MARKTOBERDORF, Germany—Farm equipment maker AGCO Corp. has named Mitas a.s. its Supplier of the Year 2015 in the category Engineering & Innovation, in large part due to its development of the AirCell inflation system, which is part of the Fendt VarioGrip Pro system.
“Mitas' close collaboration with AGCO is long-lasting, and our relations are outstanding,” said Jens Steinhardt, Mitas' key account manager.
“In particular, the cooperation with Fendt on the AirCell project, which is part of the VarioGrip Pro, was highly intensive and successful.”
This is the third award for the AirCell project, Steinhardt said. It earlier earned the Agritechnica Gold Medal and the Machine of the Year 2016 prizes.
Mitas' AirCell features a dual-chamber inflation system that uses an inner tire, mounted on the rim inside the larger tire and inflated to a maximum of 115 psi and that occupies about 30 percent of the volume of a larger tire, to provide a source of pressurized air to help adjust the psi of the larger, outer tire, Mitas said.
AGCO presented Mitas with its award at its EAME region (Europe, Africa and Middle East) supplier day in Marktoberdorf at the end of November.
Fendt and Mitas started working on the AirCell system seven years ago, Mitas said.
AirCell is an integral part of the VarioGrip Pro along with the pressure regulation system.
The idea for the inner tire originally was patented in 1962. Other major manufacturers attempted to develop working solutions, but Mitas claims only it and Fendt have succeeded.
