Farming for the Future

CASE STUDY: Agriculture

 

An early adopter

Back in 2016, Waikato based farmer, Grant Coombes, decided to embrace an ‘electric’ approach to farming by replacing his fleet of traditional farm bikes with UBCO 2X2’s. For him, the bikes were part of a plan to improve sustainability, both on his farm and the wider dairy industry.

Always a progressive thinker, Grant’s viewpoint in 2016 was: “Every innovative solution we implement on our farms that can reduce our environmental footprint and improve sustainability gives us and our dairy industry a competitive edge and helps us work towards a greener future – and the UBCO bike is part of that.”

Having always been passionate about sustainability and health and safety, replacing his fleet of farm bikes with a more sustainable option was something Grant had considered for a while.

“We were running a fleet of quads and conventional 2-wheel farm bikes but had been looking at phasing out the quads for a while due to their cost and perceived H&S issue. Plus, there was the hassle of having fuel and oil stored on the farm and the issues associated with that. ”

“The UBCO’s 2-wheel drive and lightweight frame appealed to me as a replacement option for the 4X4 quads and traditional 2-wheelers, as we were restricted to where we could get in the wet conditions. Now we’re certainly getting over terrain that we previously couldn’t. The safety benefits of the 2X2’s, such as the low centre of gravity, also appealed to me. There is a perception that quads are a health and safety issue, however, if they’re used appropriately with the correct training they aren’t. The problem is that doesn’t always happen. Now our H&S discussions and training regarding operating the UBCO are 100 times easier.”

leading the way

Fast forward and Grant is still leading the charge, buying a fleet of bikes for use across his 350 hectares of land.

“Using the UBCO 2X2s means we can continue our journey to going green using these environmentally friendly, safe and easy to ride vehicles hassle free.

“With energy costs of under 20c a day it makes for efficient work; we’re only charging the bikes every three or four days – it’s a no-brainer,” says Coombes.

In an average day, Grant’s UBCO 2X2’s are used to shift mobs, monitor stock and pasture and get the cows and calves in.

“They are certainly cheap to run compared to other traditional farm bikes. You can’t ignore the savings.”

“The other appealing thing about the UBCOs is that they’re light and have a lot of torque down low, so we could get over land that we couldn’t with a standard two wheeler or lift it out if it got stuck. And the other thing is the lack of heat and noise. It’s great around the stock.”

“Saving costs, resources and potentially lives is not something you can turn a blind eye to. When you compare the benefits to the cost, you’re coming out on top with the UBCO 2X2.”

For more on Grant Coombes and his sustainability efforts, click here. Could an UBCO help you with your farming work? Shop now or test ride a 2X2 at your nearest dealer.

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