Largest ever export order leaves Scotts for Canada

Matt Shaw and Derek Scott Directors of Scott Precision Manufacturing with an Evolution

A UK manufacturer of vegetable harvesting and handling machinery has this month exported its largest-ever order.

Scotts Precision Manufacturing sent 14 Evolution Separators to Allan Potato Equipment Manufacturing Ltd., Canada’s largest designer and manufacturer of potato harvesting equipment.

Before this shipment, the most Evolutions Scotts had supplied in one order was seven. Coincidentally, that order was also placed by Allan.

The Evolutions will be incorporated into Allan’s three and four-row electrically-driven harvesters.

The Allan Four Row electric drive, and the company’s two row drive, were the first of their kind on the market. Allan chose electric drive as it is incredibly efficient, using a lot less power than traditional harvesters. Transmission components have been reduced by almost 80% resulting in a very easy to maintain harvester.

By featuring the Evolution within it, the Allan Harvester sends very little dirt to the warehouse and can load a truck within four minutes, whereas other machines can take up to 12 minutes to perform the same task. The harvesters are also available with a 6000lbs holding hopper and full width separator at the rear.

Scotts manufactured its first Evolution at its factory in Boston, Lincolnshire, in 2005. Since then, more than 700 separators have been sold to farmers and food processors across the UK and around the world.

The Evolutions heading to Allans will be used on potato crops, but the Evolution is capable of gently separating clod, stones, haulm and loose soil from a wide range of vegetables, fruit and alliums, including gourmet potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, onions and bell peppers amongst others.

At the heart of the Evolution is the patented roller design. The two contract rotating rollers work together to gently move the crop across the separator. The movement of the rollers loosens the dirt, which is worked into a valley, where, if soft enough, the debris is crushed and ejected down below the separator.

The latest version of the Evolution features maintenance-free direct-drive motor and gearbox units on each extracting shaft.

A new generation of Polyurethane spiral roller has been developed and integrated into the system. This latest design features large air chambers and a “foam pocket” section that improves the grip on root clusters to reduce blockages.

Protection to the lips from potential stone damage is maintained with the benefit of improved self-cleaning. Instead of the standard main crop spiral rollers with a 10mm tread pattern, less aggressive spiral rollers with a 6mm tread pattern are now an option. The 6mm tread is designed for customers looking to clean small potatoes or where high volumes of haulm and/or leafy material is an issue. The 10mm option continues to be the best option for farmers faced with significant clod problems.

Allan Machinery, which is based in Prince Edward Island, has been working with Scotts for six years, in which time it has purchased 38 Evolutions.

“There are several reasons why we choose to work with Scotts and incorporate the Evolution into our machines,” says Trent Cousins, Partner, Allan Potato Equipment Manufacturing Ltd. “The Evolution has a simple design and is easy to maintain. It also offers gentle crop handling, high capacity and reliability. We also receive excellent service from Derek and his team, which makes a big difference to us and our customers.”

Derek Scott, managing director of Scotts Precision Manufacturing adds: “2020 is looking like it is going to be one of best ever years, if not our best year! We have seen interest in the Evolution go through the roof in recent months, and we were delighted to receive an order for 14 separators from Trent. It is very much appreciated, and we hope that the Evolutions will help his customers operate more efficiently.”

Established in 1994, Scotts Precision Manufacturing specialises in the design and manufacturing of highly efficient vegetable handling equipment. Its products, such as the Evolution separator, often feature in full handling line solutions supplied by leading manufacturers but can also be retrofitted by farmers looking to upgrade.

For more information about Scotts Precision Manufacturing and the Evolution, please visit http://www.scottsuk.com/ or https://www.allanequipment.com/