Milwaukee, WI (March 2, 2021) - The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) and the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) presented the fourth-annual Davidson Prize to the top three innovative products, selected from the AE50 honorees on March 2 during the virtual special edition of Commodity Classic.

Winning entries included:

  • Purdue University / LeafSpec, LLC for the LeafSpec a portable hyperspectral corn leaf imager.
  • Haber Technologies, Inc for the DRI-Stack a grain drying and aeration system.
  • AGCO Corporation for the 9350 DynaFlex® Draper Header with AutoDock™ a 50-foot flexible header with automatic system for attaching all mechanical, electrical and hydraulic connections of the header to the Fendt IDEAL combine.

“These three products deliver on solutions that truly represent the spirit of J.B. Davidson and the innovative legacy of agriculture,” said Curt Blades, senior vice president of Agriculture for AEM. “I continue to be amazed about the advancement of ag engineering and the positive impacts it continues to have on farmers’ ability to work more efficiently.”

The Davidson Prize was designed to celebrate breakthrough innovations in areas of agricultural, food and biological systems engineering.

“ASABE and AEM came together to create a new award to celebrate innovation in agriculture and bring additional recognition to those who embody the spirit of J.B. Davidson,” said Darrin Drollinger, executive director at ASABE. “The products named as 2021 winners of the Davidson Prize continue to represent the diversity of agricultural engineering, as well as the variety of companies that bring advanced technology and exciting improvements to the marketplace.

“I believe J.B. Davidson would be amazed at how advanced farm equipment has become,” continued Drollinger.

The Davidson Prize is named for J.B. Davidson, the father of modern agricultural engineering. It gives a nod to the storied past of agricultural engineering and pays homage to those engineers, like J.B. Davidson, who aspire to find a better way. Winners were selected from the AE50 honorees, announced at the Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference in February.

AGCO’s 9350 DynaFlex® Draper Header with AutoDock™ Header Docking System Wins 2021 Davidson Prize

Autonomous technology saves time, eliminates errors, and improves farming performance by allowing operators to connect and disconnect header without leaving the cab.

Duluth, GA (March 2, 2021) – AGCO Corporation (NYSE: AGCO), a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of agricultural machinery and solutions, today announced that its 9350 DynaFlex® draper header with AutoDock™ header docking system for Fendt® IDEAL® combines has been awarded the prestigious 2021 Davidson Prize for agricultural engineering excellence.

“The Davidson is among agriculture’s highest engineering honors, and AGCO is immensely proud of this recognition from ASABE and AEM,” said Kevin Forth, AGCO senior tactical marketing manager. “The Dynaflex with AutoDock is a perfect example of AGCO’s intentional development of smart solutions that are designed from the ground up with farmers’ needs in mind.”

The 9350 DynaFlex draper header with AutoDock™ header docking system is a 50-foot flexible header with the industry’s first automatic system for efficiently attaching all mechanical, electrical and hydraulic connections of the header to the Fendt IDEAL combine. AutoDock allows operators to connect and disconnect the header without leaving the cab of the combine, a necessary first step on the way to future total automation of the harvesting process.

The Davidson Prize is awarded by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) and the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) to their three top-scoring AE50 winners that represents the best of each year’s new products. The DynaFlex, along with seven other AGCO products, was awarded an AE50 award in November 2020.

“AGCO’s DynaFlex Header with AutoDock represents the diversity of agricultural engineering that continues to bring advanced technology and exciting improvements to the marketplace. J.B. Davidson would be amazed at how advanced farm equipment has become,” said Darrin Drollinger, executive director at ASABE.

“This is AGCO’s first Davidson Prize and we’re very proud of the honor,” said Barry O’Shea, AGCO vice president, product line leader, upon accepting the award on behalf of AGCO. “It’s the result of a tremendous amount of work by many dedicated people at AGCO, but it began with input from our farmer-customers and we’re very happy to provide them with a solution that makes their jobs easier and more productive.”

Consistent with AGCO’s deep focus on the farmer, the AutoDock was inspired by voice-of-customer surveys and interviews designed to uncover specific customer needs and develop solutions that address them. AutoDock was developed to reduce the time farmers spend hooking up and disconnecting their headers, which the new product now handles in five seconds. The system also recognizes the specifications of the header and can automatically configure combine settings, such as header dimensions and sensitivity settings for header height control. Safety features provided by the system’s autonomous capabilities mean that operators can configure the header without climbing in and out of the cab, docking and undocking may be performed without assistance, and driveline and hydraulic connections are accomplished automatically. These advantages reduce time-consuming chores, eliminate errors, and improve farming performance.

“We’re excited about the advancement of ag engineering and the positive impacts it has on farmers’ ability to work more efficiently,” said Curt Blades, senior vice president of Agriculture for AEM.

The 9350 DynaFlex draper header with AutoDock header docking system is compatible with AGCO’s Fendt IDEAL combine. More information regarding the Fendt IDEAL combine and the DynaFlex draper header with AutoDock may be found at fendt.com/us/combines/ideal-highlights.

About AGCO: AGCO (NYSE:AGCO) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of agricultural solutions and delivers high-tech solutions for farmers feeding the world through its full line of equipment and related services. AGCO products are sold through five core brands, Challenger®, Fendt®, GSI®, Massey Ferguson® and Valtra®, supported by Fuse® smart farming solutions. Founded in 1990 and headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, USA, AGCO had net sales of $9.1 billion in 2020. For more information, visit https://www.AGCOcorp.com. For company news, information and events, please follow us on Twitter: @AGCOCorp. For financial news on Twitter, please follow the hashtag #AGCOIR.

About the Association of Equipment Manufacturers - AEM is the Milwaukee-based international trade group representing the off-road equipment manufacturing industry, with more than 950 companies and more than 200 product lines in the agriculture and construction-related sectors worldwide.

About the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers - ASABE is an international scientific and educational organization dedicated to the advancement of engineering applicable to agricultural, food, and biological systems.