Danish company Siwi claims to have the ultimate quick-hitch for a tractor. Its system incorporates not only a quick-coupling hitch, but also the facility to attach or detach the PTO, several hydraulic lines and electrical outlets – all without leaving the cab.
When coupling to a trailer or trailed implement (such as a muck spreader or trailed mower-conditioner) you just reverse up to it, hoist up the module and then ‘press’ the hydraulic hoses and power connectors together – all from the driver’s seat.
Of course, both the tractor and the trailer or trailed implement need to be fitted with the relevant ‘mating’ components.
The company reasons that ‘time is money’; so why spend unnecessary amounts of it? With its Combi-Hitch, says the company, you can hitch the tractor “lightning” fast.
Siwi also claims that the Combi-Hitch lowers the risk of injuries, because you don’t have to get in and out of the tractor, with the risk of falling or being crushed between the tractor and the machine.
The video (below) shows the system in action, in which a muck spreader is dropped off (detached) from the tractor, loaded using the tractor’s front loader and then re-coupled before spreading starts.
It all happens in an impressively smooth, safe and swift manner and, importantly, without the operator having to leave the seat – despite all ‘connections’ being taken care of.
The system can also be configured for mounted implements, as shown in this video (below). While it starts off showing an S Series Valtra tractor coupled to a trailer, it later features the same tractor hooking up to a cultivator, which needs hydraulic services.
It’s not just tractors that can benefit from this system; self-propelled forage harvesters and other machines can also make use of it. In the video (below), a Claas Jaguar harvester and a Fendt Vario tractor are happily interchanging trailers, with no need to disembark to connect up hydraulic lines or electrical cables.
The Siwi Combi-Hitch, when configured for use with trailers or trailed machines, is built around a ‘ball’ hitch – to ensure the “best possible stability on the road and in the field”. The ball system locks simultaneously with the interconnection of hydraulic and electrical connectors.
The Combi-Hitch system is designed for use for tractors of up to several hundred horsepower. While no Irish price is available as yet, a figure in the region of €13,000 has been touted.
