folding model, still with a manageable power requirement of 180HP.

But it’s the feed mixer that Shaktiman sees as being the most emblematic of its mission to develop affordable, accessible labor-saving, ‘safety first’ solutions that are still to trickle down to many smaller enterprises in Europe.

“A fully electronic weigh scale and a hydraulic feeding gate brings complete ease of operation to the machine,” he says, “while longevity and reliability are reassured by the presence of a heavy-duty planetary gearbox that’s perfectly suited to the machine’s 2.5 cubic meter capacity.”

Last but not least, Shaktiman is presenting their flagship product the “Twin Rotor Hay Rake”, an equipment used to collect hay, such as alfalfa, grass, or other types of grass. Thanks to the twin rotor technology, this machine provides higher efficiency and covers 6 meters working width.

This enhances productivity for all hay farmers. With the addition of this new machine, Shaktiman approaches towards its objective of completion of hay mechanization solutions.

With EIMA one of the largest and most influential exhibitions in the agricultural machinery calendar, Mr. Gohil says he and colleagues are looking forward to engaging with potential customers and partners to showcase the unique characteristics of the Shaktiman approach.

“What you see on the stand this year is only the beginning,” he enthuses. “We have an ambitious product development program that will see an ever more comprehensive range of farming solutions offered to Europe’s farmers.”

Don’t miss the chance to visit Shaktiman booth, located in Hall 28, Stand A1 and discover the new products.

India’s largest manufacturer of agricultural equipment will use this year’s EIMA International 2024 exhibition happening in Bologna, Italy to signal its commitment to the worldwide market and its support for farmers, with its unique machinery offering and new product launches.

Making full use of having its own stand at the exhibition for the first time, Shaktiman will showcase a wide range of the latest agricultural machines – including balers, mowers, feed mixers, and tillage equipment – to demonstrate the breadth of its portfolio and the quality of its comprehensive farming solutions for farmers.

“Shaktiman’s success in the domestic market, where we’ve worked hard to secure more than 50% of the share, is because we were farmers first and we understand the requirement of the farmers,” says Ashwin Gohil, chairman of Shaktiman.

“That put us in a position to understand the needs of the individual farmer and gave us the ability to develop technologically advanced machinery solutions that are efficient, viable and highly effective.”

Shaktiman says the success of the strategy is clear: the company has launched several new products in the last five years, and its ambitious product development pipeline now includes a wide range of innovative solutions for the agricultural sector.

Among the new products making their debut at EIMA exhibition are the Variable chamber round baler and a Twin-rotor hay rake. Both are aimed at farmers looking to benefit from modern technologies in the European market as well as in other countries.

The Vertical feed mixer, another EIMA launch, is similarly designed. Supporting all the features of larger machines, such as a fully electronic weigh scale, a hydraulic feeding gate, and a heavy-duty planetary gearbox, the Shaktiman Vertical feed mixer has a capacity of 2.5 cubic meters.

“Smaller-scale farmers are vital to European economic, environmental and social cohesion,” says Mr. Gohil. “All too often they’re the ones who ‘miss out’ on new technologies, yet they’re the ones who can – in many ways – benefit most from machinery that promises labor savings, increases in efficiency, or much-needed improvements in safety.

“The Vertical feed mixer is a prime example of how we can bring technological advances to trickle down to provide solutions that benefit everyone,” enthuses Mr. Gohil.

Mr. Gohil says that the other new products include a 6-meters-wide folding flail mower and arm-flail mowers, available in both light- and heavy-duty versions. All 14 products that Shaktiman is bringing to EIMA have been chosen not only because they characterize the different application areas in which it operates, but also because they’re key products for European farmers and their particular operations.

“EIMA is one of the largest and most influential exhibitions in the agricultural machinery calendar. We’re looking forward to engaging with potential customers and partners.”

The Shaktiman stand is located in Hall 28, Stand A1. Visitors to the stand will have the opportunity to take away attractive merchandise and gifts.