February 13, 2023 | by Sarah Hill
Honoring Engineering Excellence with the AE50 Awards
There’s so much talk these days about sustainability and the circular bioeconomy. The concepts present lofty goals that will be met only with innovation in technology and engineering. Innovation is what drives the agriculture and food industries forward to provide better, more efficient products for customers and consumers.
ASABE is proud to drive and support innovation in the agriculture and food industries through the AE50 Awards program, offering outlets for agriculture and biological engineering professionals to publish their cutting-edge research, and meetings and conferences where synergy happens and new ideas are born. Award-winning ideas and products that shape the future are first nurtured through research, and publishing research is one of the tenets of ASABE.
The AE50 Awards represent the best innovations in engineering and technology for agricultural, food and biological systems. This year, 25 companies were recognized for their innovative concepts on 38 different products spanning the agriculture industry, from pit level monitors for swine confinement facilities and tractors to planters and digital tools. Deere, Precision Planting and RealmFive received three or more AE50 awards.
An expert panel of engineers from industry and academia select the AE50 award winning products. The judging panel considers innovation, the significance of the engineering achievement, and the impact on the market when choosing the winners. The products represent the diversity of agricultural and biological engineering, as well as the variety of companies that continue to bring advanced technology and exciting innovations to the marketplace.
Established in June 1984, the AE50 Awards are the only awards program of its kind. The awards program got its start in a special issue of ASABE’s Agricultural Engineering (now Resource) in which 25 new techniques, inventions and innovations were showcased. Two years later, the AE50 Award program was born. The top 10 products are eligible for the prestigious Davidson Prize, which is presented jointly with the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. Over the years, many award-winning products were patented and their names trademarked. Some were further improved as technology advanced, and won another AE50 award.
AE50 awards will be presented at the Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference, February 12-14, 2023, in Fresno, Calif.
More information about the AE50 Awards program and the Davidson Prize will be shared during a special episode of "The Lead with ASABE" podcast, which will feature Doug Otto.