FireFly Automatix pioneered the application of electric servo motor technology in mobile equipment over twelve years ago with their first harvester.
We saw the potential benefits of bringing systems that had previously been applied primarily in industrial machine tools, such as lathes and machining centers, to outdoor industries.
We realized these benefits of leveraging electric components to drive precision and productivity, with an added advantage of fuel economy. Building on our proven success with hybrid equipment, our lineup now includes all-electric vehicles, which offer even more solutions.
BENEFITS OF ELECTRIC
Electric control allows for faster, more precise motion that is repeatable for millions of cycles. These systems can be perfectly synchronized with sophisticated controllers to improve accuracy. In harvesting, FireFly’s use of electric servo motors has enabled automation in a wider range of grass types and conditions than has ever been achieved.
What’s more, electric technology improves the quality of your product, whether it’s a professionally mown field of grass or pieces of grass neatly stacked on a pallet.
FireFly machines have tremendous ROI, and a key factor is their fuel efficiency. In hybrid equipment, electric systems only draw what power is needed, reducing the size of engine and, in turn, using much less fuel. In all-electric machines, that fuel is eliminated entirely, replaced by much cheaper energy. Reducing energy costs not only saves you money and helps the planet, but it makes you less vulnerable to the fluctuations of fuel prices and government regulation.
Maintenance is also reduced with the elimination of much or all of the hydraulics and, in the case of the all-electric AMP mowers, the whole engine.
Finally, the smooth motions of FireFly’s electric systems drastically reduce wear and tear on our machines, making them more durable.
An all-electric platform is better suited to unsupervised operation. Traditional combustion machines present challenges to achieve full autonomy in mowing. With their engine radiators and hydraulic heat exchangers that can get clogged with grass clippings, not to mention oil that can leak, traditional machines are harder to leave fully unsupervised.