Review of the Modernage Multi-Function Machine

In the words of the former chairman of the African Union, Dr Nkosazana Zuma,"The hoe belongs to the museum!" This is a statement of fact! Using the hoe, especially for weeding and cultivating is the single most gruelling, costly and time-consuming field  process in agriculture. To add salt to the wound, our women are the most affected by this relic of servitude.

In search of a better solution on our local market, we found something that promises to revolutionize the way smallholder farmers do their tillage. The Modernage Multi-Function Machine(MMFM)! Whether it lives upto its name, well we took it to the Institute of Agricultural Engineering to find out.

Every piece of mechanization worth its salt exhibits exceptional technical capacity, performance, reliability and most importantly cost effectiveness. We chose heavy red clay soils to test the machine's capacity and capabilities.

The Modernage Multi Function Machine is indeed versatile- Put on your weeding blades and you have a weeder, put on your rotary knives, it becomes a cultivator and put on the cutting disc and you have your grass cutter. The aforementioned implements come as as one package. The MMFM can host a number of implements including pumps and tree cutters as well.

Click here for the video review of this machine

Reliability and Specs

The machine comes in two engine types; The red Honda 4 stroke engine and the green one of the same power rating but a different manufacturer. The former has a comparably lower fuel consumption rate and a 2 year guarantee and thus a higher price. The green one has a 1 year guarantee and costs less. Guarantee is now such a rare offer but what more can we say if the supplier has this much trust and for that we give it a 8.5 out of 10 for reliability and durability.

Technical Performance

At 1.5horsepower the machine finishes a hectare in 21 hours as compared to 184 hours on manual labour. So it takes nine times less time or it does the work of 9 humans at once. The rotary blades and cultivating blades removed all the weeds loosening the compacted soil while creating a level aerated bed. On dry grass, the cutter cruised with speed, leaving a clean trail. The machine consumes from 1-1.3litres in an hour, making the overal cost almost equal to that of tractor doing the same work. However, having an aircooled engine, makes it prone to heating up after a couple of hours of continual use.. On Technical performance the microweeder deserves an 8.

Ergonomics

 You may ask, Who can use the tool? - Answer is every one that can carry a 5 kg bag. so to put this to test we had a woman to demontrate the machine's ergonomics. With easy she ignites the engine, and in a split second a force equavalent to sixteen hoes beating at once is transmitted to its steel blades. A safety guard blocks away the dust and debris.
The long handle enables the operator to work in a relaxed position.The lady who operated it could not hide the joy and relief she felt after using it. In her words "Once the blades engage the soil, the machine effortlessly propels itself forward, all you have to do is direct it" That sealed it for us. 10 for ergonomics.

Cost Economics

Of paramount importance is the economics the machine. The purchase price for the green one is $450 and $750 for the red one with guarantees of 1 and 2 year respectively. Operating costs are 60% lower than conventional methods, saving about $80-120.per hectare on labour.

Considering the targeted market of smallholder farmers, the machine appears to be pricey but good machinery management can optimize the cost. The farmer can also earn about the same amount he saves through hiring out to other farmers, essentially turning it into a business. Through this model, after about 15ha, the farmer can raise the same amount he invested in buying.

The MMFM eliminates some hidden costs which we call the timeliness costs. These are costs or decrease in value of produce due to delays in carrying out a tillage process. If a farmer owns a machine like this, he/she doesnt have to wait for the availability of labourers and he takes about a tenth of the time using manual labour.

Good machinery management can reduce the effects of the initial costs and thus we give the machine a 7 on cost effectiveness.


After a day's with this machine, I can safely say the machine lived up to its reputation. It displayed exceptional power and ability to do its work.  This is a quantum leap towards the future of farming,just as the hoe was the the champion of the iron age. Despite the purchase cost being a bit high, the longterm benefits outweigh the initial investment. In one go, you can replace the hoe, the plough and save your precious time.

Watch the video for the review . Click here for the video.