After what has felt like an age, but in reality has been two years, the Service Dealer Conference & Awards finally took place again yesterday at the DoubleTree by Hilton Oxford Belfry.

And I must say, what a special day it was! The event was (safely) busy with dealers from around the country, representing businesses large and small, who specialise in machinery areas across the spectrum. From the ag specialists in the room, to the professional groundcare experts, to those who ply their trade in domestic, forestry and ATV machinery, I feel confident in saying all will be returning to their places of business with some fresh perspectives and new ideas to put into practice.

Following the event, Service Dealer owner, Duncan Murray-Clarke said, "I was delighted with the energy that the speakers, delegates and sponsors brought to the day and evening. The industry was due a big night out and it was so lovely to catch up with everyone."

From a personal point of view, I felt the conference was pitched perfectly. Speaking to delegates during and after the event, many said to me just how pleased they were to be back at the day - or to be attending for the first time - and how much they had benefited from they had heard. The industry's enforced time apart these past two years, seems to have genuinely built up an appetite for a gathering such as this.

Of course it's all very delightful meeting up with peers and colleagues on a purely social basis - and there was plenty of time for that - but a business conference succeeds or fails on its content. Having no involvement in the organising of the day itself - that's down to Duncan and his amazing team - I feel justified in saying that yesterday exceeded expectations. It delivered food for thought, lively debate, and a superb forum for the sharing of specialist knowledge.

Smart working

Duncan Murray-Clarke, kicked the day off, welcoming delegates and diligently explaining the covid-safety protocols in place for everyone's comfort. With the formalities out of the way Duncan remarked how at every conference in the past, there had been challenges and issues for dealers to address - but this year, he didn't quite know where to start!

Duncan Murray-Clarke

He said, "2020/21 has of course been extraordinary and no amount of past experience prepared us for what happened. But the changes the pandemic brought were soon accepted by the outdoor power and agricultural equipment industry.  

"After that brief initial intake of breath we all went through, you the dealers started safely opening based on the guidelines and often with your own unique practical problem solving. For a change the weather was on our side and it soon became clear that people were focussing on their homes and more importantly their gardens. It took a bit longer for the professional turfcare sector to open up, and the ag industry carried on (albeit with far less human contact)."

Addressing the Smart Working theme of the day, Duncan went on to say, "The last 20 months have been like no other and we’ve all had to adapt and find new ways of working. We’ve had to be smarter with our time, juggling home life and our businesses. We’ve also had to find alternative ways for communicating with our teams and our customers to ensure business continuity. Technology has played an important part in allowing us to continue to operate and to keep in touch."

The first keynote address of the day came from Ed Gillespie who last spoke to the conference back in 2018. Ed's style of speaking from the hip and combining futurism with sustainability issues and sharp observation went down very well once again.

Ed Gillespie

This time his presentation was entitled 'Smart Working In A Changing World.' Ed talked about what is being termed post-pandemic, as the great reset. In his inimitable manor, he considered why we as humans are so "eff-ed" and what we could do to "un-eff ourselves"! In a wide ranging presentation that got the conference talking, he proposed that our ways of working have inevitably changed for good - the genie is out of the bottle is how he put it.

The power of technology enables new ways of working, said Ed, ways that have become trends these past 18 months that will be hard to shift. He warned the conference though, that with disruption such as we've seen, "..the road ahead will be bumpy."

Interactive sessions

The first of the day's breakout sessions followed Ed. These seminar sessions that split the delegates into smaller working groups, never fail to encourage an engaging dialogue between the presenter and the audience of dealers.

One of the sessions was run by Teresa Heath-Wareing, the day's other keynote presenter, and was billed as a 'Social Media Masterclass'. Teresa got her groups brainstorming, helping them to think of what they can post on their social media channels - and more importantly how to do it well for maximum engagement.

Teresa Heath-Wearing

She stressed how it was the quality of a dealership's social posts that matter, not the quantity. She advised to set aside even just an hour a week to think about what could be shared, and plan it out carefully to generate ideas for the content. "A good post," Teresa said, "needs to educate, entertain and offer a call to action. You should ask yourself whenever you post anything, who cares about this?" 

Simply try to sell via your posts doesn't work Teresa told the delegates. "When talking on social media we're talking to other humans - which we tend to forget sometimes," she explained. "When you discuss issues that affect your customers but are not directly connected to what you sell, you are showing an appealing human side and you're saying to your followers, 'I get you.'".

The other breakout session was called 'New Technology Will Empower You, Not Replace You' and was hosted by Ben Scott-Robinson of the Small Robot Company. This session and indeed a talk later in the day were actually supposed to be hosted by Ben's colleague Sam Watson-Jones, but he'd unfortunately had to pull out due to a positive Covid test earlier in the week. Ben however, gamely stepped in and did a cracking job at relatively short notice.

Ben Scott-Robinson

Ben's breakout session was unusual in that he turned the tables on the dealers in the room somewhat. He asked them to think how his business of autonomous robots that can map, weed kill and plant out in the field, might work as part of a dealership's setup. Through getting the dealers in the room to talk to each other in small groups, he was encouraging them to think through how, or indeed if, a business proposition such as this could work in a dealership in the future.

It was fascinating to hear the dealers work through whether a technology so different to what they sell and service today could fit in with how they run their companies. Most thought that the dealership certainly had the route to market that the Small Robot Company needed, but there were differing opinions as to whether it could actually be viable for themselves. Certainly most felt that their businesses would have to change somewhat to adapt to what was required, perhaps with the creation of a new specialist department. But as most of the conference attested to, change in the post-pandemic world is unavoidable.

Relate to your customers

After lunch, delegates received a shot of energetic enthusiasm, from Teresa Heath-Wearing with her keynote entitled 'How To Have Social Media Success And Use It To Find Your Next Customer'.  An area of particular interest to all dealers considering just how vital digital has been to everyone's businesses these past two years, Teresa spoke about how social needs to be considered as the modern means of networking. "It's not just about likes and follows anymore," she said, "social is where we see the real people behind a company."

Teresa told the delegates that they need to have confidence to put their personalities out there. What is of most importance with what they post, is getting that back and forth, the engagement, with people. "Relate to your customers, " she encouraged. "Translate that banter you have in real life with them, to what you put out online."

The final main presentation of the day came from Ben Scott-Robinson of the Small Robot Company. In his talk entitled 'The Fourth Agricultural Revolution - Sooner Than You Think', Ben talked through the remarkable strides in precision agriculture that his company and others like them are making. His belief is that the world requires agriculture that is not based around large vehicles - the future must be shaped around robots and A.I. "Our vision," he said, "is that per-plant farming will be the dominate farming system in the next 20 years."

Again offering up ideas that allowed the delegates to consider how both their businesses and the sectors that they serve are undergoing seismic changes, Ben enlightened the conference to technologies and practices that will soon move ever more mainstream.

The changed workplace

The Conference wrapped up with the return of Ed Gillespie to the stage hosting a roundtable discussion called 'Riding the ‘hybrid’ work-horse – wrangling with the pros and cons of new ways of working'. Ed was joined by Duncan Murray-Clarke, Teresa Heath-Wearing, Ernest Doe's Graham Parker and Farol's Geoff Thompson for a fascinating conversation that considered how the pandemic has changed our working methods for good.

L-R: Duncan Murray-Clarke, Geoff Thompson, Teresa Heath-Wearing, Graham Parker and Ed Gillespie

The dealers on the panel confirmed that the notion of working away from the place of business, for those roles that are able, is something never really considered before - but is certainly here to stay. Graham Parker confirmed that meetings of their team online are now happening more frequently, but are shorter, faster and more productive. Geoff Thompson also agreed that greater efficiencies are now achieved by cutting much of the unnecessary driving between depots for meetings.

Ed offered up the theory of a crisis bring the future closer, which the panel felt was true. However, there was a feeling of caution that even though many are pleased with the new hybrid working options individuals and businesses enjoy right now, we should be mindful of things slipping back to how they were a few years ago. Duncan countered however, believing, "People have expectations now. We can't let ourselves go back."

Following the roundtable Duncan brought the conference to a conclusion thanking the speakers and all the delegates for their contributions to the day's theme of smart working. He said, "We find ourselves in a time when looking forward is more important than ever. Knowledge is indeed power."

I would like to personally thank the team at TAP for putting together such an engaging, thought-provoking and enjoyable day once again. I think it's safe to say the industry sorely missed the opportunity to congregate and learn from each other last year - so it was amazing to be back. 

Isolation is not good for individuals or businesses. It seems to me that taking the opportunity to embrace an event like this, is more important than ever before.

A final massive thanks also must go to the day's sponsors, without whom the conference wouldn't be possible.

This year's sponsors were:

Principal Sponsor

Kramp

Platinum Sponsor

Ibcos & Catalyst

Gold Sponsors

Kubota

Husqvarna

Toro UK

AGCO

Networking Sponsors

BAGMA

PSD Groundscare

Maidstone-based Haynes Bros has bought the trade and assets of neighbouring dealer Oakes Bros, established in 1825 at Hungerford, Berkshire

This acquisition brings together two long-established businesses holding key franchises for New Holland and JCB, along with Kuhn Farm Machinery, McConnel, Honda, Krone, and Stewart.

Haynes acquire three Oakes agricultural branches covering parts of Berkshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey, West Sussex and Wiltshire and this will double the size of the Haynes agricultural business. These branches will be re-branded by Haynes Agricultural shortly.

Oakes had previously operated from East Ilsley, Micheldever and Horsham, but a smaller branch at Coombe Bissett near Salisbury will close. 

These branches will be added to the 3 Haynes branches at Uckfield, Wrotham and Ashford holding the New Holland and JCB  franchises, plus the branch at Birchington, Kent  holding Case IH and JCB franchises.

Established in 1790 in London, Haynes Bros Ltd is now the holding company for a group of subsidiary companies operating throughout the South East. Moving to Kent in 1832, the Company was the first in the county to take on the Ford Motor Company franchise in 1911 and then sell and distribute the complete range of Ford cars, trucks and agricultural machinery.

“We believe this expansion is a natural fit for our agricultural business giving us increased scale in this key area of our operations,” comments Andrew Haynes, chairman and CEO of Haynes Bros. “The Oakes business is well known to us and we have been neighbouring dealers for many years following our expansion into Sussex in 2004. This move will provide us now with greater economies of scale and resources which we believe over time will be of considerable benefit to our mutual customers, staff and manufacturers.”

Lister Wilder has announced the opening of a new branch located in Keynsham, between Bristol and Bath which is to be opened up to the public in Spring 2022.

The Kubota dealer has been making considerable changes to its business since its full-line status in October 2020 - recently announcing a new Kubota Centre in Bibury, Gloucestershire.

The new Bristol/Bath branch will offer sales, parts and service support for the entire range of Kubota Groundcare machinery - as well as many other franchises that Lister Wilder represent.

Alongside this the company has also announced the launch of its new South West Hire Division - supplying an extensive range of specialist groundcare machinery for its customers based in the West, operating from this new premises.

Phill Hughes, sales & hire director said, "This is a really exciting announcement for us, we had planned to open the branch in 2023 but the increase in the
levels of business that we’ve seen this year made us re-think the time-scale and bring it forward.

"The Bristol & Bath area is extremely important to our groundcare business and we want to make sure that we are can fully support the machines that are being sold into the two cities. The branch located at Burnett Business Park is an ideal location, and we are looking to develop our hire business across the region with local support."

The company say they will also shortly be embarking on a recruitment drive for this new branch.

Truro Farm Machinery is the latest dealer to agree to sell and support ARGO Tractors’ McCormick brand, with the business having taken on the full franchise for McCormick’s 44-310hp range from November 15.

The change follows a shuffling of tractor brands amongst dealerships locally. Service Dealer understandsthat Truro Farm Machinery has switched to McCormick from Case IH, which has chosen to move its franchise to former local John Deere dealer Cornwall Farm Machinery, after the John Deere area the latter held was given to Smallridge Bros in an extension of Smallridge's territory.  

A family-run business, Truro Farm Machinery was founded in 1983. In summer 2010, the company outgrew its original premises in the centre of Truro, and moved to a purpose-built new site in a more convenient location just off the A30 at Mitchell, complete with larger, better-equipped workshops and parts department complex.

“Our aim has always been to deliver a first-class service to all our customers, large or small,” says Kevin Andrews, the company’s managing director.

“We know our farmers value the quality of our machinery, and in the rare case something goes wrong, they know we will bend over backwards to get them working again as soon as possible.

“We had been talking with McCormick’s UK team for some time, but it was the launch of a brand-new range of X7 short wheelbase models due at LAMMA in January that finally convinced us. We feel this is a great time for TFM and our loyal customers to join forces with McCormick.
 
“This hasn’t been a spur of the moment decision on our part, but has come from close communication with McCormick Tractors UK and Ireland. We are particularly excited about the new X7 models, especially as the 150-200hp bracket is a strong sector for our business. McCormick has already been working closely with us, delivering a tractor from its Doncaster headquarters to send out to some of our customers for appraisal. The result was excellent feedback and very good reviews. 

“That reinforced our conviction that this is the right franchise for us, and as a committed stocking dealer we already have models in our yard ready for demonstration and sale.

After signing with McCormick back in 2001 when the marque was relaunched, the TFM later switched to another make following a local reshuffle of franchises. Now the McCormick signage is back on the building at Mitchell, alongside the signs for the firm’s other franchises, which include JCB, McHale, McConnel, Teagle, Shelbourne Reynolds, Watson and Conor, plus trailers from JPM, AW and Indespension.

Truro Farm Machinery’s team of seven engineers – which includes one apprentice - are preparing to begin service training on McCormick tractors, whilst the two-strong team in the parts department are also setting up new systems and stocking up to support any customer needs. 

"We’re really excited by the new franchise, and can’t wait to show customers the new X7 and other models at LAMMA in January," said Kevin.

Commenting on the appointment, Managing Director of Argo Tractors in the UK and Ireland, Adrian Winnett said “ We are delighted to welcome a dealer of TFM’s calibre to our rapidly expanding network. The McCormick brand is growing constantly, and our focus on dealers who provide exceptional aftersales service is key to our growth."

Husqvarna Group has been named a Diversity Leader by the Financial Times. The group has been ranked 128 out of 15.000 European companies in the annual ranking of diversity work. 

Leigh Dagberg, senior vice president people & organisation, said, "I am incredibly proud of the energy and commitment our teams have put in to accelerate Husqvarna Group’s journey to become a true leader in diversity, inclusion and belonging. We have ambitious plans to make this goal a reality and we’re off to a great start.

"At Husqvarna Group we released our strategy on Diversity & Inclusion in April 2021 and being recognised as a Diversity Leader shows that we have something great to build from going forward."

The survey, with more than 100,000 participants, focuses on employees perception of how inclusive companies are or their efforts to promote diversity. The result boiled down to a list of 850 companies that are recognised as business leaders on gender, ethnicity, disability, age and sexual orientation in the workforce.

“We want to be a company where all employees truly feel they 'belong' and bring their full selves forward uninhibited and with passion. I’m excited to continue our Diversity & Inclusion journey”, Leigh says.

Ransomes has announced its largest brand investment this century.

The manufacturer says its digital investment comes through a new web presence, whilst on the turf, they say the target of electric lithium powered commercial mowing has been set for launch in 2022.

Ransomes marketing manager, Adam Underwood, said, "We want people to be confident when they are sat on a Ransomes mower that they are sitting on the benchmark for commercial and municipal mowing. It's very important for people to understand the value of incredibly specialist machinery, and we certainly are that. So, the Any Less Costs More campaign is really about the lifetime value of our products and how it pays to invest in us. 

"You know exactly where your products are coming from, and you also know that you're going to get superior support from a dealer network that has sold our products in some cases for half a century or more.

"Getting that message out is important, but listening is even more important. We spent the last year engaging with consumers, dealer customers and colleagues to understand what Ransomes means to them and what great will look like for the next five and ten years for the brand." 

Throughout early 2021 Textron focused all mower manufacturing on Ipswich. Ransomes say this year provided the opportunity for 15 million test hours of lithium battery technology to be integrated into their commercial mower range.

"We're excited about developing new technologies, and Ransomes will borrow a lot of the expertise from other brands within Textron,” Adam explains. 

“As a result, we will be able to safely put technology that will be good for the environment, good for everybody and most importantly, gets the work done into our Ransomes products.

"We're also celebrating the fact that all of our products are Stage V compliant. We feel those clean, green engines are worth shouting about and are important as we look forward to launching electric lithium technology and implementing it safely into the municipal and commercial market in 2022.

"You'll see at our shows, events and launches throughout 2022 that we are going to be expanding our range into electric lithium technology."

PSD Groundscare has completed a 3-day Dealer Training and Innovations Roadshow, which took place at three locations across the country.

The 'hands on' dealer training was led by the PSD team and supported by manufacturers, offering dealer sales teams the opportunity to see for themselves the machinery range and experience features and benefits available to their customers.

The training sessions covered both new and existing key products including AS Motor's new range of E-Power commercial battery equipment as well as the high grass mowers including the AS 940 remote control brushcutter. From Eliet, their range of Green Waste Shredders and new Turfcare equipment including scarifiers and Overseeders. And from Koppl, two new commercial battery powered walk behind power units.

Stuart Mercer, sales director for PSD said. “The aim of the roadshow was to bring our dealer partners fully up to speed with product developments and offer the required training to ensure that they are well prepared for next season, with the opportunity to interact direct with our suppliers. 

"Each event was designed to enhance their understanding of our brands and create awareness of the opportunities they present to grow commercial sales."

The roadshow followed on from SALTEX, where PSD Groundscare more than doubled its stand space in order to give visitors an even greater opportunity to see their latest product developments for professional users. 

Stuart Mercer continued, “At PSD, we always pride ourselves on offering our dealers support of the highest level and this includes our training. Last year we turned to online training during the pandemic but it’s great to be able to get everyone back together in a safe manner.

“We’re absolutely delighted with how well the roadshow went. We had a great turn out from dealers and it was wonderful to see people face to face once again and get back to doing what we do best – showcasing leading innovations to the industry and training and supporting our dealer network. 

New Holland Agriculture hosted the Advanced Propulsion Centre Showcase event at its manufacturing plant in Basildon, UK recently.

It marked the completion of the Low Carbon Tractor Project (LOCT), which received funding from the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) through the R&D Automotive Transformation Fund with the aim of revolutionising farming industry by developing low carbon tractor technology that utilises bio-methane, harnessing farm waste to reduce the sector’s CO2 emissions. 

During the event, the project leaders from APC, New Holland and its project partners Zircotec and Eminox, gave an overview of their involvement and the future opportunities and plans for this technology. Guests at the event included representatives from the National Farmers Union, the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs, the Department for International Trade, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, Innovate UK, and the International Fugitive Emissions Abatement Association. 

The LOCT project is the culmination of New Holland’s work in the development of methane technology for agricultural equipment, which started with a first prototype tractor presented in 2013. With this project, over the last 4 years the brand has completed the development of the first production ready methane-powered tractor in the world. The New Holland Methane Power Tractor started serial production at the Basildon plant in June 2021.

Sean Lennon, New Holland vice president europe, said, “As part of our Clean Energy Leader strategy, we have been pursuing various lines of investigation in alternative fuels for agricultural equipment, and we believe that ultimately the solution for agriculture will take many forms. Today we are proud to be ready to launch to the market the first methane-powered tractor in the world, and this has been possible with the valuable support of the APC, which has helped us on our way to this achievement. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their role in making this happen. We see great potential for this technology as a solution that brings farmers environmental and financial benefits, while contributing to reducing agriculture’s carbon footprint.”

During the event, New Holland also presented its next step in achieving its vision of enabling farmers to become energy independent. It has partnered with UK company Bennamann to deliver an Energy Independent Farm total solution which captures the fugitive methane released by animal slurry to produce Bio-methane and use it as fuel to generate electricity, and power vehicles like the Methane Power Tractor. This solution has a two-fold impact in reducing the farm’s carbon footprint: it prevents the release of fugitive methane from the farm’s slurry lagoon into the atmosphere and provides a clean fuel that reduces the tractor’s emissions compared to Diesel.

“We believe that this ‘total solution’ has very strong business and sustainability impacts for the Dairy and Livestock farmers, with the potential to provide both an additional income stream for the farm business and a significant reduction in its CO2 footprint, which should make a great contribution to the net-zero ambitions of agriculture,” concluded Dr. Chris Mann, Bennaman chairman and chief technical officer.

Tramspread has become the sole UK distributor of Roelama slurry applicators in the UK.

The Roelama range is manufactured in the Netherlands and includes trailing shoe machines with working widths of 6.4 to 12 metres.
 
“Roelama manufactures high quality, easy to maintain trailing shoe applicators that can be used with an umbilical system or mounted to a tanker,” says Tramspread managing director, Terry Baker.
 
The Sleepflex and Sleepflex Farmer models can be specified with trailing shoes or cutting disks and have a vertical, three or five-part, hydraulic folding mechanism. The swinging arm for the drag hose has been designed to prevent the hose from running underneath by angling it away from the machine at all times.
 
“The Sleepflex Farmer is a professional machine. It has adjustable wheels and 20-centimetre row distance spacing to maximise precision nutrient application,” explains Mr Baker.
 
The Sleepflex is a 12-metre unit that is suitable for larger farms and contractors. It features an integrated lift, fully electrical hydraulic steering, and two turning points on the swinging arm which enables the operator to reverse without crossing the drag hose. “This helps to manoeuvre the wider width machine in tight spaces,” he adds.

We are recruiting a Workshop Technician for Robotic Mowers within our Lawn & Garden Division. 

Barrus’ Lawn & Garden Division has a comprehensive range of premium quality lawnmowers and powered garden equipment from leading brands.  The latest Cub Cadet robotic mowers raise the bar for automated lawn mowing.   

We are currently looking for a Robotic Workshop Technician to offer technical support to dealers and consumers on Robotic mowers.  Responsibilities to also include liaising with manufacturers for fault finding and training, providing training to our dealer network and to assist dealers with robotic installations.

A full UK driving licence is essential as some on site dealer technical support will be required.

To apply please send your full CV to recruitment@barrus.co.uk or for more information click here.

Job purpose

Emak Group is one of the leading players at world level, offering innovative solutions for gardening, agriculture, forestry and industry.
We manufacture and distribute machines, components and accessories of high technological value, designed to render the activity of our customers easier and more efficient.

Within the organization of Emak UK Ltd. based in Birmingham, part of Emak Group,  We are looking to recruit a Commercial Sales Office Manager will directly report to the UK General Manager.

Duties and responsibilities

• Manage the ordering process of Spare parts and Machinery accordingly to sales planning and manufacturing plant in order to guarantee a proper level of stock.
• Organising shipments inbound with manufacturers and suppliers.
• Liaising with customers to manage any possible claim.
• Managing technical conditions for all the product line.
• Supporting dealer network.
• Managing machine stock in the warehouse.
• Preparing weekly commercial reports.
• Supplying technical information to dealers and clients.
• Managing indirect product support with dealer network.

Requirements

Excellent communication skills.

Excellent organizational and time management skills.
Ability to work well in a team-based environment.
Proactive approach, verbal and written communication skills.
Availability to move within UK territory for short business trips.
Must be self motivated and able to work autonomously.

Interested candidates please forward CV and cover letter to andrea.zuppicich@emak.it 

Deadline for applications is Monday 13th December 2021

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