Examples of Initiatives to Ensure Environment-friendliness
Initiatives to Ensure Environment-friendliness in Combine Harvesters
Combine harvesters are farming machinery to harvest crops such as rice or wheat. Catering to customer requirements, the Kubota Group
develops various combine harvesters suited to different crop and regional characteristics.
onserve Resources over Product Life Cycle with
C
DC-70G Combine Harvester
With the DC-70G combine harvester aimed at Southeast Asia and other developing countries,
the durability of major parts has been enhanced to cut replacement frequency in the usage phase.
Other improvements help to increase the potential acreage harvested per hour by increasing
harvesting efficiency.
Over the combine harvester product lifecycle from machine production to customer usage and
end-of-life disposal, these improvements contribute to conservation of resources by reducing the
amount of materials required per hectare of harvested land by approximately 15% compared
with the previous model (DC-68G). Combine harvester DC-70G
Resources Input per Hectare of Harvested Land Over Product Life Cycle and Comparison with Previous Model
Hectares of harvested Resources input per hectare of
Lifecycle product weight*
land over product life cycle harvested land over product life cycle
Previous model
Resources input in Resources input in
production phase usage phase
M̂M̂
M̂
Crawlers Track rollers, other parts M̂
M̂M̂
5% decrease 11% increase 15% decrease
DC-70G
Resources input in Resources input in
production phase usage phase
M̂M̂
M̂
Crawlers Track rollers, other parts
M̂
M̂M̂
* Lifecycle product weight is defined as the total weight of the combine harvester and all the major replacement parts needed during usage
[1] Improvement of Durability on Major Replacement Parts
More durable major replacement parts such as crawlers and track rollers cut the replacement frequency, reducing lifecycle product weight by
5%. This approach also reduced the parts purchase cost and replacement work time.
Major Replacement Parts with Improved Durability
Extend product life
Major replacement parts Development points
(compared to the previous model)
Crawler Approx. 1.5 times Less contact pressure with track rollers, thicker design, etc.
Track roller Approx. 1.3 times Less contact pressure with crawler, thicker design, introducing heat-processing, etc.
Crawler Track roller
Diagram of Lower Replacement Frequency
Purchase Disposal
Track roller
Replaced
Previous
model Longer continuous
usage!
Less cost/time for
parts replacement!
Replaced
Crawler
Lower
replacement
frequency
Track roller
DC-70G
Crawler
Diagram of Lower Lifecycle Product Weight
DC-70G
Previous model Fewer
resources
used!
Previous
model
DC-70G
Machine weight Lifecycle product weight
increase 3% decrease 5%
While the machine is heavier due to its improvement of durability and harvesting efficiency, the lifecycle product weight
including major replacement parts is less than previous model.
[2] Improvement of Harvesting Efficiency
Harvesting operations are more efficient, with a broadened cutting width and enlarged grain tank enabling harvesting of more hectares per hour.
The fuel consumption is reduced to the conventional level.
Main Improvements to Increase Harvesting Efficiency
Compared to the
Improved point previous model
Effect on harvesting efficiency
Cutting width 3.8% wider The 2,075-mm cutting width can harvest 3.8% more at the same machine speed
Grain tank The frequency of emptying* harvested grain is reduced, and
70% bigger
(storage tank for harvested grain) long continuous work is possible
* Emptying a full grain tank generally means stopping harvesting operations and moving the combine harvester to a footpath to empty the tank.
Cutting width Large-capacity grain tank
