ROPA Symposium - 50 years of Hermann Paintner harvesting technology

In 1972, exactly 50 years ago, Hermann Paintner started the harvest season in Sittelsdorf with his first self-designed sugar beet harvester. It is remarkable how the ROPA sugar beet technology has developed since then. Since 2012, ROPA has also been active in the potato sector and we can be proud of these 10 years of ROPA potato technology. However, we do not want to rest on our past successes, we still have plenty of innovative ideas and are primed for further success.

The Ropa Symposium, which took place on Saturday, a day before the Open House, was also dedicated to these two anniversaries - 50 years of Hermann Paintner harvesting technology and 10 years of ROPA potato technology. Around 1,300 customers and guests of honour were invited to the event. In order to ensure further market success together with our customers, we and the distinguished speakers focused on the latest significant topics in our sectors and discussed them with the guests at our sixth ROPA symposium. Thus, we also wanted to provide new ideas and impulses.

Even the Minister President of Bavaria, Dr. Markus Söder, did not miss the opportunity to come to Sittelsdorf in person for this occasion. In his laudation, he congratulated the visionary and entrepreneur Hermann Paintner on his life's work and the worldwide success of the company based on outstanding technical innovations.

Below you can find a brief overview with impressions of the symposium program and festivities.

Greetings and Opening

Greetings

Managing Director Dr. Eberhard Krayl welcomed more than 1,300 invited guests and gave a brief overview of the company's current activities.

Welcoming speech and introduction

Hermann Paintner welcomed the guests and spoke about the current situation in the agricultural sector. He addressed the Minister President of Bavaria with few questions as a subject for discussion before handing over to Dr. Markus Söder.

Greeting speech of the Minister President of Bavaria

Dr Markus Söder congratulated Hermann Paintner on the 50th anniversary of his harvesting technology. "Bavaria stands for high-tech and homeland. Agriculture is an integral part of Bavaria. Bavarian agriculture produces the highest quality products, Bavarian food is popular all over the world. Agricultural machines with the state-of-the-art technology ensure good harvests." He thanked the Paintner family for the great achievement as representatives of the family businesses in Bavaria: "They are regional, local and care about the next generation."

Greeting speech of the Herrngiersdorf municipality representative - Entry in the Golden Book of the Herrngiersdorf municipality

For the guests as well as the invited regional politicians it was a special honour and appreciation that the Minister President visited Sittelsdorf.This was praised by the mayor of the municipality of Herrngiersdorf, Ida Hirthammer (3rd from right) in her speech. The Minister President was the first to sign the Golden Book of the municipality of Herrngiersdorf, which was done in the presence of a Member of the State Parliament Petra Högl, Hermann and Marianne Paintner, first Mayor of the Administrative Community Langquaid Herbert Blaschek, Managing Director Dr. Eberhard Krayl and District Administrator of Kelheim Martin Neumeyer.

PROGRAM, SPEAKERS AND TOPICS - part 1

Introduction and Hosting

Werner Bauereisen
Head of Sales ROPA Sugar Beet Technology

Sugar beet technology department

Introduction and Hosting

Dr. Rupert Geischeder
Head of Sales ROPA Potato Technology

Potato technology department

Cultivation of chicory, harvesting in Chile

Dr. Eberhard Krayl on behalf of

Dr. Johann Maier
Head of Agricultural Research, Südzucker

Sugar beet technology department

What do we learn from the year 2022? Experience in dealing with special cultivation conditions

Dr. Rolf Peters,
Managing Director of PotatoConsult UG

Potato technology department

Railway loading of sugar beet, sustainability in the processing chain of sugar beet logistics

Bernhard Trumann,
Managing Director and Head of Operations of TG Schleswig-Holstein eG and RoSiMa-Rohstoﬀ SicherungsManagement GmbH

Sugar beet technology department

Potato haulm control - first experience and practical tips

Dr. Timm Bernhard,
Justus Liebig University of Giessen

Potato technology department

Application of microbial carbonisation as a basis for permanent humus formation and CO² certificate trading. Practitioner's report on the application and its impact on soil fertility and water holding capacity

Dirk Nachbarschulte,
Farmer and Managing Director of Nachbarschulte Agrarservice

Sugar beet technology department

Current situation on the potato market

Ferdi Buffen,
Managing Director of Wilhelm Weuthen GmbH & Co. KG

Potato technology department

Lunch at the new assembly centre

PROGRAM, SPEAKERS AND TOPICS - part 2

"Employees of the future" - how to support my team? Employee motivation, employee retention, marketing in service providing companies

Georg Mauser,
Head of Operations and Managing Director of RRGW -
Rübenrodegemeinschaft Weinviertel Mitte eGen and
Managing Director of KDW Kommunaldienst Weinviertel OG

Sugar beet technology department

Potato loader for starch potatoes - procedure and experience

Holger Hanke,
Head of Raw Material Management at the plants of Emsland-Stärke GmbH in Golßen, Kyritz and Hagenau
Dr. Stefan Dick,
Managing Director of Südstärke GmbH

Potato technology department

New products and innovations in the ROPA sugar beet technology, further improvements of Tiger 6S, Panther 2S and Maus 6, digital innovations and benefits of networking with R-Connect telematics, myROPA

Michael Gruber,
Head of ROPA Sugar Beet Technology

Sugar beet technology department

Latest trends and innovations in the ROPA potato harvesting technology

Dr. Rupert Geischeder
Head of Sales ROPA Potato Technology

Potato technology department

Welcome speech

Welcome speech of the 44th Bavarian Potato Queen Michelle I.

Michelle Hofner

Welcome speech of the 14th German Sugar Beet Queen

Magdalena Röckl

Welcome speech of the district representative

Martin Neumeyer,
District administrator of Kelheim

PROGRAM, SPEAKERS AND TOPICS - part 3

Agriculture in Ukraine, efficiency of crop fertilisation in farming, machine construction at ROPA Ukraine

Vitaly Orlovski,
Manager of the Paintners' arable farm in Ukraine, Managing Director of ROPA Ukraine

NEXAT - Next Generation Agricultural Technology

Klemens Kalverkamp,
Managing Director of Nexat GmbH and Kalverkamp Innovation

Climate crisis and shortage of basic food supply - more serious than imagined?

Michael Horsch,
Managing Director of Horsch Maschinen GmbH

Hermann Paintner and Michael Horsch - conversation about agricultural technologies

The two pioneers in agricultural technology reviewed the past years. From their first encounter in the field, failed high-cost designs, to far-reaching technical innovations

Closing words by Carolin Paintner

Carolin Paintner, Hermann Paintner's daughter, and her son Vinzent gave a moving and heartfelt speech about the visionary and pioneer Hermann Paintner. Carolin Paintner works with her father in the Development department. She often gives new solutions the necessary final touches and the modern ROPA design.

Carolin described her father as a visionar, who consistently implements his creative ideas, strategies and visions for the future. She particularly appreciated his stamina paired with a lot of experience, great knowledge of human nature and the ability to remain calm.