Specialist manufacturer, Vredo, is testing the market with a new umbilical unit designed to work with its own injector systems, which normally work behind tanker units.

Aimed as satisfying the environmental concerns surrounding slurry spreading and the move away from splash-plate spreading, the SSU unit has a universal slurry injector attachment in the form of a three-point hitch and optional Multifaster.

Equipped with its own control unit and load sensing hydraulics, the first umbilical unit is pictured attached to a Vredo Profi 12m slurry injector, with V-shaped disc and pneumatic GPS section control.

Vredo said that using the SSU concept, all non front-foldable injectors up to 18m can be hitched thanks to the three-point linkage. The umbilical unit is compact and weighs 1515kg and because its centre of gravity stays close to the tractor, it has a optimal weight distribution.

The pivoting point of the arm is close to the tractor because of that and the automatic pull mechanism of the umbilical system means it is easy to steer and manoeuvre. The pivot point of the arm is at the height of the trailer hitch, so that by pulling there isn’t any weight transfer to the back.

The hitch rotates at two joints in the arm, making it possible to drive in reverse, with the supply hose positioned next to the towing vehicle without causing extreme forces on the supply hose and/or the construction of the umbilical unit.

An arm mounted on the umbilical unit rotates over the injector, so the supply hose never pulls at the injector itself. Slurry is also incorporated over the entire working width at an equal row distance, because the supply hose is not an obstacle.

When lifting at the headland, the injector automatically folds up and the hose is pulled up. As soon as the tractor is almost straight on the headland, the SSU automatically releases the supply hose again, so that there is no lateral pulling force on the tractor.

The last bend of the arm will always straighten by itself under pretension, and the main arm can rotate freely under the pretension, but can also be steered in a desired direction by means of the operating lever. The flow meter linked to the GPS gives you an exact image of the amount of slurry that has been and is being applied.

It is expected to be produced for the 2022/23 season.