It's a funny old season.

That's what I've been hearing from dealers and suppliers alike just recently. Would you agree? 

I remember writing on here a few weeks ago, how a couple of dealers from opposite ends of the country had remarked to me how the season was progressing like a rollercoaster, with pronounced ups and downs. A decent start followed by a distinct drop-off. I was hoping to hear of some recovery since then, but I'm not so sure? What have you been finding in your stores?

This week it was from a supplier that I heard a similar assessment of the year thus far, when Iseki UK held a new product launch for the trade press.

The company who are 18 months old now, have been building their dealer network during this past year and a half and are still looking to appoint in key areas. Head honcho, David Withers, was saying that by talking to dealers around the UK and through their own experiences, he is of the opinion that it's turning out to be an odd kind of season.

David said, "Quarter 1 wasn’t too bad, what with the warm February which saw the grass grow a bit. But then we just never really got any rain during the March period. Normally you tend to get that strong, Spring flush in April when the grass really grows – and that usually drives a lot of the business. Certainly for the consumer end of the market it does, where so much of that business is ‘distress purchases’.

"However we just didn’t see that domestic surge of business that you usually get in that May time."

David went on to say that interestingly, what with the weather having changed during last few weeks, they can pretty much immediately see a direct change in business. "If you get rain across the country today," he said, "in two days time the phones will start ringing more."

David's opinion was that it is starting to look, in general, like June is going to be better than April was.

In terms of professional machinery sales though, David felt that there hasn't really been that same impact. He put this down to the commercial customers making more organised purchases. "Companies have a capital budget in place," he said, "and they'll have plans to buy a new mower, or new tractor this year regardless. So we haven’t seen that deflect quite as much.

"But certainly in that domestic part of the market, we’ve seen real fluctuations based around the weather."

He also spoke about many domestic dealers carrying over a lot of unsold inventory from last year to this year, essentially because of the lack of rainfall for long periods of 2018. "I think those guys got rid a lot of that stock during Quarter 1 of this year as that was quite a good growing period," he explained. "But I think they’ve filled back up with stock again now. So we need this season to extend a little bit so people can get rid of that stuff."

Is this a familiar story to you? How has this season been for you thus far, compared to last year?

Looking back at my blogs from around this period in 2018, we were discussing just how impactful was the dry spell, combined with the effect of the World Cup, going to be for dealers?

We're clearly not at those kind of extremes right now, but are dealers still feeling the hangover from then? Or has this year's up and down conditions been enough to make it a tricky start to the season?

Or perhaps none of this applies to you and you're experiencing a bumper 2019?

Either way, please let us know in the comments below how you are finding this season so far.

Farm equipment specialist RW Crawford has extended its territory across the south east of England with a new depot at Billingshurst to serve farmers and contractors in Sussex and Hampshire.

Originally from Essex, Crawfords look after the neighboring county of Kent and so when the opportunity arose in the dealer network across the Sussex/Hampshire area the business took the decision to expand its territory and service offering.

Aerial view of R W Crawford's new premises during the recent open day

Key franchises on offer from the new depot include Fendt and Valtra plus Amazone, Spearhead and HM Trailers. The move to Sussex also sees Crawfords take on the role of Väderstad dealer for the region. Alongside this the business also holds the franchise for Isuzu pick-up trucks.

The firm’s new territory stretches from East Sussex to the M3 in the west. From the south coast it reaches northwards up into greater London, following the M25 up into Essex.

“We’re really excited to be growing our business into new areas and are looking forward to dealing with new customers,” explains managing director Wes Crawford.

“Our reputation has been built on service and that’s something we plan to continue. Our new site in Billingshurst is positioned centrally - which is ideal for supporting our customers across the territory.

“We currently have trained mobile technicians supporting the area with technicians available from Essex and Kent if required to ensure minimum down time. Our vans are mobile workshops, equipped with diagnostic equipment, spare parts and electrical components making for the most efficient on-site support."

Fendt’s Andy Davies, AGCO ‘s Phil Bolton, farmer Steven Gregory, AGCO’s Stephen Lumby and Crawfords’ MD Wes Crawford

A recent open day at the new Billingshurst depot gave Crawfords the opportunity to show off the full range of products on offer. In addition to a comprehensive line-up of spare parts and a fully-equipped workshop, the branch will have a range of Valtra demonstration tractors and Fendt’s full-line offering.

As well as the products from Valtra and Fendt, Crawfords will have implements in stock from its other key suppliers including Amazone, Väderstad and Spearhead.

Iseki UK & Ireland this week staged a launch of an out-front mower featuring a new Stage V compliant 22.5hp diesel engine.

Speaking to the trade press at a special event on Tuesday (June 18th), the company said they believe that with new features and market positioning, they see this new launch as a potential game changer for the brand to explore further avenues.

Iseki UK & Ireland md David Withers with the new SF224

Managing director, David Withers explained, "With the engine regulations coming into place shortly we wanted to offer the customer a competitively priced out-front mower with the same Iseki quality and reliability alongside a new Stage V compliant 22.5hp diesel engine.

“The new SF224 mower offers the most economical way to cut grass commercially with high productivity plus the added benefit of the new 22.5hp engine enabling customers to save on fuel costs and initial purchasing costs of their machinery."

David continued, “Offering a range of decks to suit the various customer sites and cutting cycles, customers can choose from the Wessex, Iseki and Muthing flail decks, or the new Iseki out-front rotary deck. These options allow the machine to be highly versatile in this competitive market.

The new Iseki 60” out-front rotary deck features three blades. The cutting height can be adjusted from 25mm to 125mm in 12.5mm increments as required. A mulching kit is also available to order.

The company were also keen to stress the storage capabilities which the new machine offers users. Product manager, Richard Tyrrell said, "When developing the product we studied how people use their mowers, quickly realising storage was a key issue when out cutting for long periods of time.

"People were either bringing trailers with them, another vehicle, additional members of staff or tying containers onto the machines in order to carry strimmers, bin bags and other tools. With the SF224 operators can be more effective and productive with their time, taking all the equipment with them in the large storage bed on the back of the mower."

The mowers are equipped with two-pedal hydrostatic transmission and automatic or selectable 4WD. There is also a lockable differential for use when conditions demand. To ensure efficient engine cooling the radiator is fitted with an automatic reversing fan, so preventing the blockage of the grill.

David Dixons has been appointed as a new Etesia dealer and will be distributing the company's complete product range throughout the North East of England.

Based in Hexham, Northumberland, David Dixons have been suppliers, service engineers and advisers to the arboriculture and horticulture industries for over 37 years.

The company will now be supplying the complete range of Etesia ride-on mowers, scarifiers, brushcutters, green technology and pedestrian mowers, and Julian Weightman, dealer principal at David Dixons, is delighted with the announcement.

“We had a good chat about the products with Etesia, I could see the advantages that the products offer and it just went from there,” he said. “I am confident that the products are going to be popular with our land owner clients and our professional users who are wanting machines that perform day-in day-out consistently.”

With immediate effect the range of products will be available from David Dixons in the areas of Northumberland, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear, and Middlesbrough and up to the Scottish borders.

“From our point of view as a dealership, we are interested in selling quality equipment,” said Julian. “We are interested in working with customers that we are going to be working with for 20-30 years and Etesia’s equipment is perfectly built to last and that fits very much in line with how we operate our business. We want to sell quality that will last customers a long time and do the job well and that is where Etesia comes in.

“On the face of it Etesia may appear expensive but when you look at the life you will get out of the machines - then I know that our customers will get excellent value for money.”

New Holland has announced the appointment of David Evans Agricultural Ltd to cover the vacant territory around Bridgend in south Wales.

David Evans is welcomed to New Holland by George Mills, New Holland area sales manager

Located in the heart of The Vale of Glamorgan in Llancarfan near Cardiff, the company covers the M4 corridor from Chepstow to The Gower. Founded by David Evans in 1993, the company has been established for over 25 years and has built its reputation on service and quality brands which offer a good resale and part-ex value.

The dealership will supply the full range of New Holland products including tractors, harvest machinery, telescopic handlers and construction equipment and say they will bring to customers in the area a great level of agricultural equipment knowledge and customer assistance.

David Evans, managing director at DEAL commented, “We have built our business with one mission in mind, to supply quality, reliable and efficient new and used machinery whilst backing this up with an excellent service for today's farmer and agricultural contractor. We are excited with this latest move to grow our business in the area.”

Pat Smith, New Holland business director UK & ROI, added, “We are delighted to have David and his team at DEAL joining our strong dealer network in Wales. The Cardiff-Bridgend area has been without a dealer for some months, so we are pleased to be able to advise our customers in the area that we are back. We look forward to working with David Evans Agricultural to grow their business with our full range of equipment. Together with our strong line up and their excellent reputation, we anticipate a prosperous partnership.”

Pellenc UK has welcomed Terra Firma and Greenlay to its ever-growing dealership network; both of which will be distributing the full range of Pellenc professional battery powered equipment.

Terra Firma, part of Agrovista UK, is quickly developing into one of Scotland’s largest specialist suppliers to the amenity and local authority markets. After going from strength to strength over recent years and significantly expanding its machinery portfolio, the company prides itself on providing only the finest equipment and products and this means that they have to be very selective according to sales advisor Allan Wright.

“We have no ambitions to become a normal grass machinery company,” he said. “It is for this reason that we are expanding the range of specialist equipment we offer and Pellenc is a perfect addition.”

Allan claims that his mind was instantly made up as soon as he saw the products being demonstrated.

“We organised a few demonstrations and it was obvious that these were the kind of products that would be incredibly hard to not take on-board especially with the green credentials and the low vibration and noise levels."

Greenlay, based in Cramlington, Northumberland has been serving both the professional and domestic turf markets since 1971. Boasting a 2000sq ft showroom displaying a huge range of equipment, the company strives to ensure that the customer gets the best machine for the job at all times and sales administrator Harry Pattinson is delighted to have added Pellenc to the collection.

“We never thought the opportunity would come about so we were delighted when we were approached by Pellenc,” he said.

“It has so many benefits and I particularly like the fact that the battery can be transferred from different machines. The power on the equipment is instantaneous and the performance is very similar to two stroke. Yes, the price might be slightly higher but because you are not using fuel you will find that it does pay for itself very quickly."

“Pellenc is aimed at the professional market which we want to continue to grow in, so it absolutely suits the quality product range that we already offer here at Greenlay.”

With immediate effect the Pellenc range from Terra Firma is available in the areas of central Scotland, the Scottish borders and the west coast; while Greenlay is distributing the Pellenc equipment to Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, Co Durham and Teeside.

HMP Kirkham prison officer Andy Maxfield is aiming to break the Guinness World Record this weekend, for pushing a walk-behind mower as far as possible in 24 hours - using a John Deere supplied by dealers Balmers GM.

Andy Maxfield outside Balmers GM in Burnley, with Darren Evans, homeowner sales manager

The record attempt will take place tomorrow (Saturday 22nd June) at Ewood Park football stadium in Blackburn, Lancashire, the home of his beloved Blackburn Rovers Football Club.

In July 2017 Andy Maxfield achieved a world record by driving a John Deere X750 lawn tractor from John O'Groats to Land's End, a distance of 874.3 miles, in five days, eight hours and 45 minutes. Not content with one record, Andy is now embarking on his second challenge, ‘Football United against Dementia’, once again raising money for Alzheimer's Society.

The current walk-behind mower record stands at 57.6 miles (92.71km), but Andy is hoping he can beat that with a John Deere R40 pedestrian lawnmower supplied by the company’s dealer Balmers GM in Burnley. This is a standard push petrol mower, with a 40cm cutting width, Briggs & Stratton motor and tough polypropylene deck.

Andy Maxfield at Ewood Park

“I had a John Deere ride-on mower for the John O’Groats to Land’s End journey and it never missed a beat, so a John Deere walk-behind for the lawnmower challenge seemed the obvious choice,” says Andy. “It’s not the mower I’m concerned about. I’m definitely going to need my go-faster trainers to maintain the pace!”

After the record attempt Balmers GM is donating the mower to be raffled in a further boost for Andy’s fundraising for Alzheimer’s Society. The raffle will be drawn on the John Deere stand on Thursday 11th July at the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate.

As a keen football fan, Andy is contacting football clubs around the country asking for their support. “My fundraising target is £9200, which might seem an unusual amount but there are 92 league football clubs in England and Wales and of course the existing record is just over 92km. Football fans are generous as well as competitive. It would be fantastic to see a wide and diverse range of teams – even from across the world – visiting my JustGiving page and leaving messages of support.”

Simon Phillips, general manager of Balmers GM, adds that the company is delighted to be helping Andy. “Initially we were asked to lend him a lawnmower, but when the idea of a raffle was mentioned, we were happy to step up and donate it. We will give the mower a service between the record attempt on 22nd June and the draw on our stand at the Great Yorkshire Show in July, so it will be good as new!”

Alzheimer’s Society is a charity close to Andy’s heart. His father suffered from Alzheimer’s for 13 years and sadly passed away on 1st Jan 2018, unaware of Andy’s record breaking journey from John O’Groats to Land’s End.

Sue Swire, community fundraiser for Alzheimer’s Society in Cumbria & Lancashire, adds: “This is another amazing challenge by Andy to raise money for Alzheimer’s Society and unite against dementia. Dementia devastates lives, but dementia won’t win. Funds from this record attempt will help us move a step closer to a world without this cruel disease.”

Alzheimer’s Society is available for anyone affected by dementia and there are lots of ways the charity can help – for details call the National Dementia Helpline on 0300 222 1122 or visit www.alzheimers.org.uk.

HORSCH will be partnering with Hamblys dealer network to provide its range of cultivators, drills and sprayers to customers in Cornwall and Devon.

Pronto NT drill

“I am very pleased to announce that from 1st June 2019, Hamblys have become official dealers and from 1st October we will have a trading area mirroring the current Claas trading boundaries,” said Steve Perryman, sales director at Hamblys.

Hamblys has five dealerships at Launceston and Redruth in Cornwall, Honiton and Torrington in Devon, and Bishops Lydeard in Somerset.

“Hamblys has an outstanding reputation for aftersales care and support and we’re delighted to be working with them,” said Stephen Burcham, general manager for HORSCH UK.

Steve Perryman added, “We believe Horsch drills and tillage range of equipment will strengthen Hamblys offer in this sector"

Husqvarna is the main sponsor of the European Tree Climbing Championships (ETCC) which starts today and runs until Sunday (June 21–23), in Schlosspark Putbus, close to Stralsund, Germany.

The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) hosts the ETCC each year in order to give dedicated tree climbers in Europe the chance to compete against one another, testing their abilities and nerve under pressure. The event is also an opportunity for experts in the industry to share the latest in climbing techniques and equipment.

Josephine Hedger, part of Husqvarna's H-Team and last year’s European and UK & Ireland champion

Climbing championships are the chosen sport of the arborist community and the ETCC brings together, in-person or online, Europe’s large, passionate arboriculture industry over a single three-day period.

Husqvarna say this is a great opportunity for themselves, supporting the European event for the very first time, having been a longstanding sponsor of the North American Tree Climbing Championship and the International Tree Climbing Championship.

Gent Simmons, Director of Product Management Forestry at Husqvarna, spoke about what this year’s sponsorship means to the company. He explains, “We see the arborist community as an extension of our family and the ETCC as a key date in the calendar for this family to come together. We understand their passion and we share it here at Husqvarna.

“This year is the first opportunity for us to sponsor the event and we’re very pleased to connect with the best climbers in the industry, who love our urban forests and share our passion for safety and education within tree care."

This year’s event takes place across three days with Saturday (June 22) as the first day of competitive climbing with five individual competitions set to test skilled climbers from around Europe. Following Saturday’s results, Sunday (June 23) is the Masters Challenge which will see the top scorers from Saturday compete to be crowned the European champion.

Back competing in 2019 is last year’s European and UK & Ireland champion, Josephine Hedger. Part of the Husqvarna H-Team, Josephine has been training for the championships and hopes to replicate the success of previous years, commenting, “I’m looking forward to this year’s European Championships and can’t wait to test myself again in Germany. Competition is always tough and I expect nothing different this year - it’s down to me to keep up my record and continue to perform at a high level."

Ego has announced that its new Ego Power + 47cm self -propelled mower (LM1903E-SP) has been awarded a Which? Best Buy award.

Now the third mower in the company's mower range to win this award, alongside the 49cm (LM2001E) and the 50cm (LM2024E-SP) self-propelled mower.

 
The company says the 47cm self propelled mower offers a wide range of benefits such as a 56-volt Lithium-Ion battery.  When buying the LM1903E-SP customers will also get included Egos 5.0Ah battery and rapid charging system.

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Steve Roskell, marketing director EMEA, at Ego, said, “Winning such a high-profile award for each of our mowers that have been tested is a fantastic achievement. Awards that further prove our mowers are some of the best on the market is an excellent selling tool for dealers, to reassure customers they are getting the best quality.”

A rare opportunity has arisen for an experienced Service Technician based at our office in Winsford, Cheshire.

The scope of the role is to provide general technical support of the Engine, Spare Parts and Home Power business for the UK/Ireland market.

The key areas of responsibility in this role are:

Provide technical support to distributors, dealers and OEMs by telephone

Create and deliver training programmes for the distributor and dealer channel in a classroom environment

Handle warranty claims and liaise with dealers and Head Office in warranty related matters

Updating of training material / technical documentation

Skill Requirements:

Good organisational skills in order to manage several tasks concurrently with frequent interruptions and changing priorities

Good written and verbal communication skills are essential

A professional telephone manner and strong interpersonal skills

IT skills should include the use of Excel, Word and Powerpoint

Good training skills will be beneficial for delivering dealer training

The successful candidate will have a minimum of 2 years’ experience within a Mechanical Engineering environment with focus on fault finding and repair with customer interaction.

If you are interested, please upload your complete application including your salary expectations on our career site:

https://careers.basco.com/job/Service-Technician/567981100/

Closing date for receipt of applications: Wednesday 10 July 2019

NO AGENCIES PLEASE

We are recruiting for an experienced garden machinery Area Sales Manager (based in the South East) to work within our Lawn & Garden Division, representing our premium brands Cub Cadet and Lawnflite, amongst others.

You will have exceptional industry knowledge and technical ability with proven in-field experience. You will be self-motivated, customer orientated with a ‘can-do’ attitude.

A full UK driving licence is essential.

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

Free carriage Offer for all Parts Stock Orders placed on our Website Shopping Cart has been extended to 31st December 2019.

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2). Use the quick order/enquiry function to place an order or check price/stock of parts (For enquiries, proceed to cart & then delete if not required)

3). Refer to the call to action buttons & notes shown on each page for additional info (Part number entry guide/carriage/supplier charges/ETA's etc.)

4). Once order is complete, proceed to checkout & amend billing/shipping/delivery options as necessary (Your previous completed order options will be saved as default for future orders-so please remember to amend accordingly for each new order)

5). Add your order number, additional parts not recognised by the cart, or any comments in the notes box at the end of checkout

6). Submit your order (Confirmation will be emailed to you, all previous orders can also be viewed online & you can communicate directly with us via the website regarding each specific order)

Please Note:

• Carriage & supplier charges are currently added by ourselves following receipt of each order - refer to carriage/supplier charges & ETA's file for full details
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• Refer to part number & prefix file for correct entry of items - the cart or stock check will not recognise items entered incorrectly
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Multiple branch users: Each branch must have a unique email username for the account login to ensure orders are sent to the correct address.

If you are unable to gain access to the cart, please contact us:

info@uni-power.co.uk

www.uni-power.co.uk

01371 875331

The constantly growing and evolving ATV / UTV machinery market is an area that Tyre-Line have vast knowledge and experience in, both from its Aftermarket sales division and its O.E. supply side, having partnered over the past 30 years with many of today’s biggest manufactures including John Deere, Kubota, Logic & Toro.

Being Sole Official UK Importers of Carlisle & ITP tyres, wheels and accessories, Tyre-Line have unique access to one of the finest and most complete range of ATV/UTV tyre ranges made, with sizes and patterns to suit virtually every vehicle currently available. From the versatile AT489, in both original spec and MST (Multi Service Tyre) road homologated versions, through to ACT and specialist patterns including Versa Trail, Turf Trac RS and HD Field Trac, Carlisle supply some of the world’s largest manufacturers with often copied, but rarely bettered tyres.

Possibly the best/original Utility tyre, the Carlisle All Trail & All Trail II has recently seen a number of new sizes and revised specifications added to its already extensive list of sizes and fitments. Now available in 27x9-14 & 27x11-14 fitments for John Deere XUV series Gators and many other UTV spec vehicles, the new 14” All Trail tyres boast high load / high inflation pressure, outstanding hard surface wear performance and durability. Road homologation and metric markings have also been added to select sizes in the range including 240/75-10, 290/70-10 & 305/60-10, making the All Trail / All Trail II a perfect choice for both Aftermarket upgrades and O.E. manufacturers seeking the best all round tyre money can buy.

Contact the Tyre-Line Aftermarket team today for more info or to see how they can help you with your ATV/UTV tyre and wheel requirements and how to apply for their newly launched B2B ordering system – 01458 250350 aftermarket@tyreline.com

Garden Trader is a product and dealer search website/directory only for specialist garden machinery dealers in the UK. It has been designed to support and promote our dealer industry to consumers who are specifically searching for garden machinery products and services.

It costs just £96 + VAT per year to be listed and all revenues in 2019 will be reinvested into promoting the site online.

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