REPORT: Schouten Gigant G400-15 slurry system: On the button. We’ve been to see one of the first Schouten Gigant G400-15s, a 400hp self-contained slurry pumping unit where all functions can be controlled from the tractor doing the injecting in the field.
The difficulty in recruiting experienced staff is not just a problem here, it is also one faced by Dutch contractors and this is the main reason why businesses with umbilical spreading systems are investing in remote controlled pumps to remove a person from the operation. This includes De Groen Compagnie, which operates in an area around the village of Aartswoud, just a short drive north of Amsterdam. Slurry is one of the most important jobs for the contractor, which injects around 200,000 cubes a year in a season that starts with grassland from the middle of February and ends with arable land in September. This is all done by two identical 12m Schouten Spider SP C1230 umbilical-fed disc injectors, of which one arrived new in 2021 and the other in 2023. The main machine does 115,000- 125,000m³ of the total behind a 2018 Fendt 720, (supported by a 10-year old Fendt 820 for looking after the pipes) that notches up around 1,000 hours a season.
The second outfit comprises a New Holland T7.340HD with Schouten Orcan PU300 Profiline pump unit, and a Fendt 718 ahead of the injector. The injector on the 720 was previously supplied with slurry from a Schouten Ideal pump unit: a 12m³ (2.8m³ slurry the rest water) single axle trailed machine that looks much like a slurry tanker.
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