WM Agri pushes for improved tyre safety

Changing tyres – it’s a job few enjoy. It remains one of farming’s most awkward and potentially hazardous maintenance tasks – but of course, it is vital.

That was the focus of a recent on-farm demonstration in Suffolk, where WM Agri’s Will Mallon showcased the Tire-Grabber and Trak-Jak – two complementary tools designed to make the process both easier and safer.

The demo took place at the farm of Philip Bloomfield – the first UK customer for the Tire-Grabber – and was attended by James Cunningham and Neal Smith from Home Farm in Nacton, Ipswich. James and Neal were looking for a more controlled, less physically demanding way to handle wheel changes on their fleet of tractors and specialist vegetable kit.

How the system works

The concept is simple. The Trak-Jak safely raises the tractor, while the Tire-Grabber, fitted to a telehandler, grips and manoeuvres the wheel. The Tire-Grabber can handle wheels up to 2.4m in diameter and 1,300kg in weight, and the arms are designed to slide beneath the mudguard to grip the tyre. Once secured, the wheel can’t move while the nuts are loosened, and when refitting, the unit allows precise alignment before tightening back up.

A key advantage, Will explained, is the ability to pick up and store wheels horizontally. That removes the need for chaining heavy tyres to supports or leaning them against walls – the kind of workshop improvisation that has caused more than a few near-misses over the years.

“For me, the biggest selling point is safety,” he said. “By storing tyres horizontally, rather than upright or leaning on something, there’s no risk of them falling onto someone.”

Refining the design

While the Tire-Grabber is built in Canada, its first UK test run has been anything but off-the-shelf. Philip Bloomfield, known locally for his practical engineering mindset and hydraulic hosing company, quickly spotted ways to make it better suited to his farm.

The original unit was centrally mounted on the headstock, meaning the operator wasn’t aligned with the grabber when operating the telehandler. “I wanted it offset, so it lines up naturally with the driver,” he explained. “It’s safer and just makes sense.”

He also added hydraulic restrictors to slow down the jaws, improving control. “Out of the box, it was a bit too lively. This way, it’s smoother and a lot more predictable,” he said. The changes were well-received by WM Agri.

The set-up at the demo showed how these refinements come together in practice. Philip’s offset version gave clear sightlines from the cab, allowing the operator to see the wheel nuts while aligning. The slower-moving jaws meant small adjustments could be made without snatching the tyre.

Impressions from local farmers

Watching closely, James Cunningham, production manager, and Neal Smith, workshop manager, recognised the appeal immediately. Their farm runs around 4,500 acres of mixed cropping, including potatoes, onions, brassicas and cereals – the sort of operation that involves frequent swaps between narrow and wide wheels.

“We change a lot of wheels,” said James. “Mainly between skinny and flotation sets. It’s not constant, but it’s enough that we’re always looking for safer, easier ways to do it.”

Both men cited safety and precision as the main draws. “It’s one of those jobs everyone agrees could be improved,” Neal added. “If this takes out some of the strain and risk, it’s worth a look.” They’d seen manual trolleys and jacks before, but uneven concrete and heavy tyres made them cumbersome. The Trak-Jak-and-Grabber combination offered a cleaner solution.

They also agreed that Philip’s offset modification was an obvious enhancement. “A no-brainer, really,” Neal said. “You’d think it would come that way as standard.” But both men also pointed out that some finesse is required from the operator.

Aligning the gripper precisely with the wheel centre takes concentration and a steady hand, and they felt it would likely become a job for one experienced, skilled person – “the Tire-Grabber guy” – who gets used to how the machine handles and can make it work efficiently.

Seeing the system in use on-farm helped them visualise how it might fit into their own workshop routine – something James admitted is hard to judge from brochures alone. “You can’t really picture how it works until you see it in person,” he said. “Having it here in Suffolk was ideal.”

Safety still comes first

Will Mallon was equally encouraged by how the demo went. For him, having an early adopter willing to tweak and feedback is the best kind of product development. “You can do all the testing you like in a yard, but you only find the real improvements when it’s on a working farm,” he said.

While the demo focused on the mechanical side, it also highlighted a wider truth about tyre handling on farms – it’s a job that often sits in the grey area between maintenance and heavy engineering. Even with the right tools, alignment, balance and clear communication between operator and ground staff remain critical. As Neal pointed out, “You can’t rush it. Once you’ve got the weight of that tyre swinging, it’s got its own ideas.”

For most farms, the value of a system like this lies as much in reducing risk as in saving time. One accident avoided easily outweighs the cost of the kit. Neal agreed that while the Tire-Grabber and Trakjak pairing makes the job more efficient, it still requires respect for the forces involved. “It’s not something you’d hand over to anyone. You’d have your one Tire-Grabber guy who knows the feel of it, who can line up that hub every time.”

Despite its marketing as a one-man tool, both Will and Philip were quick to note that safety still comes first. “It’s technically possible for one person to do it,” said Will, “but realistically, you want two. Someone guiding on the wheel nuts makes the whole process safer and quicker.”

That realism about how jobs actually get done, rather than how they’re supposed to, is what gives the Tire-Grabber its edge. It’s not reinventing the wheel, just making the process of changing one less of a wrestling match.

As the morning wrapped up, there was a sense that the Tire-Grabber and Trak-Jak pairing had shown genuine promise: simple, practical engineering built around the way farms really work. A bit of Canadian thinking, fine-tuned by British pragmatism, and a reminder that innovation doesn’t always need a circuit board to make a difference.

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