Reichersberg Orders a Thresher

Josef Körber, an engineer employed at the Reichersberg seed breeding station, was a visionary. He had many ideas on how to improve seed breeding and, in 1954, commissioned his friend Hans Wintersteiger to build the first laboratory thresher. Until then, all ears of grain had been threshed by hand.

The laboratory thresher was very successful and was sold throughout Europe in the years that followed. This marked the successful beginning of the mechanization of seed breeding and the launch of today’s SEEDMECH business unit: The business unit, which provides equipment for the entire breeding process, has become the world market leader and has sold more than 4,000 plot combines.

70 Years and Not a Bit Worn Out

The original ear thresher from 1954 is still in regular use today in Reichersberg. It is used as a “sample passer”: winter grains such as winter wheat, winter barley, and winter triticale are passed through in tufts and pre-cleaned in the process. The samples are then sent on to the laboratory.

In Reichersberg, they’re still very satisfied with this sturdy, reliable machine: “It’s the fastest way to do it. The thresher is easy to operate and very convenient to clean. The optimization of intermixing between varieties ensures that they do not mix,” says Heinrich Schrems, who is responsible for winter rapeseed breeding at the seed breeding station. When asked about necessary repairs: “The beater bar was replaced three years ago. The thresher has been fitted with a new cable and new connectors; otherwise, everything works flawlessly. There’s no better machine on the market for our needs!”