Manufactured in the French plant of Coex (France), New Holland’s Centre of Excellence for self-propelled grape and olive harvesters, the 15,000th machine is a testament to more than 40 years of award-winning innovations and leadership in the sector. Grape harvester number 15,000 is a Braud 9040L for large vineyards, equipped with all the latest New Holland technology to ensure a perfect harvest with absolute respect for the grapes and the vines, and delivery to the winery of perfectly formed fruit that is almost completely free of impurities. And that’s exactly what’s needed to produce the top quality wines increasingly in demand on international markets.
The 15,000 Braud grape harvesters produced since 1975 and sold in more than 30 countries worldwide, include self-propelled models and the now discontinued pull-type versions, and place the brand in a position of undisputed leadership in the sector.
More than 40 years of brilliant inventions and awarded innovations
Braud has been a paradigm of excellence in technology applied to grape harvesting ever since 1975, and above all, it’s a point of reference for the world’s most demanding winegrowers, ever on the lookout for simpler, faster and more efficient ways of transforming perfectly grown grapes into superb wines.
Exploiting the deep-rooted harvesting machinery production know-how gathered since 1870, the year in which Alexandre Braud founded the company, Braud released its first self-propelled grape harvester, called the Braud 1020, in 1975. 1979 was the year of the Braud 1014, equipped with the revolutionary Noria baskets system that earned the brand its first SIMA gold medal in 1980 and destined to become the best-selling grape harvester of all time, with more than 2,000 units shipped in less than four years. In 1984 Braud introduced the concept of multifunctionality: for the very first time, the grape harvester tractor base could be fitted with different equipment for use all year round, from pre-pruning to picking. 1988 saw the presentation of the SDC shaking system, which received a gold medal at the SITEVI exhibition of the same year and which features shakers, with lever-type rear mounting, that adapt perfectly to the shape of the vine so that it is shaken but never subjected to impact. The 2002 highlight was the launch of the
destemmer-separator, made exclusively by Braud under a SOCMA patent. This system makes it possible to eliminate all impurities from the harvest and guarantees a perfectly cleaned product ready for winemaking. The 2009 launch of the Braud 9000 Series, which received gold and silver medals at SITEVI in the same year, heralded the start of the ‘smart harvesting’ era because the machine delivers leading edge technology always supported by an easy and intuitive interface, to make standard and premium quality viticulture more productive, profitable, and straightforward.
And the gold medals at SITEVI, the most important exhibition in the sector, just keep on coming year after year with each launch of a Braud innovation. In 2013, with the presentation of the Opti-Grape™ system, the premium solution for winegrowers seeking the highest possible quality of perfectly clean grapes, and in 2015, with the Blue Cab™ 4, an intelligent system that automatically starts closed-circuit cab pressurisation when a hitched spraying unit is activated, thus ensuring optimal operator protection.
Sustainability, complete range and new features
With the ECOBraud project, which includes Braud self-propelled grape harvesters and New Holland speciality vineyard tractors, New Holland Agriculture has launched a system of coordinated technologies able to reduce the carbon footprint of vineyard operations by 40%, directly contributing to a 10% carbon footprint reduction of each bottle of wine produced.
The attention focused on the environment, which is part of the DNA of Braud’s technologies devoted to such a delicate and valuable fruit as the grape, is supported by a range of self-propelled grape harvesters able to meet all needs in winegrowing districts anywhere in the world.
The machines are supplied in standard and high capacity versions for a complete range of row spaces: from 0.95 m with the new Braud 9080N to the more than 2.2 m handled by models in the Braud 9000X series.
After introducing the concept of multifunctionality for grape harvesters, Braud has subsequently expanded and developed this approach, increasing the range of front and rear implements in partnership with two specialists like Berthoud and Provitis.
They can be mounted on Braud machines and including olives and blackcurrants.
Always with the traditional guarantee of harvest quality, perfect cleaning of the product and absolute respect for the environment that only Braud grape harvesters can guarantee.
“15,000 Braud grape harvesters produced and sold worldwide is an historic milestone for New Holland Agriculture” confirmed Maggiorino Gaffoglio, Head of Grape & Olive Harvester Product Management. “To be a world leader in such a difficult and delicate sector means securing the trust and respect of even the most traditionally minded clients. Over the years, they have become our most valued product testers. Being involved in high-profile viticulture projects dedicated to the production of the very finest wines is a source of tremendous satisfaction for our team that gives us the necessary impetus to keep improving. Because – as I like to point out – in terms of good ideas, New Holland Braud self-propelled grape harvesters are second only to the very invention of wine itself”.
