His answer was a definitive “yes.”

A couple of hours later, the White House announced that was not correct, and all existing tariffs on Canada and Mexico will remain unchanged and in place. But most of the exact details surrounding the so-called “pause” in the U.S. tariffs remained murky.

Heightened uncertainty

This latest pause and reduction follows on a string of similar proclamations from the White House over the past three months. It’s the kind of yes-no-maybe approach to international trade that is something seemingly more suited to an old Marx Brothers movie than the strategic actions of a competent administration.

While that temporary lowering of tariffs on some countries was welcomed by the stock market, which saw significant gains following the announcement, it only heightens the uncertainty surrounding international trade and business in the U.S.

As a result, ag equipment brands who have to ship high-value machines across borders have a lot to lose if a major shipment gets caught in the midst of a policy change.

AGCO to stop delivery to U.S.

So far, however, only one manufacturer, AGCO, has publicly stated its intention to pause equipment deliveries into the U.S. It manufactures some Fendt and Massey-Ferguson branded equipment in Germany and France, among other locations, for the North American market.

“The U.S. and reciprocal tariff landscape remains very fluid,” AGCO stated in a press release, “While we assess potential impacts, finished equipment from non-U.S. production facilities intended for the U.S. will be temporarily held at their current locations outside the U.S. The shipment of parts into or from the U.S. is not currently impacted by this action.”

The company said it is currently evaluating the best way to continue delivery of machines, particularly those made in Europe, to farmers globally.

While Canada has imposed retaliatory tariffs on several imports from the U.S., they are unlikely to cause any disruption to ag equipment imports from American manufacturing plants, at least not yet. The only ag-related machines on the current list of products subject to Canadian tariffs is mowers.

“AGCO continues to ship finished products from the U.S. to other countries where there are currently no applicable tariffs,” the company statement read. “We expect to provide an update on the potential financial impact of tariffs at our next earnings call in early May.”

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It’s the next tractor for Massey Ferguson with the unique 18 cm gap between the cab and the engine, which makes it more conformable for the operator and with better sight lines.

It’s also new highest horsepower tractor available from Massey Ferguson at 425 maximum horsepower. Five other versions of the 9S will step down in horsepower to a low of 285.

The tractor is engineered for flexibility, with a significant range of weight that can be added to the tractor depending on use, and all the latest automation, including automated headland turning.

The tractor will first be available in Europe and then at points after that in the rest of the world.

Precision conditioning for hay?

Also in the AGCO area, Fendt has created a way to change the conditioning level as a mower is cutting through a hay field. I well remember a hay crop where most of it was ready to go, but one area with more biomass was not. I fed those bales first, but it was not optimal.

The new Fendt adjustable conditioner will have three ways to evaluate when the conditioner should be changed. A farmer will be able to alter it from the cab, or it can be automated, either from a satellite evaluation of biomass used to create field map, or from sensors on the mower. From a complexity perspective, a quick control from the cab would make the most sense to me.

Automation options developing, but slowly

There are many agriculture companies dabbling in automation, artificial intelligence, or both. AI, especially I think is losing its precisions and is being applied to anything with advanced computer processing. That also means the technology is becoming more prevalent.

The newest forms of autonomous units, shown at Agritechnica, are coming from companies not involved in making tractors today, including Kuhn and various startups ranging from Naio to Robotti to AgXeed, which might be the most market-ready autonomy product out there, with sales already to 20 countries, including Canada.

The vanguard of autonomy in horticulture, with the most market-ready advances being adopted in fruits and vegetables. There are a couple of reasons for this, including labour being so important and so difficult to find in fruit and vegetable production. There are also standardized production areas in fruit and vegetable – trees and vineyards are planted to exact specifications.

There are lots of companies buzzing around agriculture looking for how they can join the rush to agriculture automation and artificial intelligence. I met a guy from Britain, who lives in Sweden as I was picking up pizza near where I’m staying in Hannover, Germany for Agritechnica. He works for a company that provides software that manages sensors in large machines and uses computers to monitor and recommend maintenance. They expect there are places where such software could provide value in agriculture. Also, in a strange quirk, that guy’s uncle is a former premier of Nova Scotia, John Savage.

– John Greig is a senior editor with Glacier FarmMedia. Watch for much more detail on these and many more stories and videos from Agritechnica in our Glacier FarmMedia newspapers and websites.

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From farmers’ perspective, the two companies say their combined technology offering is expected to offer “seamless integration and connectivity across geographies, equipment brands and the crop life cycle.”

The structure of the deal announced Thursday will see Trimble receive $2 billion cash and a 15 per cent share in the new joint venture, for total pre-tax value of about $3 billion accrued to that company (all figures US$).

Agco, whose machinery brands include Massey Ferguson, Fendt, Challenger and Valtra, contributes its JCA Technologies business to the new j.v. and will hold the 85 per cent majority stake in the venture.

The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2024, pending the usual approvals and other closing conditions.

The new j.v. won’t include Trimble’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) or guidance tech, but Trimble will provide those to the new venture under a new long-term supply agreement and technology transfer and license agreement — along with an agreement making the new venture a “channel partner” of Trimble’s positioning services in the ag market.

Winnipeg-based JCA, which Agco bought last year, makes systems and software including the Vireo precision ag system, the Eagle autonomous equipment system and the Falcon and Oriole controller systems.

JCA also developed the control system supporting the Canadian-made DOT autonomous ag equipment platform, now owned by Agco’s OEM rival CNH Industrial.

Trimble and Agco said the new venture is meant to “better serve farmers with factory-fit and aftermarket applications in the mixed fleet precision agriculture market” and to be “a global leader in mixed-fleet smart farming and autonomy solutions.”

The deal “accelerates Agco’s growth ambitions around autonomy, precision spraying, connected farming, data management and sustainability,” Agco CEO Eric Hansotia said in a release.

It also “significantly enhances Agco’s technology stack with disruptive technologies that cover every aspect of the crop cycle, which ultimately helps us better serve farmers no matter what brand they use,” he said.

“We believe a joint venture with Agco, complemented by the successful mixed fleet approach that they have developed with their Precision Planting business model, can help us better serve farmers and OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) together,” Trimble CEO Rob Painter said.

From Trimble’s perspective, the deal streamlines its asset portfolio and allows it to increase its focus on “priority growth areas” — while reducing its direct exposure to the “hardware-centric” ag market but still maintaining its “ongoing participation in a leading precision ag asset.”

The “commercial synergies” the new joint venture will get from direct access to Agco’s OEM, aftermarket, other OEM and retrofit channels — along with “modest” run-rate cost synergies — are expected to roughly double the new venture’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) by year five after the deal closes, Agco said.

GSI under review

In its release Thursday announcing the new joint venture, Agco also said it has placed its “grain and protein” business segment under “strategic review.”

That business segment includes Agco’s grain handling systems brand GSI, as well as grain processing equipment brand Cimbria and three livestock housing systems brands: Cumberland, AP and Tecno.

While Agco didn’t give any examples of the options it’s considering for those businesses, it said it will “assess all strategic options to ensure the Grain and Protein customers are serviced in the best way possible, and that the business is best positioned to maximize its full potential.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The Washington, D.C.-based American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) on Monday announced it had reached memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with equipment firms Agco and Kubota on allowing the so-called “right to repair.”

The MOUs, reached separately with each company, follow similar pacts the AFBF made in January with Deere and Co. and in March with CNH, the maker of Case IH and New Holland equipment.

READ MORE: Deere agrees to independent equipment servicing

The agreements lay out a framework under which farmers and independent repair facilities in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico would be able to access Agco and Kubota manuals, tools, product guides and information to self-diagnose and self-repair machines.

The pact also provides for support from the manufacturers to directly purchase or lease diagnostic tools and order products and parts. Farmers or independent repair shops would be able to obtain specialized tools, software or documentation from authorized repair shops on “fair and reasonable terms” via subscription or sale.

Barry O’Shea, vice-president for customer support at Agco — whose brands include Massey Ferguson, Fendt and Challenger — said in AFBF’s release that “Agco’s farmer-first focus guides us in everything we do, and we support farmers’ ability to repair the equipment they own.”

Todd Stucke, senior vice-president of marketing for Kubota, said in the same release that the company, through its dealer network, makes shop tools, parts, guides and manuals available to owners who choose to work directly on their machines.

“We strive to ensure that our equipment is manufactured to the highest engineering standards to maximize performance for our customers, and this agreement is a good step toward further protecting their safety while operating, maintaining and repairing it,” Stucke said.

The agreements emphasize that the manufacturer isn’t obliged to divulge any trade secrets, nor to allow farmers or independents to override equipment safety features or emissions controls, nor to sell tools, software or documents that either never existed or are no longer available to either the company or its authorized repair sites.

Taken together with the Deere and CNH MOUs, AFBF said the four agreements cover about 70 per cent of the farm machinery sold in the U.S.

“Farmers and ranchers urged us to find a private sector-solution to the challenges of repairing their own equipment,” AFBF president Zippy Duvall said in the same release. “These agreements represent ongoing efforts to ensure farmers have access to the tools necessary to keep their equipment running, and to keep food on the table for families across America.”

The MOUs with Agco and Kubota both took effect as of May 17. They also commit the companies and AFBF to meet at least semi-annually to assess how the MOUs are working and suggest changes as needed.

The MOUs also allow for the AFBF or either company to withdraw on delivery of written notice, but the parties agree to “co-operate in good faith” to schedule a meeting within 30 days of that notice to discuss the “ongoing viability” of the MOU.

The MOUs’ “intended beneficiaries” are farmers in the 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico; neither agreement mentions any commitment to provide the same services to farmers outside U.S. territory. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Toromont Industries announced Monday it will sell its AgWest Ltd. arm to Dutch equipment distributor Mechan International, effective May 1.

Neither company would disclose the financial terms of the deal Monday, except that it will be in cash and “is not expected to have a material impact on Toromont’s overall future operations, revenue or earnings.”

AgWest operates three dealerships and three parts-and-service satellite locations in the province, handling all Agco’s product lines including Fendt, Massey Ferguson, Challenger, Sunflower, White, Rogator, TerraGator and Wilmar. It also holds exclusive rights to distribute Claas combines in the entire province.

The AgWest network includes its head office location at Elie, about 30 km west of Winnipeg, plus its dealerships at Brandon and Neepawa and satellite locations at Swan River, Morden and Russell.

Mechan plans to continue to operate the business under the AgWest brand and retain the current management, staff and number of sites, Toromont said.

“Mechan’s global presence, deep agricultural knowledge, and solid distribution reputation offer a strategic fit with AgWest’s people, customers and suppliers,” Toromont said.

“Thanks to the dedicated AgWest team, loyal customers and strong supplier support, the AgWest business has improved consistently over the past few years,” Toromont CEO Scott Medhurst said in a release.

Concord, Ont.-based, publicly traded Toromont created AgWest in 2014, when it bought two Manitoba ag dealership chains and merged them under the one banner.

In its 2022 annual report, Toromont said AgWest “benefitted from a recovery in commodity prices and strong execution leading to higher market penetration and growth in combine and tractor market shares.

“Improved operational execution and added customer deliverables contributed to much improved overall performance,” the company said.

Mechan is an arm of Zweegers Equipment Group, a Dutch investment firm focused on equipment. Toromont noted Zweegers has a “long association with agricultural equipment including the distribution of Agco and Claas products worldwide.”

“This acquisition aligns with our aim to expand the geographical footprint and add new equipment brands,” Mechan board member Ronald Slaats said in that company’s release.

“For us, people, and local entrepreneurship are paramount, we share our ‘boots on the ground’ approach and deep-rooted passion for equipment, working towards a sustainable future. We are convinced that AgWest’s culture and working methods are in complete harmony with this,” Zweegers CEO Gerrit van der Scheer said in the same release.

Agco’s Americas vice-president for distribution, Bill Hurley, said in a separate release Monday that Mechan’s ownership of AgWest would bring “expanded capabilities, investment and international perspective to the table.”

Mechan’s resources, he said, offer “substantial growth opportunities for Agco products in Manitoba, especially for our Fendt brand as it continues its very successful expansion into the region.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Georgia-based Agco, whose brands include Massey Ferguson, Fendt, Challenger and Valtra, said in a statement it expects operations at some facilities to be affected for “several days and potentially longer.”

The ransomware attack comes at a time U.S. agricultural equipment makers were already facing persistent supply chain disruptions and labour strikes that left them unable to meet equipment demand from farmers.

Agco did not disclose the names of the facilities or if any data was stolen, but said it was still probing the extent of the attack that occurred on Thursday and working to repair its systems.

Tim Brannon, president and owner of B+G Equipment in Tennessee, told Reuters he has not been able to access Agco’s website for ordering and looking up parts since Thursday morning.

“We just have to trust that it will be over as soon as possible because we are coming into our busiest time of the year and it will be very damaging to our business and customers,” Brannon said.

Agco, which competes with larger rival Deere and Co., sells tractors and combines and manufactures and assembles products in 42 locations worldwide with 1,810 dealerships in North America.

Dealers are now struggling to keep up with orders that were already backlogged.

The company told dealers that it was “prioritizing” the most business-critical systems in an email read to Reuters by a dealer who declined to be identified.

“I’ve got about nine orders that I need to place right now,” the dealer said.

He said Agco told him “digital systems” had been impacted worldwide.

Agco did not respond to requests for additional comment.

Ransomware attacks have targeted food and fuel companies in the U.S. in recent years, including the Colonial Pipeline oil network and meat processing company JBS. Last autumn, at least three grain handlers in the Midwest were hit with ransomware attacks.

— Reporting for Reuters by Nathan Gomes in Bangalore and Bianca Flowers and P.J. Huffstutter in Chicago.

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Agco, the maker of machinery brands including Massey Ferguson, Fendt, Challenger and Valtra, said Monday it has bought Winnipeg-based JCA Technologies for an undisclosed sum.

JCA specializes in designing and producing electronic systems and developing software to automate and control equipment for OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) in sectors including agriculture, construction and mining.

The company, which started as JCA Electronics in 2002 and rebranded in 2020, today also maintains a U.S. office in Lincoln, Nebraska.

JCA’s products today include the tablet-based Vireo precision ag system, the Eagle autonomous equipment system and the Falcon and Oriole controller systems, among others.

Among JCA’s developments is the control system supporting the Canadian-made DOT autonomous ag equipment platform, which was rebranded as OMNiPower after its acquisition in 2020 by South Dakota-based Raven Industries.

Raven and its product lines were in turn taken over last year by Agco’s OEM rival CNH Industrial, the maker of Case IH and New Holland ag equipment.

“The purchase of JCA is another important addition to our precision agriculture capabilities,” Agco CEO Eric Hansotia said Monday in a release.

JCA, he said, is “one of the most advanced developers of autonomous machine technologies for off-road OEMs, and this acquisition will accelerate Agco’s delivery of machine automation and autonomous systems that improve farmer productivity.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Georgia-based Agco announced Friday it now has an agreement to acquire 151 Research, with which it had signed an “exclusive technology partnership” back in December 2018 to develop the GrainViz system.

Terms of the acquisition weren’t disclosed in Friday’s release, in which Agco said the deal will allow it to “continue development of GrainViz and expand into new solutions.”

Agco — whose ag equipment brands include Massey Ferguson, Fendt, Challenger and Valtra as well as grain bin and grain dryer maker GSI — said Friday it will retain 151’s 45 current employees and their Winnipeg office as the “smart grain technology center of excellence.”

An initial release of GrainViz is planned for “a limited number of bins this fall,” Agco said, ahead of a broader launch that’s expected to happen before the 2021 harvest.

GrainViz is billed as giving growers and commercial operators “advanced insight into the moisture content of the grain in their steel storage bins,” using spectral imaging to create a three-dimensional image of moisture distribution, without having to run sensing cables throughout the grain mass.

The system “allows users to see the moisture content throughout the entire grain mass to proactively manage the quality and quantity of their stored grain,” 151 CEO Paul Card said in Agco’s release.

“We are pleased Agco recognized the benefits this game-changing technology can bring to customers and shares our passion for finding smarter answers to the industry’s biggest challenges.”

“Our grain customers are facing significant challenges due to difficulty finding labour, low commodity prices and tight margins,” Stefan Caspari, Agco’s general manager for grain and protein, said in the same release.

“We need the sharpest minds working on finding answers to these challenges, and we believe this acquisition will help improve our customers’ operations through smarter technology.”

Agco, he said, hopes to use the technology toward “a connected experience across the entire grain system to increase efficiency and profitability for our customers.”

In business since 2011, 151 bills itself as a “boutique data assurance and custom development firm” developing “bespoke hardware and software solutions that allow our customers to gain actionable business insights.”

The company had worked with the University of Manitoba’s Electromagnetic Imaging Lab (EIL) to develop the radio imaging tech for GrainViz, “a world-first whole bin grain imaging system.”

Its remote sensing systems’ uses also include industrial monitoring, Arctic climate sensing, water quality sensing, oceanographic monitoring and oil and gas data collection.

The company also offers data analytics services such as “automated intrusion detection” algorithms, data aggregation and threat and risk assessments. –– Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The ag equipment manufacturer unveiled IdealDrive on Thursday during the Commodity Classic in San Antonio, billing the new steering system for its Fendt Ideal combines as “the first joystick steering system on a combine from a major manufacturer.”

IdealDrive, which already won an award last fall in Germany when it was previewed at Agritechnica, is to be offered as a steering system option for Ideal combines starting in mid-summer this year, for delivery in 2021, Agco said.

In Thursday’s press release, Agco’s sales pitch for the joystick system was mainly ergonomic, based on giving a combine operator “an unobstructed, end-to-end view of the combine header for less stress and fatigue during long hours harvesting.”

A combine operator would use the left hand to steer the combine by moving the joystick left or right. “Force feedback” guides how far to move the joystick for the desired effect, the company said.

The steering system’s sensitivity adjusts based on the speed of the machine, to “optimize” an operator’s control in harvest or transport mode.

The joystick, Agco said, “responds quickly and precisely to the operator’s hand movements, allowing accurate steering with less body movement, compared to turning the steering wheel lock-to-lock an average of four times.”

“The joystick turns a headland 180-degree turn into light work,” Agco product specialist Zach Stejskal said in Thursday’s release. “Compare that with spinning a steering wheel four or five times — joystick steering will definitely reduce operator fatigue.”

The joystick approach “reduces the muscle activity required for steering and is easier on the operator’s wrists, forearms, shoulders and back,” Agco said, and better visibility “also means less eye strain.”

The unit’s left armrest folds down into place and adjusts forward or back to put the steering joystick in the palm of the operator’s hand, while the right-hand hydrostat controls the machine speed.

Control buttons on the top of the joystick operate turn signals in road mode and row-finder lights in field mode; buttons on the back are for dim and high-beam lights, horn and track guidance.

With the steering wheel removed, Agco said, all that’s in front of an operator are the brake pedals and footrest pegs, giving a clear view of the entire combine head, “especially the centre of the header where the crop enters the feeder house.”

Thus, Agco said, an operator is better able to keep an eye on crop flow into the machine — and better able to see and avoid field or road obstacles.

The company cited a 2019 Danish study as showing a six per cent increase in productivity using IdealDrive over conventional steering systems, with “operator steering workload” cut by 65 per cent, based on the time it took drivers to complete a circuit on a simulated track.

The Aalborg University study, using 15 male operators on a wheel loader simulator, found a joystick steering system showed “reduced muscular activity and less awkward joint postures, suggesting a reduced risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders in the long term.”

European engineering firm Danfoss developed the joystick system and electrohydraulic steering valve, with a digital controller and actuator units handling communications between the joystick and valve.

Danfoss, in a separate release last fall, cited an Agco representative as saying the “high digitalization and safety levels” of the joystick system mark “yet another step toward a future where fully autonomous combines harvest our fields.”

Agco, whose machinery brands also include Massey Ferguson, Challenger, Valtra, Gleaner and White, bought Fendt in 1997 and brought the German brand to North America. Over 65 dealerships in Canada now carry the Fendt brand.

However, Agco didn’t put the Fendt brand on a combine for the North American market until 2018, when it unveiled the Ideal at Canada’s Farm Progress Show in Regina. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The deal, pending regulatory approval, calls for France’s Michelin to combine its off-the-road (OTR) business with Camso in a new division.

“By joining forces with Camso, Michelin will create the world’s No. 1 OTR market player, headquartered in Quebec,” Michelin said July 12.

“As world leader, the new entity will represent more than double the net sales of Camso” including 26 plants and about 12,000 employees, producing for “sustainably dynamic markets.”

For the agricultural market, the deal is expected to create “a unique player providing its customers with a comprehensive range of premium radial tires and tracks.”

Equipment brands featuring Camso tracks today include CNH’s Case, Case IH and New Holland, Agco’s Massey Ferguson, Fendt and Valtra, John Deere, Versatile, Brent, Caterpillar, Claas, Deutz-Fahr, J+M and Laverda.

The new division, Michelin said, will combine the “expertise of Camso’s management team and Michelin’s long-standing presence in Canada” which includes three automotive tire plants in Nova Scotia and operations at Laval, Que.

Michelin today makes its agricultural tires in France, at a dedicated plant at Troyes, southeast of Paris.

Michelin said it has identified “significant opportunities to increase sales and reduce costs” through Camso, thus “unlocking up to US$55 million in synergies by 2021.”

However, Michelin said it has also committed to have the new division’s “decision-making centre” at Camso’s headquarters in Magog, Que., southwest of Sherbrooke, and to maintain a “stable” employee headcount at Camso’s headqarters as well as its existing R+D operations and production jobs in Quebec.

“The new skill sets required to oversee this global business, and the anticipated growth in the division’s net sales, will lead to the creation of new high-quality jobs in the Magog region in the coming years,” Michelin said.

Camso is billed as a “market leader in rubber tracks for farm equipment and snowmobiles, and in solid and bias tires for material handling equipment” and is among the top three in tracks and tires for small heavy equipment.

The company formed in 2010 in a merger of Quebec’s Camoplast and Luxembourg’s Groupe Solideal and rebranded as Camso in 2015. Its operations today include 22 manufacturing plants in 10 countries.

“Joining up with Michelin’s off-the-road teams is a fantastic opportunity for Camso because of the similarity of our cultures as well as our growth potential,” Camso executive chairman Pierre Marcouiller said in Michelin’s release.

“Camso will achieve its ambition to become the global off-the-road market leader and will contribute its dynamic teams, its technical and manufacturing assets and its customer-focused mindset.”

Michelin’s deal, he added, already has the backing of all Camso shareholders. — AGCanada.com Network

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