XtraBlatt Issue 02-2020

More documents

Recommendations

Info

INFORM Museum – for many, the term indicates something a little dry at first, and perhaps boring. But here in Spelle, the Krone Museum is nothing of the sort! With fascinating exhibits, appealing presentations and clear explanations via multimedia technology, history can in fact be very exciting. Also particularly for younger folk. “After all, tradition and history don’t mean worshipping the ashes but instead, passing on the blazing torch. In other words, those who know nothing about the past cannot understand the present, nor can they create the future. This wisdom from the former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl applies not only to politics, it’s right for all fields of life. For instance, for the Krone Group and its history of 114 years. This is why it’s up to older folk like us to pass on our knowledge and, with help from younger generations, to prepare it in such a way that the information ensures understanding across the generations”, explains Walter Krone, cousin of Dr Bernard Krone and thus member of the third family generation since the firm’s founding in 1906. Walter Krone worked in the family concern for some 40 years, initially in the machinery factory then, from 1977 to 2003, as managing director of the Krone trading division “Landmaschinen Vertrieb Dienstleistungen Bernard Krone”, abbreviated as LVD. He didn’t hesitate when his cousin Bernard asked him to coordinate the “Project Museum” and the associated working group. In 2015 the LVD moved into a new building in the south of Spelle and soon afterwards the tradition-steeped meeting house in the community’s centre, parts of which stretch right back to the beginnings of the factory, was reassigned as museum with numerous exhibits moved-in. “Alone the sight of the numerous machines and implements under that roof was immediately impressive, representing a first big step forward”, recalls Walter Krone. “But it soon became clear to us: this alone was not enough. For the right effect, a completely different concept was needed. And this is what we’ve been working on intensively since 2017.” “We” in this association includes the working group of around 20 people and comprising Krone family members, representatives of external services and a number of machinery factory colleagues, retired or still employed. “Such a mix of different experiences and competences was very enriching for the project, just as for me personally”, he remembers. By February 2<strong>02</strong>0 everything had been completed. The “new” museum was ready for opening – and then came corona. “That was certainly disappointing because we had all looked forward to a wonderful opening, and to the reactions from as many visitors as possible”, says Walter Krone. INSPIRING However, he and especially his honorary helpers from a circle of former colleagues including Franz Feismann, Georg Holterhues and Josef Börger, did not allow themselves to become discouraged. From April onwards, guided tours have indeed welcomed regular visits. After advance registration they come in small groups of all ages under compliance of full precautionary measures. The groups learn all about the exhibition and have been – as hoped – deeply impressed. “Especially with the slightly older visitors, many of whom often know exhibits from their own experience, the discussions that develop become so animated that a guided tour planned for two hours duration quickly runs to three hours and even more”, smiles Walter Krone. “But the younger visitors also show great interest when the context of respective exhibits is graphically explained.” Apropos explaining. Here it’s sometimes amazing how apparently self-evident things cause great wonder. Walter Krone speaks of the short films shown at the beginning of each visit. Among the subjects is machinery from the present company range with their respective applications. “Particularly those with no, or at least no close, relationship to agriculture often don’t know anything about the basic work being carried out – for instance in harvesting forage. So, at the end of the films we can get amazed reactions such as: ‘At last, I understand what these machines really do’. Often, applause breaks out at this point – which is very welcome indeed”, laughs Walter Krone. Similarly, he takes great interest in the visiting school classes. After all, during their guided tours, many children learn about working methods with tools they are seeing for the first time in their life. On show in Spelle: the world’s only working example of the Lanz Landbaumotor with integrated rotary cultivator. Among the highlights in the museum: a huge collection of historical tractors. Important in the museum’s conception, he continues, is the interesting mixture of differing experience dimensions – modern and from the past, general contemporary and personal family histories, real exhibition objects and virtual presentations. Thus, we can visit the office of the second Bernard Krone, as well as see household utensils from the 1950s and 60s. “After all, not only the machinery factory and the trading business belonged to the concern, there was a hotel too – even a household goods shop run by Dr Krone’s mother, Gertrud. Here, for instance, came many folk from the region before they got married, perhaps to buy crockery with their dowries, and seeking her advice in Spelle,” he relates. UNIQUE The great attraction of the exhibition is – how could it be other – the machinery. To this belongs all the machines ever built by Krone, including prototypes that never went into series production. Figuring among the highlights are also the innumerable old timers, sometimes extreme rarities to be seen nowhere else. As one example from many, Walter Krone names the 1917 produced Lanz Landbaumotor with integrated rotary soil cultivator. He says this is the only functioning example worldwide. Another One hundred years ago a the well-known nickname for the smallest Hanomag 2/10 car was “Kommissbrot”: its main components jokingly referred to as “2 kg of tin and a lick of paint”. rarity is one of the first John Deere combine harvesters, from 1940. The precisely restored model in the museum is the only example of this type in Europe. These two machines count among Walter Krone’s personal favourites. “In fact, I actually have seven favourite highlights here. My, one can say, BiG 7 – because, as is well known, we have a thing about BiG in Krone.” The other five include a six-furrow motor plough and a very old mower cutterbar, the latter as synonym for the massive importance of mechanisation in agriculture. The cutaway model of a threshing machine from Ködel & Böhm is also well up on his BiG 7 list, as is a hand-powered winnower from the 19th century with hand-carved cogwheels. Last but not least is one of the first Hanomag serial tractors, of which the LVD sold hundreds in its day. “But in reality, most impressive to me is the collection as a whole, along with the fact that, working together, we have succeeded in presenting everything so well in the Krone Museum. Now it’s really good.” « 44 45
ON-FARM HAY HEINRICH FARMING – CONSERVATION – ADDING VALUE It’s generally accepted that the content in small packages is often substantially dearer than that in larger containers. This applies to hay too. By text deadline for this issue of <strong>XtraBlatt</strong>, first-cut hay in large square bales averaged just under 160 €/t. On his website, “Hay Heinrich” sells his organic mountain meadow hay for 1.50 to 3.00 €. Per kilogramme! Safe to say, this represents a more than respectable margin. But the business isn’t as straightforward as it seems. Until the hay lies ready for sale in the shop shelves, a lot of work has to be done. And a fair portion of know-how is needed, too. ECONOMIC CONCEPT Heinrich Meusel doesn’t come from a farming background. His grandfather was botany professor and while his father is, in fact, an agricultural engineer, his main activity for a long time has revolved around landscape conservation, his full-time post being managing director of the Naturpark Thüringer Wald e. V. (Thuringia Forest Nature Park). He is also honorary member of the board for the German Landscape Conservation Association and the Foundation for German Landscapes. So, a family connection is definitely present. “I’ve always been happy working with hay”, reports Heinrich Meusel. “Even as a kid, I improved my pocket money by cutting mountainside meadows with a single-axle mower and then making hay. This fired my ambition to be a farmer. The appropriate education I underwent in the Austrian uplands. Hereby, it became increasingly clear to me that my interests lay not only in nature conservation, but also strongly in the machinery aspects. And I aimed to apply this through an economically viable business concept. Even then, I didn’t want to rely on just farm subsidies. This is how I arrived at the production of hay for pets as an enterprise.” Heinrich Meusel registered his first company at 17 years of age. The beginnings were modest. Initial mechanisation was a single-axle mower, later joined by a small tractor, then a tractor of Russian origin. Finally, a “real” tractor could be bought in. The first specialised machine was a Metrac bought second-hand in Switzerland. “I started without any land and no capital either”, Heinrich Meusel remembers. “It wasn’t easy to get credit and was quite normal to sell off machinery at the end of the season so that starter capital would be available for at least part of next season’s purchases.” In the meantime, the implement fleet has substantially expanded Heinrich Meusel worked with hay even as a child, then as teenager. And he was brought back to hay later during his search for a viable farm business model. He sells his production as pet feed through grocery retailer chains. 46 47
Page 1 and 2: 2 2020 XtraBlatt QUALITY FROM NEARB
Page 4: 4 5 IMPRINT Publisher: Maschinenfab
Page 8: TITLE THEME SOLD TO BUTCHERS Howeve
Page 12: TITLE THEME 1 2 4 Since the summer,
Page 16: INFORM Often overlooked: tyre press
Page 20: ON-FARM PASTURE PIGS SWINE IN THE O
Page 24: INTERVIEW MASCHINENFABRIK BERNARD K
Page 28: INTERNATIONAL FARM CONTRACTOR WILL
Page 32: Xtra fresh
Page 36 and 37: INFORM BEHIND THE SCENES A smoothly
Page 38 and 39: ON-FARM 1 2 3 1 Because ideal cutti
Page 40 and 41: GRÜNLAND-MANAGEMENT: NIEDERLANDE P
Page 44 and 45: ON-FARM 4 1 3 and mainly comprises
Page 46 and 47: INTERVIEW dentist, or accountant? P
Page 48 and 49: AT WORK 1 3 1 As part of the grassl
Page 50 and 51: INFORM FUTURE LAB TESTING HEART AND

XtraBlatt Issue 02-2020

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?