Finding all the new products at the Caterpillar exhibit took a long time this year. Cat is introducing or has recently introduced many new products, and not just new models of skid-steers of wheel loaders either. The company has added a number of attachments to their line-up. They include everything from a heavy-duty snow pusher to bale spears for moving big bales. Many of the new products have application in the ag field.

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All in all, Caterpillar introduced a dozen new products on their lot at the Farm Progress Show this year.

It's a what? Farm Progress editors found this device at the farm show. It's a silage defacer, a new product offered by Cat for the ag market.

One of the more interesting ones was developed and is offered for a growing segment of their business, spokespersons say. That's providing equipment and attachments for specific purposes to large dairies and to other large livestock operations.

One of the largest diaries anywhere is now located in Indiana – Fair Oaks Dairies.

The new product that dairy producers, especially those with large operations and lots of silage to feed, should find appealing is a silage defacer. The long, black contraption is made to fit on a wheel loader that can raise it up to 20 feet tall to help 'deface,' or loosen, the silage pile. It's especially designed for use in silage bunkers, the choice of most large dairies today.

The challenge is to dislodge enough packed silage in the huge pile for a day's feeding, without knocking down more than will be used in a short time period. Once silage is loosened, it's more susceptible to spoilage.

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The defacer from Cat is well suited for big dairy operations that have big bunkers full of corn silage and which feed a lot of silage on a daily basis, spokespersons note. It safely dislodges silage from the top of the pile and helps maintain a fresh supply of feed for the cows.