How did the Hydra Bed® come into existence?

    Large round bales came to Northeast Kansas by way of a Vermeer 706C baler  in 1972 and greatly reduced the labor required to bale and store hay.   These balers produced 6' wide, 6' diameter bale bales weighing 2200-3200 lbs .   Tractor operated bale handlers were not practical to feed Spring calving cowherds scattered out in groups several miles apart.  The slide-in style round bale handling units available at that time prevented utilization of the truck for other ranch and farm work and were not designed to handle those bale weights.  In the winter of '79-'80, the prototype of the Hydra Bed® was constructed and put to use on a 5th generation Kansas cattle operation.  The first model was upgraded several times with material strong enough to easily handle these 2200-3200 lb. bales.  The structural strengths of the Hydra Bed® remain unchanged, ensuring long life and exceptional durability with today's 1200-2800 lb bales. 

    The Hydra Bed® dramatically changed round bale handling and feeding.  Total time spent handling hay was greatly reduced.

The Original Hydra Bed®   Invented in 1979

How and when did Triple C get started?

Only after the Hydra Bed® proved its value and dependablility on the Ackerman operation was the idea of marketing it to other ranchers developed.  Triple C, Inc. was established in 1983 at Sabetha, Kansas to manufacture and market the Hydra Bed®.

Was the Hydra Bed® an instant success?

Three years of real-life ranch use and refinement led to the pursuit of a patent to protect the innovative machine.  Cautious early exposure to the cattle industry produced many inquiries and orders from all across the High Plains.   Most, if not all of those early units are still dependably feeding hay today for those same satisfied owners.

    Since the flush-mount, flatbed, hydraulic bale handler was a COMPLETELY NEW CONCEPT, it took some time to get the idea across in the minds of the public.  The fact that the arms "disappeared" when not in use and didn't obstruct the flatbed in any way was quite difficult for most people to grasp.   But once the concept was understood, ranchers quickly adopted the Hydra Bed® system in their operations.

Since that time, other products have been developed as solutions to problems found on the typical ranch.  The Hydra Bed's® hydraulic capabilities led to the development of several other products.  The Hydra Feeder™ was developed in 1994 for range and bunk feeding of cubes, cake, grains, etc.   The Hydra PHD™, hydraulic post hole digger, was invented in 1993 for those fencing jobs that require immediate attention (don't they all).  Both of these products can also be used on the Hydra TM 2000™, tractor -mount bale handler/unroller developed in 1986.  The Hydra BD 2200™ self-contained bolt-down unit was designed in 1996 for utilization on existing flatbeds.  Other options and attachments have been incorporated throughout the years.

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