As we head into production of the first ever AgLoco® 150, we are taking a closer look at the stories of the people who are going to make this dream become a reality.
First up is John-Luke Langford, a mechanical engineering student from the University of Canterbury who has come on board as a summer intern at AgLoco®. A fast learner on the lathe and up to date with AgLoco®’s mission to take the diesel out of food – John was a natural fit to join our team in the workshop.
At 19 years old, John is by far the youngest member of the AgLoco® crew. He approached us at the end of his second year of university after seeing an advert on student job search. John came in for a trial where he demonstrated the ability to learn quickly on the job and has stayed onboard ever since. Working closely with our Chief Mechanical Engineer Sam Mackwell; John is making the most of the opportunity to hone his practical skill set and has settled in as an astute hand in the AgLoco® workshop.
John’s main responsibility is running the manual lathe to machine high precision parts for the new circulating pump on the 400hp boiler. Sam’s feedback is that he is making “excellent progress” and demonstrating remarkable skill in “hitting tight tolerances”. John grew up in an era where the need to transition beyond fossil fuels was always accepted as an absolute must and he has expressed the importance of our mission to take the diesel out of food. Practical and pragmatic, John sees AgLoco® playing an important role in providing affordable zero carbon tractors to farms in New Zealand and around the world, especially in light of the 2030 and 2050 Emissions Reductions Plans.
Given the skill set he has quickly developed in his short time with us, our next goal is to convince John to take a gap year and join the workshop crew on a full time contract. Whether he takes us up on the offer or not, John has been invaluable to our recent progress and we are sure he will play an important role in the future of AgLoco®. Finding a promising young student intern like John to join the crew highlights how Canterbury, New Zealand, is the perfect place to develop AgLoco®’s unique technology. If we can gather more talented and likeminded individuals together, we will be well on our way to building the first AgLoco® 150 and taking the diesel out of food.
