The anniversary of the potting machine

Commercial horticultural enterprises have been benefiting from the know-how of Mayer since 1967. With its innovative solutions that promote production efficiency, Mayer GmbH & Co. KG is continually setting new standards in the sector. The company's many customers throughout the world are more than impressed by the ability of its machines to fill pots and trays and handle products.

Georg Mayer tinkered on various systems for a while before finally unveiling the first automatic potting machine with drill under the name of 'planter' in 1967. This was the beginning of a worldwide success story - and time has not stood still in the interim in Heidenheim, where Mayer GmbH & Co. KG is based. Klaus Mayer, son of the inventor of the potting machine, has been managing the firm for some 25 years and represents the fifth generation of his family to do so.

The quality of horticultural machinery by Mayer is recognised across the globe. Whether in China and in New Zealand, the USA and Argentina - when it comes to potting plants, a machine bearing the brand of the Heidenheim-based company Mayer will be in use.

Orchids from South Tyrol
Valtl Raffeiner's businesses in sunny South Tyrol and the Apulia region have long relied on the innovations provided by Mayer. The specialisation of the family-run company is the cultivation of high quality orchids and it employs two TM 1010F potting machines, three pot robots, a bale breaker and a labelling machine supplied by Mayer. "We have been purchasing their equipment for years and have always been more than satisfied with the company's services and support. In fact, we are so convinced by their solutions that we always test out the latest of their products as soon as they come on the market. Our companies Raffeiner and Floralp in Gargazon and Bozen in South Tyrol and Südkultur based in Apulia would not be able to function without the products provided by Mayer," states Valtl Raffeiner with conviction.

Efficient potting in the north
Christoph Marken, the owner of the Christoph Marken GmbH & Co KG (BCM) tree nursery in Westerstede in the north of Germany, also relies on Mayer products. He has been using Mayer potting machines on his 148 acre-plus container tree nursery for more than 20 years. Seven machines are currently in operation in various production facilities focused on various aspects of cultivation.

Two years ago, Marken acquired two TM 2700 machines for his largest production facility to which he subsequently added a Visser Greenline planter. "We mainly pot plants in 2-litre and some 1-litre containers using this potting line with which we manage to produce 4000 units each hour." Three additional TM 2400 potting machines are used for standard 2 - 7 litre units while two TM 2020 are also used for smaller pots and 10-litre containers. The machine array is further supplemented by a TM 2018 potting machine.

The experienced entrepreneur is familiar with the wide range of Mayer products and uses this to his advantage, "From our point of view, we have found over the last years and decades that Mayer's developments have always complemented the needs of our tree nursery. We are particularly pleased and grateful for the close and results-driven collaboration we enjoy with the company Klarmann, Mayer's northern customer centre. The outstanding quality and reliability of the machinery and the excellent customer services are the reasons we have remained loyal to Mayer and its potting machines over the years."

"Rapid, reliable and efficient!"
In his horticultural business based in Ellingen in Bavaria, Bernhard Nill uses a TM 2400 DR potting machine, a BZ 6151 bale breaker and two labelling machines. "It is important for us to have partners we can rely on 24/7 - partners who are quick to provide help and work closely with us to find solutions. It was because of these needs and the performance of the systems and machinery produced by Mayer that we decided to use their services - something we have never come to regret over the past decades. To sum up Mayer in a few words: they are rapid, reliable and efficient!”

20 million plants per hour
Providing for a production capacity of up to 10,000 pots per hour and offering all imaginable add-ons to facilitate the production process - from soil preparation to processing of the finished product - the current Mayer machine range offers all conceivable features necessary to ensure a horticultural business can operate efficiently and cost-effectively. Our customers are particularly impressed by the flexibility and high quality of our equipment and the associated short downtimes. Adding together the potential output of the various Mayer machines currently in operation around the world, 20 million plants are being potted every hour using Mayer potting machines.

New website online
The 50th birthday of the potting machine is being celebrated by the management team in Heidenheim headquarters together with customers, partners and others and the event is also being marked by the launch of a new website at www.mayer.de. Visitors to the site can discover the latest product innovations straight from the horse's mouth and for the future a brand new online store for replacement parts, personalised log-in areas for customers and partners and much more are planned.

For more information:
Mayer
Poststraße 30
89522 Heidenheim
Germany
T: +49 7321 9594 290
F: +49 7321 9594 299
[email protected]
mayer.de