We have discussed several times this year, as we seem to annually, the difficulties dealers are facing with recruitment.

Just a few weeks ago for instance, we heard that Bigwoods had closed their doors for good, citing being unable to find suitable technician candidates as one of the principal reasons behind their closure.

It's a worrying problem being faced by dealerships around the country - and as we've said before, not one with any simple, quick fixes. Speaking to some dealers recently though, we have been hearing how some are taking steps in an attempt to mitigate their recruitment woes.

One dealer told us, that with all that has happened over these past 18 months, it has really brought into focus for them the recruitment difficulties that the industry is facing.

We heard that within their dealership, they have been well aware for a long time that as a business they have been increasingly dependent on particular members of staff for doing specific things. Dangerously dependent in fact. The reality being if that member of staff is lost to the business, the dealership could be critically exposed. 

As an example, in highly specialised areas such as robotic mowers, if the dealership's expert in that field leaves, that could be all the service and backup gone.

In order to get ahead of any unwanted and unexpected departures such as this, the course of action this particular dealer is desperately trying to undertake now, is to train more people within the company to do more of the work. 

It was described to us that it felt like their dealership had simply been on one long recruitment drive for as long as they could remember - which is of course, a very difficult and stressful situation to find oneself in for a prolonged period. What this dealer was most keen on now, was trying to make sure that all the staff they have got, are in possession of multiple skills. If they were to lose somebody in one department, they could quickly move somebody across to plug the shortage temporarily being the theory.

Is this a scenario that sounds familiar to your dealership? Are you looking to invest more in training your current staff in order to broaden their skill sets - and as a consequence protect against the company's vulnerabilities?

We here at Service Dealer have certainly heard these sentiments echoed by various dealers who we've spoken with recently.

Broadening the skill sets

Another told us that they very much recognise that taking steps to broaden the skill sets of the people that they've already got in place, so they can cover for colleagues, is going to be increasingly important as we move forward.

They saw this as a means of an overall improvement to their company. Looking to improve at the margins, attempting to do everything that little bit better, is how they put it. Training up staff wherever they could and getting everyone to buy into the company’s philosophy, was very much part of this plan. As they saw it, having staff take ownership of more skills and therefore responsibilities, would lead to improved customer service.

Training for staff can come internally or via external sources. The dealer we were talking to told us they have various pieces of external training running at the moment on specific areas including skills such as I.T and customer service. The staff are pleased, they’re enjoying the training and they appreciate that the management is keen for them to improve their skills.

Less vulverable, more confident?

There seems little doubt that a broadened staff skill set makes a company less vulnerable. It's an important area for a business and probably one that isn't discussed as often as it should be.

If this nervousness was removed of what might happen if a key member of the team was to disappear, might that then afford a greater confidence when planning ahead? One presumes it certainly wouldn't hurt?

Talking of confidence, you may have noticed that we're running our annual Business Confidence survey today that we always ask for your input on around this time of the year. Last year, they key phrase we heard back from our dealer readers who responded was a 'cautious optimism'.

Is that same feeling still widely held this year? Or are readers more bullish now? Or maybe you are increasingly concerned if you foresee the stock shortages and delays continuing for some time.

It would be great to hear from as many of our dealer readers as possible today please, to help us get a sense how the network is feeling about the rest of 2021 and beyond.

So please do take just a few moments to take our quick survey. As ever we'll feature the results and a selection of your comments in the upcoming edition of Service Dealer magazine. Thanks in advance for your help - it's always appreciated.

TAKE THE SURVEY

Last week, we reported on the AEA's figures that UK agricultural tractor registrations in the first half of 2021 were up by more than a quarter, compared with the same period last year.

Now the Association has released both a regional analysis of the registrations plus a look at the power of the machines sold.

Firstly, growth in registrations was seen across all regions of the UK, although in the West Midlands and South East/Home Counties the year-on-year rise was less than 10%.

Stephen Howarth, agricultural economist at the AEA said, "The strongest increase was in the East Midlands, where registrations nearly doubled from the same period last year. Northern Ireland also saw an increase of over 60%, while Wales and Scotland recorded growth rates which were slightly lower than the UK average (but above 20%).

Now looking at the power of machines registered during the year to date, there was strong growth across most of the power ranges.

Stephen said, "Growth was a little slower in the 150-250hp range than for higher and lower-powered machines. The most rapid growth was in the 120-150hp range, where registrations were up by nearly two-thirds, compared with the first half of last year."

Following what has been a challenging past 15 months, Etesia UK has announced the winners of four outstanding achievement awards.

The awards commend outstanding performances in sales, service, parts and customer service.

The winners are: Peter Bagguley of Russells Groundcare and Allan Wright of Agrovista Amenity for outstanding individual achievement, while RD Mechanical and Sharrocks were awarded with outstanding company achievement awards.

The awards were handed out at the recent ET Lander electric utility vehicle and Pellenc new product launches held in May at Etesia UK’s offices in Oxfordshire.

Les Malin, Managing Director of Etesia UK said: “We heavily rely on our dealer network and the efforts of their sales teams in promoting both Etesia and Pellenc in the UK and Ireland.

“We’re delighted to be able to recognise the winners, which not only provide a snapshot of each dealers’ performance with us but also our support to all of our dealers in what has been a very challenging time for everyone in the sector.”

Scottish John Deere dealers Thomas Sherriff & Co and Double A will complete a unique treble this summer as they provide tournament support for the abrdn Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club in July, the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open at Dumbarnie Links and the AIG Women’s Open at Carnoustie Golf Links, both in August.

Dealer support for golf tournaments includes helping the greenkeeping team to keep the machinery fleet serviced and ready for work each day

This was The Renaissance Club’s third consecutive Scottish Open, with the course running an extensive John Deere equipment fleet including the new satellite guided GPS PrecisionSprayer and 2550E PrecisionCut hybrid electric greens mowers.

Sherriff Haddington turf sales manager Dougie Archibald arranged for the supply of additional 8000AE PrecisionCut hybrid electric fairway mowers, Gator utility vehicles and other support equipment to deputy head superintendent Jamie Aitken, who headed up the course maintenance team for the abrdn Scottish Open.

The dealership’s senior technician John Blair also spent two days before the tournament setting up the mower fleet to ensure all the machines achieved a consistently high quality finish.

Head superintendent Paul Seago says: “We are indebted to John Deere, local dealer Thomas Sherriff & Co and their respective staff for once again providing the tournament support fleet for the 2021 abrdn Scottish Open, without which we could not produce our course to the exacting standards required for hosting such a prestigious event.

Dumbarnie Links is a new venue for the Women’s Scottish Open, and this will be the first major golf tournament hosted by Scotland’s newest golf course, which only opened for play officially at the end of May last year. The course also operates a number of E-Cut hybrid electric mowers as part of its John Deere fleet, supplied by Double A from its main Cupar outlet in Fife.

The dealership was involved with the Dumbarnie Links project from the very beginning, and since the initial supply of John Deere equipment on loan Double A group sales manager Ross Kelly and golf key accounts manager John Bateson have been phasing in a full range of course maintenance equipment over the past three years.

“It’s simply not possible to achieve what we want to achieve without the extra machines and technical support we get from Double A and John Deere,” says Dumbarnie Links course manager Grahame Taylor. This will include additional hybrid greens, fairways and surrounds mowers plus HPX Gator utility vehicles, with John Bateson also cutting aprons throughout the tournament using a new 2750E PrecisionCut machine.

Carnoustie Golf Links, known as ‘Golf’s Greatest Test’ and a flagship for innovation and sustainable golf course management, entered into a new partnership agreement with John Deere and Rain Bird in 2020. It is also taking advantage of developments in precision technology, with an equipment fleet that includes three of the first new GPS PrecisionSprayers to be sold in Europe.

The AIG Women's Open returns after 10 years to Carnoustie for the 45th playing of the championship in 2021, with the famous Angus course becoming the fifth links venue in history to host the event multiple times.

Carnoustie Golf Links courses manager Kevin Stott says: “Reliable manufacturer and dealer support such as that provided by John Deere and Double A is very important. Hosting a major tournament such as the AIG Women’s Open requires the extra kit and manpower to help our team put that extra polish on the fairways and greens, and make maximum use of the available daylight hours."

Kubota recently announced that its chairman and representative director, Masatoshi Kimata, has been awarded the prestigious National Order of Merit Medal by the Republic of France, an award which is usually reserved for French citizens.

L-R: Consul general Jules Irrmann, chairman Masatoshi Kimata, ambassador Philippe Setton, consul for trade and investment director Pascal Gondrand

The Kubota Group established in France in 1974, at the same time that Kubota Europe S.A.S. was founded to export its tractors to European countries.

More recently, in 2014, in an attempt to make a full-scale entry into the European upland farming market, Kubota established a manufacturing plant for upland farming tractors in France. Today, about 1,000 employees are working at five local subsidiaries, which are responsible for research and development, production, sales, and after-sales services. 

So, in recognition of Kubota’s long-standing services to economic development and the creation of jobs in the country, and on behalf of the company, its chairman, Masatoshi Kimata, has been honoured by the Republic of France.

The National Order of Merit was founded in 1963 and is usually awarded to people who have made remarkable contributions to France in the areas of cultural and economic activities.

During the award ceremony, which took place on June 30th at the French Embassy in Tokyo (Japan), Mr Kimata said, “It is a wonderful honour to be awarded this decoration, which would not have come about without the dedicated efforts of everyone concerned. Ever since 1974, when Kubota first made inroads there, France has hosted our core operations in Europe, allowing us to increase our presence in the region by distributing tractors, construction machineries, and industrial engines.

"For us, France is, and shall remain a vital location for the Kubota Group.” 

Derby-based Bobcat dealer, Butler Reynolds Ltd, has announced that the winner of the company’s charity raffle for a Bobcat E10z 1 tonne mini-excavator is Chris O'Hara of Trent Bridge Construction Ltd in Nottingham.

The winner of the Bobcat E10z, Chris O’Hara (left), pictured with Nigel Long of Butler Reynolds Ltd

At the draw, Butler Reynolds also confirmed the company beat its target of raising £20,000 for the beneficiary charity, When You Wish Upon a Star, also based in Nottingham, and thanked everybody who took part in the raffle.

Raffle winner Chris O’Hara said, “It’s really good timing that I have won this as I have quite a lot of work coming up for this machine.” Chris also very generously stated that he would like to add another £1000 to the charity fund.

Nigel Long, diector at Butler Reynolds said, “The Wishes charity was one that my fellow director, Heather Tormey and I had been aware of for some time. Both Heather and I were really pleased to hand over a cheque for £20,400 to Alexa Wigfield, regional fundraiser at When You Wish Upon a Star.” 

Heather Tormey added, “We were really pleased to have raised so much for the charity and we are so grateful to everyone who purchased tickets, then for Chris to add another £1000 to the fund is fantastic.” 

Butler Reynolds also confirmed the five winners of the second prizes of Bobcat jackets: Wayne Smith - Derbyshire Diggers; James Bruton - J E Builders; Dave Moore - Richmond; Tony Hall - Pegasus and Jordan Darrall - JD Contractors. Due to the high level of entries, Butler Reynolds also increased to 15 the number of third place prizes of Bobcat scale models. 

After over a year away from industry shows, Campey Turf Care Systems say they are excited to showcase their machinery at the BIGGA Festival of Turf next week and SAGE Sports & Grounds Expo soon after.

The two exhibitions will be the first the turf industry has had since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with the Festival of Turf taking place at the Warwickshire Event Centre on the 21st and 22nd July with the SAGE Expo five days later at the Three Counties Showground, Malvern.

Campey say their line-up of machines, from Vredo, Air2G2, Imants, Dakota, Campey and AllTrec, will all be on the stand along with the company’s product specialists.

Campey Director, Lee Morgado, has worked continuously throughout the pandemic with his colleagues and views the return of in-person events as another step towards normality for the industry.

“By the time those two events open at the end of July, it will have been 18 months since the pandemic began, so it will be a great opportunity to meet customers and other suppliers again in a COVID safe environment,” Lee begins.

“Throughout the pandemic, we’ve still been able to supply customers with machines and witness some of the excellent work greenkeeping teams have been doing during that time. The popularity of the Vredo over seeders has continued to grow along with the Dakota top dressers, and we’ve had some innovative use of the Koro Fieldtopmaker with the Universe rotor at some clubs. All of those machines and more, including the Air2G2, will be on our stand, and we’re all looking forward to the event.”

Attendees of GIE+EXPO this October 20-22 in Louisville, Kentucky. have the opportunity to learn arborist techniques from certified arborists who will be aloft in a 50-foot tree set up inside the Kentucky Exposition Center.

Melissa LeVangie and Bear LeVangie, of the Women’s Tree Climbing Workshop along with their team, will present eight in-tree demonstrations and two new classroom workshops. The LeVangies developed the Women’s Tree Climbing Workshop in 2009 with a mission “to create a safe, encouraging, and empowering learning environment for women to climb trees” and have hosted workshops across the United States for both women and men."

Ken Osberg, director of marketing for Echo, one of the sponsors of the activity, said, "GIE+EXPO is the industry’s family reunion as Kris Kiser refers to it, and we at Echo can’t agree more. The tree climbing and workshop program is yet another innovative way the show is engaging attendees in fun and educational activities."

The in-tree demonstrations throughout the day Wednesday-Friday will cover a wide range of topics, including tie-in points, the use of drones, fundamentals of pruning cuts and static vs dynamic rigging. These sessions are included with trade show registration.

In addition, two classroom workshops will offer Certified Arborists the opportunity earn CEUs.

• Wednesday, October 20, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM: Gear Inspection for Tree Climbers
• Friday, October 22, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM: How to Grow Your Green Business and Why?

There is a fee of $85 per workshop, and registration is required for these.

We are delighted to be exhibiting at the Festival of Turf on 21st & 22nd July. After the past year, we can’t wait for the industry to come together again and interact in person. The two-day event, hosted by BIGGA, will take place at the Warwickshire Event Centre and will bring together golf greenkeepers and groundsmen for innovation, exhibition and entertainment. 

We will be showcasing the best in professional turf care, including our battery handheld solutions and our latest robotic innovation CEORA™ which is set to transform the way large green spaces are managed.

What can you find on our stand?

• Commercial Battery Products - Specifically designed for commercial applications, with low vibration, all day capabilities, all weather and durable use. Our solutions help our customers to look after their business and save them money.
• Commercial Automower® and CEORA™ - our range of commercial Automower® will be on display, but now also joined by CEORA™; our latest robotic addition which is set to be a game changer. This will be the first opportunity for a public audience to come and see CEORA™ in the flesh!
• Husqvarna Fleet Services - helping commercial customers to control their fleet automatically, saving £££’s in administration costs.

If you are attending the Festival of Turf, please do come and say hello to us. You can find us on Stand 44. 

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