One of the key market areas Agco’s Massey Ferguson brand has targeted is the livestock sector and commercial hay growers.
The brand’s current offering now includes a digital pairing of its 8S and 9S tractors to the LB Series large square Hesston by Massey Ferguson balers.
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WHY IT MATTERS: A system that allows helpful dialogue between a towed machine and a towing tractor may improve not just the efficiency of both units but the quality of the end commodity.
TIM (Tractor and Implement Management) allows a Hesston by Massey Ferguson large square baler to control the speed of an 8S or 9S tractor to maximize baler output and at the same time improve bale quality.
At the Commodity Classic farm show in Texas, the brand announced new 8S and 9S tractors will soon be available for order directly from the factory with TIM.
“The other exciting thing we’ve been launching at this show is Tractor and Implement Management for our 8S and 9S tractors,” says Derek Reusser, senior marketing manager for high horsepower tractors with Massey Ferguson.
“It’s new for 2026. It’s really all about facing challenges our farmers are facing with skilled operators.
“It really allows the implement to dictate what the tractor does. When we think about large square baling specifically, based on your flake count target, it will change the operating speed of the tractor.”
A sensor on the knotter trip wheel sends information to the tractor to control its speed, allowing it to keep feeding material into the baler at an even rate, which helps produce consistent bales.
“TIM Drive is what it’s called,” says Reusser.
“The knotter trip wheel is essentially counting your flakes. That flake count is communicated back to the tractor. We’re giving that system the capability to change the speed of the tractor based upon what it’s measuring.
“The flake size is really what farmers are looking at. For an eight-foot bale, you want about a 2.4-, 2.5-inch flake size to deliver that consistent length. Usually farmers are looking for about 40 flakes on an eight-foot bale.”
Added Jessica Williamson, marketing manager for hay and forage with Massey Ferguson: “All of our LB Series large round balers already come pre-equipped with TIM … so it’s not an add-on for our customers. All of them are ready to be hooked to a tractor with TIM, regardless of baler size from our 3 x 3 up to our 4 x 4. It comes already equipped with TIM.”
‘Pretty significant’
Williamson says Agco did field trials using TIM to see what impact it had on bale production. The results demonstrated a significant improvement, she claims.
“We wanted to see the overall improvement in bale consistency when implementing TIM versus not. We looked at having a mid- or lower-level operator and how it would improve overall bale consistency. Does this open up the tractor seat to someone with a lower level of skill?
“A mid-level operator got a 225 per cent overall improvement from bale to bale. He got about a two-inch variability in overall bale length.
“We’re improving flake count and overall bale length. Probably the most significant improvement we got was overall bale weight. In dry straw, we saw an 80 pound overall bale-to-bale improvement by implementing TIM. Eighty lb. in very dry straw is pretty significant.”
The system also has a use on Hesston by Massey Ferguson RB Series round balers. It stops the tractor when the chamber is full and allows the bale to tie and eject. All the operator has to do is start the tractor again.
For producers who already have an 8S or 9S tractor, the TIM software can be downloaded and installed on existing models. LB Series large balers have been equipped with TIM from the factory for the last two model years.
