AGCO Expands Support of ISU Students and Programs
This AGCO Challenger tractor, shown near the Iowa State Agricultural Engineering and Agronomy Research Farm, will serve as an educational tool for ISU students studying agricultural machinery and precision agriculture technology.
AGCO Corp. recently expanded its support of the Iowa State University agricultural and biosystems engineering program through the loan of an MT765C tractor for use in classroom, research and extension activities.
This equipment support expands the growing relationship between AGCO and ISU, which includes support for five competitive undergraduate scholarships as well as research support for several graduate students.
“The growth in AGCO support over the past few years has made a tremendous impact on our students. The AGCO scholarships not only offer financial support to our undergraduate students, but they also provide an opportunity for our students to learn about career opportunities that exist within AGCO,” said Ramesh Kanwar, department chair.
Support for graduate research provides funding for graduate students to pursue advanced degrees and for AGCO to benefit from the expertise within the advanced machinery engineering group at ISU according to Brian Steward, associate professor in agricultural and biosystems engineering. “Today’s agricultural vehicles are a blend of mechanical, hydraulic and electronic systems. Our graduate students perform research and learn how to interact with these highly integrated systems. Such research results in next generation technologies to improve agricultural productivity and sustainability,” he said.
The MT765C features an engine producing 320 horsepower, a one-touch management system for operator functions and an electronic system that allows the tractor to communicate with a variety of standardized implements. The tractor will provide a technology platform for several courses including auto-steering and precision agriculture activities within the agricultural systems technology program and the electronic integration courses offered to agricultural engineering students.
The MT765C will also help support the production scale cellulosic biomass feedstock collection work that ISU ag engineers conduct at the ISU BioCentury Research Farm.
In addition, AGCO supports several senior design projects and internship opportunities for ISU students. “These opportunities allow students to improve their organization and project management skills. We allow all our interns to work hand-in-hand with our senior engineers on real-life problem-solving assignments,” said Randy Kremmin, chief engineer at AGCO-Jackson.
From AGCO’s perspective the partnership with ISU is key to enhance the visibility of AGCO to ISU students. “Recruiting the next generation of engineers is critical to the growth and success of AGCO. We look to Iowa State University to provide high quality, creative and innovative engineers who can play an immediate role in advancing our product lines. By providing the MT765C, these young engineers will have a better perspective on the level of technology integrated into our products,” said Rich Hale, director of engineering, AGCO-Jackson.
About AGCO
AGCO, Your Agriculture Company, (NYSE: AGCO) was founded in 1990 and offers a full product line of tractors, combines, hay tools, sprayers, forage, tillage equipment, implements and related replacement parts. AGCO agricultural products are sold under the core brands of Challenger®, Fendt®, Massey Ferguson® and Valtra® and are distributed globally through more than 2,700 independent dealers and distributors, in more than 140 countries worldwide. AGCO is headquartered in Duluth, Ga. In 2009, AGCO had net sales of $6.6 billion. More at http://www.AGCOcorp.com/.