Putting tractors to the test

Southwest Research Institute offers manufacturers a readymade R&D laboratory and the test programs to push their machines to the limit.

For more than 30 years, the tractor laboratory at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has served major tractor manufacturers as an unbiased extension of their own research and development (R&D) activities. In that time, the lab has been involved in almost every aspect of tractor component, driveline, and hydraulic fluid evaluations.

In operation since 1947, SwRI operates as an independent, nonprofit, applied R&D organization based in San Antonio, TX. Its more than 3000 employees work in a variety of fields including the off-highway, automotive, aerospace, software, manufacturing, geoscience, and chemical industries at the facility's almost 2 million ft² (186,000 m²) of laboratory space, workshops, and offices.