A decade and a half from now, the pto shaft as we know it could have disappeared from new tractors. That’s the startling prediction from German high-tech trailer maker Fliegl.

As tractor makers such as Deere, Claas and Deutz push up the electrical power output from their machines, it believes implement makers will offer more electrically-powered equipment to make use of that power.

Electric motors have a lot of advantages Ð they use less fuel than pto power, their highest torque is generated at start-up and they are easier to plumb into any implement.

Fliegl is one of several implement makers working with John Deere to produce equipment that can use the electric power generated from its new 6210RE tractor. It was showing an electrically-driven trailer axle powered by a motor than can provide 8kW of continuous power or 20kW of peak power, both from the Deere’s own on-board generator.

Another advantage of an electrically-driven trailer axle (compared to a one that uses a pto) is that the speed of the tractor wheels and the driven trailer wheels can be exactly synchronised.