Around this time in any normal January, many members of our industry would have decamped to Harrogate for a few days to visit or exhibit at BIGGA's BTME exhibition.

I always feel the week in North Yorkshire is a great way to kick-off the industry's calendar of events for the year. It's a show where plenty of business takes place but it's also a very social show. Having the conference centre slap bang in the middle of a town full of lovely pubs and restaurants (remember those?!) is most conducive to this. I expect I won't be alone in being extra grateful for that element of interaction with peers and colleagues at trade shows whenever we're allowed to get back to moving around more freely once again.

Until then we'll continue with Zooms, phone calls or with the limited encounters that are permitted with customers. On which, how has that been going for everyone? We've heard anecdotally throughout this thing that some customers are absolute sweethearts, complying with all the rules and restrictions which you need to put in place at your dealerships to be in-step with the guidelines - others... not so much!

Speaking to dealers over the past weeks and months, I've heard comments along the lines that some customers simply don't seem to realise (or more to the point, care) that there's a pandemic on!

An issue we've heard of specifically just recently, is that some members of the dealership's staff have faced difficulties making so-called 'contactless' collections of machinery for services. Basically they are still faced with having to root through customers' garages etc to acquire the machine. Not an ideal situation at the best of times, but right now? It's frustrating to say the least.

Winter servicing

I suppose if we're looking for a bright side, it at least implies that winter service work is holding up this year under these extremely unusual circumstances? Is this a fair assumption though? We'd be very interested to hear some feedback on this subject from our dealer readers today please.

We're running a short survey this week, as we do each year around this time, asking you about how your winter servicing is going. It will be interesting to discover with all that's going on, how busy workshops have remained.

When we asked you this time last year we heard from our survey respondents that workshops had held up well compared to the previous year. Many in fact reported increased business. Looking back at the results, we reported in fact that 60% of dealers who answered the survey had said that servicing levels were either up or well up on 2019. Only 11% reported a downturn.

It'll be fascinating to see if there's any great difference this winter.

One issue which we heard loud and clear from the comments received from dealers who completed the survey last year, was just how tough dealerships were finding employing quality staff for their workshops.

One respondent told us, "We find it simply impossible to find reliable, qualified technicians." Whilst another said, "Employing decent technicians will be the single largest issue for agricultural machinery dealers in the years to come."

As well as this we heard concerns about provision of training courses and the unwillingness of older technicians to get on board with robotic or cordless technology.

One would presume that not much has changed on this recruitment front during the past twelve months - but you tell me? Is anyone seeing a greater pool of local jobseekers to pick from perhaps, if other sectors are shedding workers currently? It'll be interesting to hear our readers thoughts on that.

You may have noticed today that LE-TEC are running a competition looking for champion technicians. Whilst personal recognition for the winners is of course important, the bigger picture here is to create some excitement and publicity around a landbased engineering career. Hopefully some quality entrants will throw their hats in the ring and the videos can be used to sell the sector, creating some buzz. The key then of course, will be getting the clips seen by the right, interested people. A great challenge in itself.

So please take our survey today and let us know how the servicing side of your dealership is faring and your recent experiences with finding technician staff.

As ever we'll be publishing the results and a selection of your comments in the next issue of Service Dealer magazine.

According to figures released by the AEA, UK agricultural tractor registrations (over 50hp) in December 2020 remained well above the previous year's level.

At 776 machines, the monthly total was up by more than a quarter, compared with December 2019. 

Stephen Howarth, agricultural economist at the AEA, said, "Given the unprecedented year which we have just experienced, AEA has undertaken a reconciliation exercise with DVLA to ensure that we did not miss any registrations from the annual total. This has identified 425 machines which were missing from information supplied to AEA by DVLA earlier in the year.

"Adding these numbers brings the annual total for 2020 to 10,380 units. That is still 14% lower than in 2019 but is similar to the levels recorded in 2015 and 2016, the lowest figures in recent years."
 
Most of the year-on-year decline took place between April and July, say the AEA, when supply chains were adversely affected by Covid-19 disruptions.

"For the final five months of the year, registrations were 11% higher than in August to December 2019 and from September onwards volumes were slightly above the average of recent years," confirmed Stephen Howarth.

A table containing revised monthly figures for 2020 following the additions referred to above can be found here.

The Made in Britain label or Union Jack on a product is still a powerful and effective selling point, both at home and overseas, according to Austin Jarrett, the managing director of Allett Ltd.

“Certainly that is true of markets such as the USA and Australasia, but equally so in France, Germany and other European markets - and is particularly true of the cylinder mower market where there is worldwide recognition of our heritage for fine lawns, stripes and immaculately curated stadiums.”

Austin was talking to Chris Biddle, the host of the Inside Agri-Turf podcast and said that there is not enough recognition of the UK manufacturing sector, given that 45% of our exports are manufactured products.

This year also marks the centenary of the first mass produced petrol lawnmower, the ATCO Standard in 1921 costing 19 guineas. The Stowmarket-based company was reported to be manufacturing well over 10,000 mowers a week during the 1960s.

  
Having purchased the Allett brand of cylinder mowers in 2007, Austin subsequently acquired the intellectual drawings, plant, equipment and tooling for the Atco range from the then owner Bosch when they closed the Stowmarket factory in 2011. He was unable to purchase the ATCO brand name which was picked up by Stiga Ltd to badge a range of their machines.

 
Austin says that 2020 was a highly successful year for the company. “I think people had more time to appreciate their garden and were prepared to spend money on it rather than on holidays etc.

“There is little doubt that the UK remains the benchmark for finely manicured lawns and grass areas,” he says, “which are best prepared using a cylinder mower and we are seeing a significant increase in interest in that sector.

“It is also producing a community of lawn-obsessives, who are competitive, and who share and compare their grass masterpieces with fellow enthusiasts via social media.

“I think you could sum up our objective as making machines for people who want to mow the lawn rather than simply cut the grass”.

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The Professional Sprayers People (PSP) have appointed Malcolm Mullender as business development manager for the UK, Ireland and Europe.

Malcolm Mullender

PSP signed a long-term distribution agreement with Guarany Industries, the South American manufacturer of professional backpack and manual spraying equipment, at the end of 2019. Malcolm’s appointment comes as the company looks to establish a network of specialist garden machinery dealers for the Guarany range.

Malcolm brings a wealth of experience to PSP, having held senior sales roles with leading brands.

“I am looking forward to further developing the PSP brand and product awareness of the robust and extremely effective Guarany range,” says Malcom.

Ivan Zytynski, director of PSP’s parent company The Spray People Group added, “We are delighted to welcome Malcolm on board. His knowledge of the market gained over the last 30 years will be invaluable as we seek to grow PSP.

“Guarany products provide many clever solutions for manual application of agrochemicals which should be interesting to turfcare and other professionals in industries such as horticulture, groundscare and pest control. In addition, we offer dealers good margins, friendly and intelligent technical support, prompt delivery and the highest levels of customer care.”

PSP have an exclusive agreement to distribute the Guarany products across the UK, Ireland and Europe.

Merlo UK Limited have appointed Shaun Groom to the position of general manager.

Shaun Groom

Shaun joins Merlo UK from having previously spent 15 years with Austrian agricultural machinery manufacturer Pottinger, the last 8 years as the director & general manager of Pottinger UK.

“It is a real privilege for me to be joining the established and well respected Merlo UK team,” said Shaun. “As a wholly owned subsidiary of the Italian family owned Merlo Group we can offer our dealers and customers a stable, dependable partnership for the long term.

“Ongoing investment in people and facilities at Merlo UK ensures we have local support available for the full range of Merlo products. A fully stocked UK parts warehouse, nationwide field based service and sales support is now further enhanced by extensive development of the offices, parts warehouse & training facilities at our Ringwood based headquarters”.

Shaun continued, “We stand ready to support our dealers and customers across the nation to ensure they can operate efficiently and effectively, even during the continuing difficult times as we face the current Covid-19 pandemic.”

It is with deepest regret that Campey Turf Care Systems have announced the passing, just before Christmas, of David Briggs, who had been suffering with Parkinson’s disease. 

David joined Campey Turf Care Systems in 2000 and retired in 2017.

Richard Campey, chairman of Campey Turf Care Systems said of Davis, "He was a successful product specialist for Southern England. He made a subtle but significant impact on industry methods of creating dealership networks and direct customer contact, both in the UK and abroad. David was instrumental in establishing a highly effective dealer network for Campey machinery, in Southern Europe. He was always a popular and much respected member of the team. David was also highly regarded and well respected amongst his colleagues and customers alike.

"We offer our sincerest condolences to Diane and all the family at this incredibly sad time."

Krone has announced that Walter Krone passed away on 3 January 2021 after a long, serious illness at the age of 79.

From 1977 to 2011, Walter Krone was the managing director of the Krone wholesale that made an outstanding progress under his leadership. It was Walter Krone who implemented the concentration on the exclusive sales of various premium brands. In addition to the Krone brand, this included manufacturers such as John Deere, Lemken, Rauch and Grimme. Thanks to this strategy, the Krone wholesale grew steadily. Between 1977 and 2000 under Walter Krone, the company's revenue almost quadrupled.

In addition to his position as a director for the wholesale, Walter Krone also took over the management of the subsidiary Krone France in Montataire with around 140 employees at that time.

The graduated mechanical engineer with a passion for marketing is also responsible for renaming the Krone wholesale into LVD Krone. The initial letters represent the German words "Landtechnik" (Agricultural technology), "Vertrieb" (Sales) and "Dienstleistungen" (Services). 

Another pioneering idea of Walter Krone was launching the LVD Krone in-house exhibition in Spelle presenting it as a "regional event for farmers, contractors and manufacturers of agricultural technology". Soon it became a huge success. Since 1977, the LVD in-house exhibition takes places the second weekend in March and attracts thousands of people from all over Germany and its neighbouring countries.

After his retirement in 2001, Walter Krone was still involved in various company and family projects such as in the new conception and redesign of the Krone museum. In May 2020, he presented the new exhibition in the former LVD premises to friends and former colleagues.

Dr.-Ing. E.h. Bernard Krone, the Honorary Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Krone Holding said, "My cousin Walter was always an enormously important companion and advisor in the last decades. I could always rely on him and his brother Heinz a 100%. With his endless energy, remarkable creativity, proverbial persistence and last, but not least, his extraordinary sense for the customer's needs, he made a huge sustainable impact not only on LVD Krone but also on the whole Krone group. We will always be grateful for that.

"We, the family Krone and the whole staff, mourn the loss of an exceptional man who will be deeply missed."

Kubota (UK) Ltd has appointed Henry Myatt to join its marketing department, as product manager for the M-series tractor portfolio.

Henry Myatt

With responsibility for the entire M-series line-up and the R0 compact loader models, Henry joins Kubota from a well-respected agricultural machinery dealership, where he spent the last four years as a precision farming specialist involved with sales and support.

“Having worked with a dealership and gained great experience with supporting customers, my ambition was to join a world-wide tractor manufacturing business and apply that knowledge to a greater range of equipment,” explains Henry. “And with an up-and-coming brand like Kubota, there’s a lot of opportunity ahead in the agricultural sector.”

Coming from a family with strong ties to the industry, Henry says agriculture is in his blood. Since graduating at the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester, with a degree in business management, Henry spent time as an intern in a sales and marketing role with a tractor business. From here, he joined the marketing department at the Royal Agricultural University as an international recruitment officer, before making the move to a dealership.

Commenting on the appointment, marketing manager Rob Edwards said, “Henry Myatt’s passion and enthusiasm will continue to strengthen our marketing team, giving us the ability to further support dealers and customers as we continue to develop our agricultural business.”

At this time of year landscape tidying and garden clearance is a big job. Now available for the first time in the UK via Henton & Chattell, Hansa Chippers are the ideal tools for this job. 

Established in the 1980s, Hansa specialises in the design and manufacture of high-quality brush chipping and shredding equipment. The family run company, based in New Zealand, has a strong heritage combined with constant evolution and innovation, with a focus on sustainable growth.

As trees and hedges are pruned back, they can create messy piles of debris that are often used to create smoky, polluting bonfires. Family run company, Hansa, is dedicated to changing this practice, by offering an alternative solution. Instead of building climate-damaging fires, Hansa sees chipping as a cleaner, greener way of getting rid of waste. By using a chipper, green waste can be transformed into valuable mulch that can be used in beds and around tree bases. This recycled material helps to retain moisture and supress weeds while it breaks down and provides nutrients to plants as it decomposes. 

Hansa prides itself on the ethos of “providing the best chipping experience”. Whether being used in a garden at home, by a landscaper, professional arborist or other commercial user, Hansa chippers are all designed to make tough work enjoyable. It’s about getting the job done in the most efficient way. 

The domestic gardener can choose between electric and petrol options with the C3E and the C4, both weighing up 70kg making them perfect for home usage and storage. The C7 is the most popular model and, with a 6.5hp petrol engine, is ideal for those with larger gardens. For landscapers the C13, with a 13hp engine, easy engagement system and efficient self-feeding action, makes light work of large jobs. 

For large-scale, commercial applications there is the C21 and the C27. Both are extremely robust and have heavy-duty cutting disks that meet the rigorous requirements of heavy branches and bushy foliage. The C27 has a 360-degree turntable that allows feeding from any direction.

For more information on Hansa chippers visit: www.hansaproducts.com/gb/

Or to become a Hansa dealer, please contact Andy Marvin on: 07771 581 296 or call our sales team: 0115 986 6646 today.

The all new range of protective leather chainsaw boots by Husqvarna offers comfort, durability and protection for occasional chainsaw users up to full time professional operators.

Classic Leather Chainsaw Boot – Saw Protection Class 1 (20m/s)

Perfect for occasional to part time chainsaw use, offers practical features such as reinforced front with toe protection to protect the hardest wearing area. A pulling strap to help putting on the boots whilst the 8 lace hooks allow for optimum fit, the footbed can also be removed and washed.

Functional Leather Chainsaw Boot – Saw Protection Class 2 (24m/s)

Aimed at part-time use in more demanding conditions with features like a Vibram® sole for optimum grip and a reinforced heal you know you can trust these boots to last. A TE-POR membrane keeps feet dry whilst the roller lace hooks allow for easy adjustment.

Technical Leather Chainsaw Boot – Saw Protection Class 2 (24m/s) 

Designed for full time use with the professional forester or arborist in mind, the Technical boot can withstand the toughest conditions thanks to features such as 360° rubber reinforcement around the base and a higher upper with soft inside for added comfort. The Vibram® sole give excellent grip and a shock absorbing middle sole provides comfort on longer work days. Feet keep dry with the Sympatex® membrane, a water repellent and breathable, high-quality material.

 
The new range of chainsaw boots is available through all Husqvarna Authorised Dealers and reinforces Husqvarna’s commitment to being the trusted partner for tree care professionals. 

Our Summer research shows that on average, each Garden Trader dealer will be sent 114 new customers (or people with a buying intention walking through your door) per year.  This works out at 83p for each new customer. A subscription rate designed to be all inclusive delivering unrivalled online results.

This site was purpose-built just for skilled servicing ground care dealers by the team that bring you Service Dealer Magazine. It is easy and quick to register and costs just £96 + VAT per year for a full listing.  As this dealer site is designed to promote the UK dealer network, all revenues in 2021 will be reinvested into promoting the site online.

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