Martin Deerline is a family business operating since 1965. It’s a 10-location John Deere dealership operating in Edmonton (2 locations), Warburg, Mayerthorpe, Westlock, Barrhead, High Prairie, Falher, Wetaskiwin and Calgary.

Agland is a family business that has been operating as a John Deere dealer since 1957. It has three locations operating in Lloydminster, St. Paul and Vermilion.

“This partnership is a significant step forward in our strategy to continue to build a strong, relevant business that focuses on taking care of our staff, our customers, and our suppliers, the three pillars of our business. We both have a long successful history in the Agricultural, Construction and Turf businesses, and this is a natural move forward for us.”

said Cam Kay, GM of Agland, who will continue to lead the overall business as CEO of the newly formed entity, Horizon Ag & Turf.

“The Martin Deerline and Agland teams have been neighboring dealers and friends for nearly 60 years and we are excited to see this opportunity come to fruition. Going forward, we will have expanded inventories, more product specialists, and the ability to provide more timely, innovative solutions.”

said Cam Martin, current CEO of Martin Deerline.

Cam Martin (Edmonton), and Darren Lindsay (Lloydminster), will serve as the operations managers of their respective regional dealership locations at Horizon Ag & Turf. Merrill Martin (Edmonton) and Wayne Peyre (Westlock) will serve on the board of directors alongside Cam Martin, Darren Lindsay and Cam Kay.

Source: Agland, Martin Deerline

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During his career with CNH, Derek has held a range of leadership positions, making major contributions to manufacturing, the former commercial vehicles division, the EMEA region, also serving for a time as interim CEO. For the past six years, he has overseen the transformation of CNH’s agricultural business and its accompanying record performance. Derek has developed a strong team that will continue to place the needs of CNH’s agricultural customers at the center of the business as the company continues the development of the next generation of digitally enabled products.

“On behalf of the entire company, I would like to thank Derek for his years of unstinting dedication to CNH. His commitment to the development of outstanding, customer-focused products and his championing of constant improvement have been critical to the success of our continuing transformation. The entire CNH team wishes him every success with his future plans.”

said Suzanne Heywood, Chair of CNH.

Source: CNH Industrial

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Picking up rocks is traditionally tedious and backbreaking work, but very necessary given the ever increasing cost and sophistication of field equipment in harm’s way. In the past year, a company called TerraClear deployed early versions of its Rock Picker solution, which employs a rock-mapping drone paired with a compact track loader or skid-steer that identifies rocks and clears the field.

TerraClear is an applied AI and robotics company based in Idaho. Founder Brent Frei grew up on his family’s farm in Idaho and returned to this passion after founding and growing a successful tech company called Smartsheet.

“This is something I’ve personally dealt with my entire life,”

said founder and CEO, Brent Frei.

“There are more than 400 million arable acres worldwide that have been waiting for a cost-effective and productive solution to this problem. Repetitive tasks like this are optimal targets for automation, and the technologies we are bringing to the field dramatically reduce the labor and time needed to prep fields for planting.”

The company recently announced Series A funding of $25 million led by Madrona Venture Group, bringing the company’s total funding to $38 million. Earlier this year, TerraClear released the first Rock Picker, which quickly sold out. The second run will be delivered at the end of this summer.

The Rock Picker enables customers to remove rocks with the touch of a button. It currently works on a compact track loader or skid steer, but will soon be compatible with front-end loaders on tractors. With absolute convenience, it takes less less than five minutes to mount the picker and it works in any field condition.

From traditionally cultivated to no-till conditions, seeded fields, stubble, or even pastureland, the Rock Picker minimizes compaction and ground disturbance on the soil. This is an increasingly important factor in modern farming which emphasizes soil conservation practices such as no-till and minimum till practices. In addition to expanding the windows when rocks can be picked, the tools expand who can pick rocks, enabling both the young and old to contribute.

TerraClear’s Rock Picker picks an average of 400 rocks per hour and can pick up rocks of up to 300 pounds.

“The TerraClear team has incredible passion and expertise in both the customer base and the technology needed to address this huge problem for farmers,”

says Matt McIlwain, Managing Director, Madrona Venture Group.

“Rock picking fits into the category of dull, dangerous, and dirty. It’s a perfect application of robotics and AI and we are excited to back this team and mission.”

TerraClear’s future product roadmap includes integrating AI and computer vision with a fully autonomous rock picker platform, creating a Roomba for rocks.

“We’re working every day towards a fully autonomous solution for rock picking – and that is a multi-year project. Along the way, we’re building solutions that solve this problem better than anything out there,”

says President Trevor Thompson.

“The TerraClear team’s iterative approach to building means getting real solutions in the hands of farmers faster.”

TerraClear also offers mapping and clearance services for those looking for a plug-and-play solution to picking rocks. Working with TerraClear or third-party drone services, TerraClear maps fields, uses AI to locate large rocks and then deploys the Rock Picker to clear the field. Few ag-tech solutions couple the ‘information’ with the ‘physical solution’ in a true end-to-end offering. While both have proven to be useful as standalone products for farmers, their combined level of efficiency really opens the opportunity for a profitable service business as well, something that the company is trialing in multiple regions this fall.

In addition to scaled production and sales in 2022, the team will use the injection of capital to accelerate the development of autonomy and grow the team in Washington and Idaho.

Source: Terraclear

The post TerraClear Picks Up Investors to Develop new Precision Ag Technology: The ‘Roomba For Rocks’ appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

“We are very excited to welcome Paul and his family to Agtegra,”

said Agtegra CEO Chris Pearson.

“He has great experiences and knowledge to bring to Agtegra.  In the past year we have put an emphasis on quicker, more accurate information to use when making decisions and having a Finance Division that is a true business partner for our operating divisions.  I am confident that Paul will further those initiatives.”

Paul has more than 30 years of experience in finance and has provided key financial insights to increase efficiency and drive profitable growth across various industries.

He has held several leadership roles in organizations including KPMG, Cargill, and MTS Systems Corp. Paul’s career highlights include integration of finance operations for numerous acquisitions, oversight of international growth with cost management/margin improvement, implementation of new ERP systems, creation and execution of financial processes, and leadership of multi-cultural business and finance teams.

His education and credentials include a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Minnesota State University – Mankato and CPA certification in Minnesota.

Source: Agtegra

The post Agtegra Names Paul Forst as new CFO appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Väderstad AB announced the acquisition of 100% of the AGCO-AMITY JV LLC (AAJV). Based out of Wahpeton, North Dakota, AAJV, also known under the name Wil-Rich, will be fully integrated into the Väderstad global group of companies under the company name Vaderstad Inc.

The post Väderstad Acquires North Dakota-Based AGCO-AMITY JV LLC appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

With this collaboration, SHI will evaluate the soil health at selected UPL research and development field stations around the world (including UPL’s OpenAg Farm in Brazil), provide soil health training for UPL field agronomists, and help establish R&D protocols for evaluating the impacts of management practices on soil health.

Soil is the basis of our world’s agroecosystems that provide food, feed, fiber, and fuel. By 2050, the world will be challenged to feed nine billion people while also managing limited natural resources and the impact of climate change. UPL, with its mission to make every food product more sustainable, collaborates with partners, farmers, and key stakeholders to meet the future demand of agriculture, and improving soil heath will be essential to achieving that goal.

Farmers adopting regenerative soil health systems can help our nations grow food for an expanding population, mitigate and adapt to climate change, improve water quality, and increase biodiversity. The partnership with SHI will advance understanding of the most beneficial and scalable regenerative practices agriculture can employ to meet the challenges of tomorrow, while at the same time, improving productivity and farmer livelihoods.

“Our collaboration with SHI is a step towards understanding our soil in a much deeper way to provide the right solutions for farmers to enhance soil health, a key element for sustainable agriculture,”

said Adrian Percy, Chief Technology Officer, UPL.

“It exemplifies our belief in activating connections across the world’s agriculture system and ​powering new levels of sustainable growth, in line with our OpenAg purpose, an agriculture network that feeds sustainable growth for all. No limits, no borders.”

“Our research and training programs are focused to provide useful outcomes for farmers, the environment, and society,”

said Dr. Wayne Honeycutt, CEO of the Soil Health Institute.

“So far, most of our work has been in North America. This collaboration with UPL will allow us to further explore and translate soil health science into actionable management practices in other regions of the world, too,”

said Honeycutt.

Source: UPL

The post UPL Announced an Agreement with Soil Health Institute appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

The Italian market and machinery exports are doing well. According to Comacomp, the positive trend should continue in the coming months thanks to a high number of orders. The October rendezvous with EIMA International is a great opportunity to give further impetus to companies in the sector. To date, 520 exhibitors have been confirmed for the components exhibition alone.

The components industry for agricultural machinery and equipment is restarting at a faster pace than expected. Data from the periodic survey carried out by Comacomp (FederUnacoma) on the basis of surveys of member companies indicate a clear increase in total turnover in the first quarter of the year. A total of 51.5% of the companies surveyed recorded increases of over 20%, and another substantial number of companies (22.5%) recorded increases of between 11% and 20%. The majority of companies (60%) have seen their turnover increase on the domestic market, but the expansion trend has also affected the share of turnover generated by exports.

Non-European markets also performed positively: 53% of the sample recorded a growth in business, while a significant number of companies (35%) maintained last year’s levels.

According to Comacomp’s forecasts, the favourable economic situation is expected to continue in the coming months, since the order figures are clearly growing: for the April-June period, 29% of the companies surveyed estimate an increase in orders of more than 20%, while a further 26% expect growth of between 11% and 20%. Components thus confirm their place as one of the driving sectors of agricultural machinery, both in terms of production value (over 2.7 billion euros) and the ability to offer highly innovative solutions.

EIMA International – the great exhibition of agricultural machinery scheduled to take place in Bologna from 19 to 23 October – is dedicating a specific space to this important sector, the EIMA Componenti exhibition, where 520 specialized manufacturers, 144 of whom are foreign, have already confirmed their participation (in addition to the companies making components for spraying and those for irrigation located in the “Idrotech” exhibition). From transmissions to engines, from electronic control units to on-board computers, from axles to the smallest mechanical gears, there are more than 350 product categories at the show. It is a much-awaited rendezvous for the industry’s players, observes FederUnacoma, the direct organiser of EIMA,

“not only because it will be the first “in person” event after exhibitions were stopped due to the health emergency, but also because it is being held at a time of great recovery for the market.”

The post Italian Ag Equipment Export Market Is Doing Great appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Ms. Harris is Vice Chairman of Wealth Management and Senior Client Advisor at Morgan Stanley. Over her 30-year career with Morgan Stanley, her experiences include investment banking, equity capital markets, equity private placements, and initial public offerings in a number of industries such as technology, transportation, and the industrial sector.

For more than a decade, Ms. Harris was a senior member of the equity syndicate desk and executed such transactions as initial public offerings for UPS, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Ariba, Redback, the General Motors sub-IPO of Delphi Automotive, and the $3.2 Billion common stock transaction for Immunex Corporation, one of the largest biotechnology common stock transactions in U.S. history.

“We are thrilled to welcome Carla Harris to our Board of Directors and look forward to leveraging the rich past experiences she brings as a business and finance leader and as someone committed to community service,”

said Tom Linebarger, Chairman and CEO, Cummins.

“Harris’ deep knowledge of a wide variety of industries and strong investor perspective will help guide Cummins in our continued efforts to lead in unprecedented environment.”

Ms. Harris was named to Fortune Magazine’s list of “The 50 Most Powerful Black Executives in Corporate America” and “Most Influential List”, U.S. Banker’s “Top 25 Most Powerful Women in Finance”, Black Enterprise’s “Top 75 Most Powerful Women in Business”, and “Top 75 African Americans on Wall Street”, and Essence Magazine’s list of “The 50 Women Who are Shaping the World”, in addition to many other accolades.

Ms. Harris currently serves on the board of Walmart and on the boards of several nonprofit organizations including Seize Every Opportunity, Harvard University Board of Overseers and the Morgan Stanley Foundation. She also previously served as the Chair of the National Women’s Business Council, appointed by President Barack Obama. Ms. Harris received an MBA from Harvard Business School and an A.B. from Harvard University.

Source: Cummins

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“John has stellar experience in agriculture and manufacturing, and will be a valuable addition to our team,”

said Steve Sukup, President and CEO.

“As Sukup continues growing and technology is increasingly critical to farm and agriculture products, we are confident in John’s ability to work with our manufacturing operations, shipping, facility optimization, and product development teams. Innovation has always been key to our growth at Sukup, and we look forward to John being part of the team as we bring high quality grain storage, drying, and handling products to the agriculture industry.”

John earned both a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Technology from Iowa State University, and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. His previous professional experience includes DTN, Amazon Web Services, and more than 23 years at John Deere in leadership positions in manufacturing, R&D, strategy and technology. John and his wife Amy have three children, all currently attending graduate and undergraduate programs at Iowa colleges and universities.

Third generation family members in management roles at Sukup Manufacturing include: Emily Schmitt, Chief Administrative Officer and general counsel; Andy Schmitt, supply chain manager; and Matt Koch, senior electrical engineer. Nick Sukup works with material handling production control, and Andrew Sukup holds a manufacturing role at the company. Mary Sukup, co-founder of the company, serves as Corporate Secretary. Charles Sukup, second generation, serves as chairman of the board.

Source: Sukup

The post Sukup Names John Teeple as Chief Operating Officer appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Over the years, the company has grown into a multinational organization with numerous acquisitions and mergers. Today, the newly named Oregon Tool has over 3,000 team members and sells thousands of products in more than 110 countries across multiple consumer brands, among them Oregon, Woods, and ICS Diamond Tools. The company is a manufacturer of saw chains and guide bars for chainsaws and diamond saw chains for concrete and pipe, agricultural tractor attachments, and is an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) supplier of first-fit and replacement parts.

In addition to launching into adjacent categories, the company’s growth strategy includes: evolving its branding across product lines, building on its legacy of innovation, and leaning into global stewardship to promote the sustainability of the industry as well as to support those who work in it.

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