TESTING OF IMPLEMENTS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26197, 6 July 1946, Page 9

TESTING OF IMPLEMENTS

LINCOLN COLLEGE PROPOSAL

The establishment of a station for the testing and development of agricultural implements and farming equipment is being considered by the Canterbury Agricultural College at Lincoln. It is thought that such an institution would do for primary industry what is already being done by the Dominion Laboratory'for secondary industries. The cost of the establishment is estimated at £IO,OOO. with annual operative costs amounting to about £4OOO.

A comprehensive report on the proposal has been presented to the Board of Governors by the college lecturer in engineering, and a sub-committee is making thorough investigations. It is stated that the testing could be carried out under various conditions either on the college farm or on selected farms, and reports would include detailed descriptions of performances of machines and suggestions for improvements where weaknesses, if any. were detected. The reports would be" similar in form to those issued by the National Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Great Britain. ■ Unofficial Tests In the past Lincoln College has carried out unofficial tests of farm machinery and implements for manufacturers and importers, and only recently it has been asked to lest two designs of side rakes manufactured in England with a view to similar machines being manufactured in New Zealand. Other suggested lines for testing and develoDment are: Header pick-up and threshing, harvesting by suction, mounted implement stackers, topdsessers. drills, combined roller and drill, ditch-digging and cleaning machines spraying machinery, heavy rollers. The director of Lincoln College, Professor E R. Hudson, has suggested that the testing of commercial machines might be made conditional on the reports being made public-If the manufacturer did not he—' dence in his machine he won .iave it tested. The aim of the j. .seel station should be to establish • - series of standard tests for New Zealand, as had been done, for instance, in the United States, acceptable to the whole trade.