South Africa’s farmers have a well-deserved reputation for using technology to farm smarter and increase productivity despite challenging conditions.

The launch of Bridgestone’s flagship VT-TRACTOR range of agricultural tyres in South Africa offers the local farming community an excellent opportunity to work smarter and achieve better results.

Internationally, the VT-TRACTOR has been proven to improve the performance of tractors, sprayers and implements. The tyre is designed for the most advanced, heavy, and sophisticated machines. Due to its ability to work at lower pressure, even when operating under heavier loads, it contributes to lower fuel consumption.

“Farming is capital intensive and highly competitive, and its ability to produce more food cost-effectively is critical in helping meet the needs of a growing global population,” says Willouw Goosen, Product Specialist at Bridgestone Southern Africa. “Tyres play an enormous role in helping farmers increase productivity and control costs, which is why Bridgestone spends such large sums on research and development to help advance smarter farming.”

 Optimised efficiency, lower costs

“A key benefit of the Bridgestone VT-TRACTOR tyre is its versatility – you no longer need to adjust your tyre pressures when alternating between field and road application,” says Willouw. “This saves an enormous amount of time, while also offering greater comfort.

“Our tests show that Bridgestone’s VT-TRACTOR tyre has a lug contact area up to 26% larger than current key players in the market,” he adds. With the use of IF (increased flexion) and VF (very high flexion) technology the VT-TRACTOR allows for better weight distribution, which reduces soil compaction. VT-TRACTOR tyres carry 40% heavier loads than standard tyres, boosting productivity by reducing the number of transport cycles on the road and thus cutting costs.

By providing superior traction, VT-TRACTOR tyres allow farmers to work faster. With these tyres, farmers can cover almost one hectare more in a day with the same equipment, compared with competitor products, according to testing conducted by Bridgestone.

Willouw says Bridgestone has introduced the VT-TRACTOR range to South Africa in response to evolving needs in the agricultural sector. “The local farming community’s openness to adopting new technology is well-known and the time was right for Bridgestone to introduce its top-end range of agriculture tyres to the country. In addition, many equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are using VT-TRACTOR tyres on the machines that are being imported into South Africa,” he says.

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