Federal budget outlines plans for consultations on equipment interoperability and the right to repair machinery
Canadian short-line agriculture equipment manufacturers raised the alarm recently over some major brand original equipment manufacturers locking their onboard digital systems on selected machines. The move effectively prevents short-line manufacturers from connecting their attachments to those machines, which effectively locks them out of the market. It has particularly affected Canadian short-line manufacturers who build combine […] Read moreTag Archives Carlo Dade
Short-line manufacturers face obstacles
Copyright laws and digital lockouts prevent implement manufactures from connecting to the electronics of OEM systems
Not that many years ago, getting an implement or attachment to work with a tractor or other major brand machine usually just meant putting compatible ends on hydraulic hoses. However, as technology has advanced, access to and interoperability with the machine’s digital system has become the key consideration — and now stumbling block in some […] Read more
Short-line manufacturers important to western economy
Growing risk to Prairie ag manufacturing is also an economic risk in regions where farm equipment is manufactured
With some major equipment brands limiting access to the digital systems on their machines, Prairie short-line manufacturers who build attachments requiring that connectivity are finding themselves shut out of a growing number of market opportunities. This anticompetitive behaviour by some major original equipment manufacturers has shortlines facing a growing threat to their future viability, which […] Read more
‘Whack-a-mole’ approach carries major ag risks
Prairie agricultural commodities must be able to reach tidewater or there won’t be an industry. It’s as simple as that. That is why a recent presentation by Carlo Dade of the Canada West Foundation is so alarming. The director of the foundation’s Trade and Investment Centre told the CrossRoads Crop Conference in Calgary that Canada […] Read more
More strategic planning urged for trade infrastructure
Canada moved from being in the world’s top 10 in 2009 in terms of transportation infrastructure to 32nd place in 2019
CALGARY — Canada needs to get off its “whack-a-mole treadmill” and take national co-ordinated action to reverse a years-long decline in its transportation infrastructure system that producers rely on to reach global markets, says an expert. “Canada is unique among major exporting countries in not having this … national capacity to understand our system and […] Read more
Interoperability bill is a win for common sense
Many farmers are probably unaware of the legislation regarding the interoperability of equipment, but it’s a rare example of parliamentarians coming together to support a good cause. In simple terms, interoperability refers to the ability of short-line equipment manufacturers to have their products work on mainline machines. The issue came to a head with John […] Read more
