Posts Tagged ‘AGCO Australia’

A Delegation of Chinese agricultural and engineering representatives recently toured AGCO Australia’s Sunshine distribution and corporate offices.

The study tour  focused on the promotion of shared innovation and farming practices as China moves towards modernising its agriculture sector while balancing environmental and population challenges.

A vital industry in China, agriculture employs a staggering 300,000 million farmers – roughly 21% of its population, with a history stretching well into China’s ancient past. Rice has been cultivated in China for 7,700 years making it one of the oldest agrarian civilisations.

More contemporarily, China ranks highly in worldwide production of rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oil seed, pork and fish. Accounting for 10 percent of arable land worldwide, China produces food for 20 percent of the world’s population – that’s 1.4 billion people.

Having also visited Europe and North America, the group were interested in analysing case studies of AGCO products that illustrate the real world benefits new technologies have had on farming operations in Australia and the adoption rate amongst local farmers.

China’s agricultural sector is large but also one of the least efficient in the world. The study group’s main focus was on farming methods that will help drive change in traditional methods.

The representatives came from a variety of regions in China, keen on gathering strong evidence of the benefits of different farming practices and their potential to transform traditional techniques, helping China forge ahead with modernisation while mitigating the worst effects of air and water pollution.

Emission reduction technologies and fuel efficient machinery were of particular interest to the delegation as China increases mechanisation of agriculture.

The contrast with Australia’s agricultural sector could not be starker. As a country with a small population, agriculture in Australia employs 307,000 people – that’s 1% of its population. The majority of farm output is destined for offshore markets with Australia ranking 5^th in global wheat exporters.

The potential for improvements in Chinese farming practices is enormous and could have huge benefits for not only for China but also the world, as future food scarcity looms as a potential threat to the global population.

It is hoped that these experiences will help Chinese agricultural specialists and policy makers compare global agricultural practices and adapt new technologies to Chinese farming conditions.

 

From the Auckland Harbour Bridge to the northern-most tip of the New Zealand, AGCO dealer Bryant Tractors has proudly served the Northland Farming industry for 35 years.

From humble beginnings employing just four people, the locally owned Whangarei business owned and operated by Murray Bale and Keith Martin is the largest independent agricultural dealership in New Zealand’s Northland region.

Celebrating their success and thanking their loyal and large customer base, the Bryant Tractor team invited over 320 guests to a function at Whangarei’s Toll stadium.

Guests enjoyed a buffet dinner, live entertainment and listened to the inspirational story of New Zealand Paralympic champion swimmer, Cameron Leslie.

The spacious facilities of the Northlands Rugby Union home ground also allowed Bryant tractors to display a large range of the latest AGCO products which guest were able mill around while catching up over a social drink or two.

Congratulating the Bryant Tractors team for their long history of service, Guest Speaker AGCO NZ Manager Peter Scott outlined AGCO’s Vision of the Future and an overview of the NZ tractor market.

Commenting after the event, Peter said “Bryant Tractors has been a fixture in the local agricultural industry for a generation, consistently providing the Northland region with professional service and support and  offering a range of AGCO products that meet the demands of modern farming practices in New Zealand.”

Attending the event customers Ian and Coleen Taylor took the opportunity to pass on their best wishes to Murray and Bryant tractors staff.

“We thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the machinery Bryant Tractors had on display, it is amazing what a change there has been even in our lifetime! We were very interested to hear the story of AGCO, its impressive results, with such rapid growth throughout the world.  We look forward to seeing what is coming off the production line next,” Ian and Coleen Taylor said.

Murray and Keith thanked their customers and made special mention of past and current staff who have contributed to the success of Bryant Tractors including co-founder Bill Bryant.

AGCO congratulates Bryant Tractors for 35 years of dedicated professional service and looks forward continuing a successful partnership in the vibrant New Zealand agricultural industry.

 

 

Vision of the Future, Melbourne 2014, showcased Massey Ferguson’s range of machinery and technology solutions for grounds care applications right through to modern broad acre farming operations.

With 4,500m2 of exhibition space and over 80 display units, information kiosks and multimedia displays all under one roof, Vision of the Future was a great opportunity for agricultural operators across the APAC region to see the latest in Massey Ferguson products and Fuse technologies before the busy Harvest period.

Running over three days, the event unveiled new Massey Ferguson products as part of a wider global release.

Vision of the Future – Melbourne featured a glimpse of the new generation of Massey Ferguson products now available in Australia and New Zealand,  including the New 74-82 HP MF4700 Global Series and Massey Ferguson’s most powerful tractor yet, the new 270-370 HP MF8700 Series.

260 Massey Ferguson dealers from across the region along with over 400 customers were also introduced to the global series concept, unique in the farm machinery industry and a major component of Massey Ferguson’s Vision of the Future.

Massey Ferguson’s parent company, AGCO has already started the Global Series investment in new facilities and systems that will create a highly flexible network of manufacturing plants, enabling major units and complete tractors to be produced and assembled at multiple locations throughout the world to meet the demands of local markets.

“This is an exciting time for Massey Ferguson and our customers as we embark on a new generation of products that offer features and quality that will make them very attractive to Australian and New Zealand farmers and operators,” says Simon Hole, Director of Marketing, AGCO Australia.

Product specialists, parts specialists, dealers and finance representatives were available with the latest information and product knowledge about the exciting Massey Ferguson range and the future of Global Series.

Also featured at the event was the exciting and ongoing development in technology products.

Taking the central stage across the three day event, Fuse technology Product Manager Jeremy Duniam outlined the huge benefits of technologies currently available on Massey Ferguson products and the enormous market potential these products have, as well as their positive impact on the profitability and efficiency of farming worldwide.

“Fuse is a new generational open approach to precision agriculture for Massey Ferguson products.  Fuse connects the entire crop cycle from enterprise planning to planting, crop care, and harvesting and grain storage. For Massey Ferguson customers it means access to seamless advance technology and data management that can be integrated into their current operations and service providers with immediate benefits and improvements in efficiencies into the future. It is an exciting time for advanced technologies”, Jeremy said.

Dealers and customers also got the opportunity to be amongst the first people in the world to test drive the new MF4700 Global Series, with several MF4708 models available at an off site testing location.

The Vision of the Future event was a huge success and the Massey Ferguson team at AGCO Australia thanks all APAC attendees, many of whom travelling from around Asia Pacific, New Zealand  and regional Australia, for their positive participation in the event.

Farmers and contractors in the Wimmera region of Western Victoria, Australia have a new partner supporting their businesses.

Traction AG has been appointed as the AGCO Dealer for the export focussed broad acre district that produces cereal, pulse and oilseed crops as well as some livestock.

New Dealer Principals Kym Grosser, Frank Delahunty and Peter Blair combine a vast range of expertise with backgrounds in engineering, machinery sales, business and farming. The Traction AG team have over 150 years of experience and are passionate about machinery that delivers performance, efficiency and productivity.

Celebrating the opening of the Horsham premises, 160 local farmers and contractors were invited to enjoy a social evening and meet with the Traction AG staff and AGCO representatives.

The event was a great opportunity for attendees to see the exciting AGCO range of products and speak with Traction AG staff and AGCO representatives about innovations and technology that can help them drive efficiencies in their farming operations.

AGCO Area Sales Manager West Victoria, Chris Browne was impressed with the increasing interest in efficient farming practices.

“It was great to see some new and familiar faces at the event and hear a lot of positive views on the increasing importance of technology and improved efficiencies in farming practices in the Wimmera region. There is a lot of enthusiasm for products that tick all the boxes in broad acre farming which is increasingly about economies of scale”, said Chris Browne,

Traction AG Business Manager Will de Fégely was keen to catch up with guests and also spoke of the increasing significance local farmers are giving to efficient farming systems

“It was a good opportunity for farmers to meet our staff and get a look at our new premises as well as the range of AGCO products. The region has increasing demand for technology that will drive down costs in broad acre farming. With our Horsham and Nhill branches, we are looking forward to meeting this demand for a complete product range that exceeds the expectations of customers and is backed up by reliable service support and a global parts network”, Will said.

Traction AG is set to open their Nhill branch in October during the Nhill Show. The team is looking forward to a bright future supporting the Wimmera farming community with products and service support that meet the demands of modern operators in the region.

One of the best arrays of AGCO products in New Zealand was on display at the recent Central New Zealand Customer evening held in Manfield and attended by a large gathering of 325 customers and dealer staff.

The event was an initiative of four local dealers – TFM Tractors, TRC Tractors Fielding and FieldTorque – presenting the audience with the Iseki brand and the surprise unveiling of the new MF6600 Series 120-140hp and Fendt 500 Vario 125hp-165hp tractors.

Also in attendance was AGCO staff, who offered a detailed overview of the new Fendt and Massey Ferguson tractors.

But it wasn’t all serious business – the audience was also entertained with a video of a “Top Gear” inspired hot lap that saw the Iseki, MF6600 and Fendt 500 go head to head at the nearby Manfield race track, followed later in the evening by a uniquely local comedic performance.

While it was a great opportunity to introduce exciting new product ranges, the evening was just as much a celebration for customers and a chance for dealers to show their appreciation of their support.

AGCO Australia staff invited to present and enjoy the evening were impressed by the great atmosphere and overwhelming support shown buy the large number of attendees.

“This has probably been one of the best dealer events I have attended. It was great to see the professionalism and dedication of the New Zealand dealers that organised the evening and the large number of customers that came along and had a great time”, said Paul Darcy, Director of Sales AGCO Australia.

Special mention was reserved for TRC, who were elevated to four star dealer status as part of AGCO’s program of dealer development.

AGCO Australia would like to thank TFM Tractors, TRC Tractors Fielding and FieldTorque for the great event and all New Zealand customers that participated.