21
F
o
rchard Plat form
F
T
he newBillo Tapis platform has been developedwith an
integratedpicking station allowing six pickers to operate
fromboth the ground and at raised levels.
At theBillo factory the group received awarmwelcome from
GiorgiaBillo andMelotto Lorenzo and took a quick look at the
latest Billopickingplatform. The visitors then set off to see the
prototypeBilloTapis pickingplatform at work in an orchard of
Pink Lady apples. Giorgia is the daughter of
e
nricoBillo, the
founder andowner of Billo, and is the company’s
administrator, andMelotto is technical officer for the company.
Billo sees itself as a youngdynamic company, despite
havingmore than 40 years’ experience in the construction of
hydraulic stationary platforms and self-propelledmachines for
harvesting fruit.
h
undreds of companies in
i
taly and around theworld are
usingBilloproducts, and this is growing steadily. All of the
processing stages, fromdesign to testing, are designed and
made entirely in theBillo factory atMerlara, where the
manufacturingplant was extended two years ago.
i
n the orchard the visiting group spent about an hour
watching and askingquestionswhile twopickersworked on
the platform. Thiswas verymuch a demonstration rather than
a pickingoperation at commercial speed, but it gave the
visitors a valuable opportunity to observe anddiscuss the finer
points as to how the platform shouldbe used tomaximise its
capability.
TheBillo Tapis is a highly versatile orchardplatform
designedprimarily to harvest fruit quickly and efficiently, it is
also an all-purpose orchardplatform able to facilitate all types
of work, includingpruning, with the use of an on-board
compressor that can be fitted topower pneumatic pruning
secateurs. The platform is poweredby an efficient Lombardini
Kohler three-cylinder diesel engine that is very fuel efficient
andproduces high torque at low revolutions, which is required
for working under loadwhile travelling slowly in orchards.
The platform has four-wheel-drive and four-wheel-steering,
enabling its use in sloping andwet orchards as it has the
necessary traction andpower to keepmoving. TheBillo Tapis
platform is also fittedwith lowpressure tyres that help to
minimise the creation of ruts in the rows. The four-wheel-
steering enables it to turn in the tightest of headlands.
i
t has a
T
he
frui
TG
rower
•
JAN
u
A
r
Y 2017
u
K growers see theBilloTapis orchard
platform in operation
InNovember JohnGuest joineda small groupof growersona trip to Italy to viewanew
motorised tree-fruit pickingplatform. The visitwasorganisedbyChrisBaker of Bourne
Engineeringwhohas suppliedBilloplatforms togrowers inKent.
