Anyone who lives in a rural area knows these spectacular farming machines. Enormous harvesters drive across the fields and harvest potatoes and other vegetables. However, the capacities of their “bunkers” are limited and do not hold the harvest from an entire field. To make the process as efficient as possible, field loaders such as the GRIMME CleanLoader are used. They clean and sort the crops. An astounding 120 tons of potatoes can be loaded by the CleanLoader each hour.

When the CleanLoader is out on the field, it looks a little like a giant kraken. With its enormous transfer elevator, the main conveyor belt, and the discharge belts, this nearly 18-meter-long agricultural machine looks like something out of science fiction. This is especially true when the adjustable loading belts are moving, such as when the CleanLoader is being set up. This takes only 15 minutes and is truly a sight to see, as this video makes impressively clear:

The variable transport belts ensure that the trucks being loaded hardly have to maneuver during loading. This speeds up the harvesting process and protects the ground in the fields since the large vehicles do not have to move around as much. In addition, the transport vehicles do not even have to drive onto the field. Instead, they can stay at the edge of the field and be loaded while they wait on the access road. This is also a great advantage in terms of protecting the soil, because the more pressure applied to the ground, the fewer potatoes there are in the next harvest.

The drive of this colossal machine is also sustainable. Despite its immense size, the Hatz 4H50TICD four-cylinder engine has enough power at 55 kW to power the loader without an additional power supply. And thanks to the efficient fuel consumption of only 5–6 liters of diesel per hour, the loader can be out on the field all day without needing to be refueled. “Consumption and efficiency are very important to our customers, meaning agricultural businesses and contractors. Hatz is making its contribution to that. The CleanLoader can be operated autonomously on the field, which our customers appreciate,” explains Henrik Grosse Sandermann, product manager at GRIMME. And another plus for GRIMME, the manufacturer of the CleanLoader: “The Hatz 4H50TICD four-cylinder engine is extremely compact, meaning it can be installed in the machine in a very small space. Valuable load capacity for potatoes is not lost and the additional weight is limited. At the same time, it is robust enough to be used in a dusty and dirty environment. The CleanLoader can hold up to 19 cubic meters (!) of potatoes in its ‘buffer bunker.’”

The name CleanLoader is not just a name. GRIMME designed the machine to separate the potatoes from dirt and other undesired materials and clean them before they even leave the field. This has two primary benefits. The dirt and separated materials remain on the field, which helps maintain the ecological balance. And at the same time, streets are kept cleaner. The Hatz 4H50TICD also contributes to clean air. Thanks to its diesel particulate filters, it has very low emissions and meets the EU Stage V and the final EPA Tier 4 emissions standards. Therefore, the CleanLoader and 4H50TICD are a clean team in more ways than one.