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The MTH-500 tea harvester, purchased by Compañía Ecuatoriana del Té C.A. (CETCA), was installed in perfect condition in Palora, Morona Santiago, Ecuador, in February 2017.
Assembled in under four hours
On Thursday, February 16, three members of the Lory Máquinas team arrived in Ecuador to carry out the assembly, training and testing. The assembly was done that same day with help from CETCA staff: thanks to the modular design of the chassis, the machine was put together in under four hours with simple tools and a forklift for the heaviest structures.
In the afternoon, the first harvesting trials took place on the plantations of the Sangay estate. The harvester preserves the shoots and maintains the quality of the green leaf thanks to its air-based shoot transport system, which handles them without damage.
Performance and training
On Friday the 17th, turning and unloading tests were carried out on prepared ground, providing the first performance indicators: the harvester has a potential output of 2000 kg per hour with a single operator, who handles both driving and unloading by tipping the collection bin.
On Saturday the 18th, training on operational safety and maintenance was given to the workshop and harvesting staff. On Monday the 20th and Tuesday the 21st, the operators carried out driving and harvesting tests under the supervision of our team.
The results exceeded the customer’s expectations: harvesting time per plot and the time to transport the shoots to the drying facility were reduced, and the harvested leaf arrives in better condition for drying.
To wrap up, we discussed future uses to make the most of the machine on non-harvest days: pruning, skiffing, side trimming of the plant, and fertilizing.
