Medium-Power Tractor Operator (Sugarcane Planting)

About the role

Tana River Sugar Company is recruiting seven Medium-Power Tractor Operators to run specialized planting and secondary land preparation work. You will drive 155-190 hp MFWD tractors fitted with heavy-duty trailed billet planters and multi-row bed formers, ensuring accurate row spacing, planting depth and uniform plantation geometry.

Key responsibilities

• Operate high-power tractors with a heavy-duty trailed billet planter during the sugarcane planting season, keeping the moving-floor hopper and dual-row feed system running smoothly.
• Monitor hydraulic controls and twin tanks, and report pressure loss, leaks or abnormal movements.
• Before planting, operate the multi-row bed former to set consistent three-row field geometry, drainage channels and reference lines.
• Maintain bed dimensions and row alignment across blocks, coordinating with the planting partner and field supervisor.
• Adjust planting depth, speed, billet rate and hopper feed to field and soil conditions, and coordinate bed formation and planting timing.
• Outside the main season, operate the bed former for ratoon-cane bed reforming and other secondary land preparation.
• Coordinate haulage of gypsum, filter mud and cleared materials on tipping trailers, taking care on soft or uneven ground.
• Carry out pre-start checks of the tractor and implements, manage fuel and operating hours, and keep daily logs of hectares worked, fuel used and issues encountered.
• Report planter performance and faults to the Planting Supervisor and work with Agronomy, Plant & Machinery, Land Development and planting teams.
• Follow company HSE procedures, machinery operating standards and field traffic controls.

Required profile

• NTSA Class G12 valid heavy agricultural equipment operator licence.
• At least five years of hands-on experience driving high-power agricultural tractors in commercial farming, plantation or land development.
• Experience with trailed planters, bed formers or precision farming equipment is highly desirable; sugarcane planting experience is an added advantage.

Required skills

• Understanding of the mechanical and hydraulic operation of trailed planters, including hopper systems, billet feed, depth control and row spacing.
• Ability to spot hydraulic faults and communicate them to maintenance.
• Proficiency with multi-row bed formers and adjusting planter settings to soil type and moisture.
• Basic knowledge of sugarcane agronomy and the ability to calculate hectares per hour and fuel per hectare.