An integral part of Daimler Truck AG, Mitsubishi Fuso is headquartered in Kawasaki (Japan) and manufactures trucks, buses and industrial engines for over 170 markets worldwide. The manufacturer’s FUSO brand, which includes products ranging from the iconic light-duty Canter truck to the heavy-duty Super Great, has been an icon in the Japanese commercial vehicles industry for over 90 years.

The partnership contract was first signed in 2007 and since 2010 FPT Industrial has delivered over 500,000 F1C engines to Mitsubishi Fuso, contributing to making FUSO commercial vehicles ever more high-performance, efficient and sustainable.
The anniversary was celebrated on July 15th during BEYOND – Iveco Group Days. Sylvain Blaise, President of the Iveco Group Powertrain Business Unit, presented a commemorative plaque to Parthasarathy Thota, Head of Procurement, Daimler Truck Asia.

“Our relation with FUSO perfectly represents our partnership vision. Which involves sharing values, following the same path and pursuing the same goal. FUSO and FPT Industrial are heading in the same direction, enabling each other to go beyond ‘just quality and performance’ and to aim for excellence while making a positive impact on our customers and society.”

commented Sylvain Blaise.

“FPT Industrial has been an invaluable partner for Mitsubishi Fuso for many years. The brand shares the commitment of providing reliable, efficient, and safe products to our global customers, and we look forward to continuing our close collaboration.”

 added Parthasarathy Thota, Head of Procurement, Daimler Truck Asia. 

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The member vote was the final step in the merger process to create the new association of
equipment dealers.

“We appreciate the overwhelming level of support that we have been given by our members. Now that our members have ratified the merger resolutions, we will start with our transition plan and consolidating our resources – taking the best of all four organizations to enhance our value proposition to dealers.”

stated Tom Rosztoczy, Chair of the Long-Range Planning Group.

“A major reason for proceeding with this merger is our members will benefit from a larger, financially strong association that will provide more services to address the needs of today’s equipment dealers. I am very pleased with the confidence that our members have shown in this unification plan.”

added Rosztoczy.

The effective date of the merger is projected for July 1, 2022.

The newly formed North American Equipment Dealers Association will continue to represent
dealers on a national basis with manufacturer relations and in federal government affairs in
Ottawa and Washington, D.C. NAEDA will also continue to represent dealers in their 24
U.S. state capitals and state regulatory issues of the states involved in the merger, as well as in 9 Canadian provinces.

The North American Equipment Dealers Association will continue to work with all regional equipment dealer associations in North America effectively representing agricultural, construction, industrial, forestry, outdoor power, lawn, and garden, and/or turf equipment dealers.

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Point One Navigation, a leader in precision location technology, and Quectel Wireless Solutions, a global supplier of IoT modules and antennas, today announced the LG69T-AM, the latest addition to the LG69T GNSS Module Series. Point One’s positioning engine powers the LG69T-AM and enables centimeter-level global accuracy by integrating augmented GNSS in an affordable yet easy-to-use module with open-source API.

The LG69T-AM GNSS module features STMicroelectronics’ TeseoV dual-band L1/L5 positioning receiver platform with 80 tracking and 4 fast acquisition channels compatible with GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou, QZSS, and NAVIC. The LG69T-AM leverages Point One’s RTK and SSR technology for centimeter-level accuracy and ultra-fast convergence time. It is designed for easy integration with minimal e-BOM modification and is well-suited for mass-market adoption without the need for an expensive external co-processor. Due to its small package size, lightweight, and excellent power consumption, it is ideal for applications such as robotics and precision agriculture.

Embedded in the LG69T-AM are Point One’s FusionEngine and its Polaris correction service client. FusionEngine is compatible with standards-based corrections services including those based on RTCM. Polaris is Point One’s own GNSS correction service that unlocks better than 10cm absolute accuracy with a coast-to-coast footprint in the USA and coverage across Europe. It offers a variety of connectivity options including delivery over cellular and L-Band. The network is purpose-built for precision agriculture customers and includes advanced anti-jam, interference mitigation, end-to-end security, and automatic integrity monitoring unmatched by any other provider.

“Quectel is excited to be working with Point One Navigation to deliver high performance and easy-to-use precision GNSS solution. The LG69T-AM, together with Point One’s FusionEngine and Polaris, brings a truly game-changing solution to the market,”

said Mark Murray, Vice President of Sales for GNSS and Automotive at Quectel Wireless Solutions.

“Point One’s full suite of offerings enables precise location for anything in the real world that moves. We’re thrilled to be working with Quectel and leveraging their deep experience in module design, support, and integration. This joint offering will enable safer and more effective robotic systems for truly mass-market applications,”

said Aaron Nathan, CEO, and Co-founder, Point One Navigation.

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AGCO announced a new program with Parkland College’s Midwest Center for Precision Agriculture (MCPA) in Champaign, Illinois, to expand dealer technical training offerings in January 2022. The program will leverage AGCO technical experts to train technicians from existing dealerships to support the company’s agricultural equipment, such as tractors and planters.

The presence of AGCO’s large ag equipment – including those produced by the manufacturer’s Fendt and Massey Ferguson brands – has grown across North America, which has increased demand for qualified technicians who are able to service and maintain its precision ag machinery. AGCO’s participation with Parkland College and other technical schools will help ensure its dealerships of highly-trained professionals and reduce their travel time, costs, and time spent away from dealership locations.

“AGCO is excited to team up with Parkland College. Parkland’s Precision Ag center is well known for producing some of our industry’s top professionals and this program will not only benefit them but also our dealers and farmers across the Midwest,”

said Robert Yunghans, manager of aftersales training for AGCO North America.

Based in Champaign, Illinois, Parkland College is a comprehensive community college with a longstanding reputation for excellence in agriculture education and diesel technology.  The MCPA provides students, area employers, regional growers, and high school educators with the knowledge and skills-based training to be successful.

Parkland is recognized as the #2 Precision Agriculture community college in the country and utilizes top-notch facilities such as the Tony Noel Agriculture Technology Center and Parkhill Applied Technology Center to deliver the most advanced precision agriculture curriculum in the region.

“Parkland is pleased to expand our nationally recognized precision agriculture programming to include the opportunities provided by AGCO. Welcoming AGCO to campus will allow us to expand training opportunities on our campus, expose Parkland students and faculty to emerging technologies in the agriculture industry, and assist in meeting a critical workforce need for skilled technicians,”

said Thomas Ramage, Parkland’s president.

In addition to the education and training assets at Parkland College, the Champaign-Urbana community is a global AgTech hub and home to the University of Illinois. The company opened the AGCO Acceleration Center at the University of Illinois Research Park in 2018, which advances technology and innovation across AGCO’s grain, seed processing, swine, and poultry production equipment brands.

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Since 2014, Kreisel has been a leading innovator focused on the development of immersion-cooled electric battery modules and packs for high-performance and off-highway applications. The company has a differentiated battery technology and battery-buffered charging infrastructure offering and currently serves a global customer base across multiple end markets, including commercial vehicles, off-highway vehicles, marine, e-motorsports and other high-performance applications.

According to an email from Mig Dobre, senior research analyst at Baird, the goal of Kreisel’s founders is to provide superior battery technology to rival Tesla performance. Since 2014, the team has implemented over 150 successful projects, partnering with the likes of Porsche and Shell. The company’s origins are in designing retrofit packs for electric car conversions, but it has rapidly expanded into large-scale production of battery packs.

John Deere sees demand growing for batteries as a sole- or hybrid-propulsion system for off-highway vehicles. Products in Deere’s portfolio such as turf equipment, compact utility tractors, small tractors, compact construction, and some road-building equipment could rely solely on batteries as a primary power source. Deere intends to continue to invest in and develop technologies to innovate, deliver value to customers and work towards a future with zero emissions propulsion systems.

The majority investment in Kreisel Electric will allow Deere to optimally integrate vehicle and powertrain designs around high-density battery packs while leveraging Kreisel’s charging technology to build out the infrastructure required for customer adoption. Dobre says the investment pairs well with Deere’s acquisition of Bear Flag Technologies earlier this year, building out Deere’s capabilities while accelerating its path toward a fully electric, autonomous fleet.

“Kreisel’s battery technology can be applied across the broad portfolio of Deere products, and Kreisel’s in-market experience will benefit Deere as we ramp up our battery-electric vehicle portfolio. Deere will provide the expertise, global footprint, and funding to enable Kreisel to continue its fast growth in core markets. This is an opportunity to invest in a company with unique technology that’s designed for the demanding conditions where Deere customers work,”

said Pierre Guyot, senior vice president of John Deere Power Systems.

“Furthermore, building an electrified portfolio is key to John Deere’s sustainability goal of pursuing new technologies that reduce the environmental impact of new products and work toward zero emissions propulsion systems on equipment, while increasing our customers’ efficiency and productivity.”

Dobre says the pace of technology investment is accelerating, and next-gen offerings have the potential to extend the ag replacement cycle beyond 2025 with Deere’s consolidating its leadership position. Demand for batteries as a sole or hybrid propulsion system is growing among DE’s off-highway customers as sustainability goals coupled with rising fuel costs.

“The Kreisel acquisition adds a proven electrification technology that Deere can continue to build on, with the integration of high-density battery packs into Deere’s portfolio of vehicles a key step in moving toward zero emissions equipment,”

Dobre says.

Kreisel Electric will retain its employees, brand name and trademark, and continue to operate from its current location in Austria to serve its growing customer base. The company was founded by brothers Johann, Markus, and Philipp Kreisel, and has approximately 160 full-time employees.

In a joint statement, Johann, Markus, and Philipp Kreisel said the Kreisel team looks forward to expanding its base business, leveraging the Deere channel to accelerate the adoption of battery-electric vehicles and charging stations, and working with Deere’s vehicle design teams on product advancements.

The transaction requires final regulatory approval in Austria, with closing expected to take place in approximately 60 days. Financial details are not being disclosed.

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Funded by the AAF, the project will provide scholarship opportunities for tailored internship roles and support for hiring talent from underrepresented groups. The focus areas will be agronomy, agribusiness, engineering, data science, software development, sustainability, field technicians, and related disciplines. The goal is to increase diversity and promote the agricultural industry as a viable career.

“AGCO Agriculture Foundation is committed to working to address the diversity gap in the U.S. agricultural industry. Our partnership with MANRRS enables a diverse group of young agricultural enthusiasts to gain knowledge, skills, and professional experience within high-demand areas of our industry,”

said Metti Richenhagen, Director, AGCO Agriculture Foundation.

The scholarship program will launch in late 2021, with internship commitments for the summer of 2022. In each of the next three years, the AAF will award 16 scholarships to selected minority students in the United States and, together with AGCO Corporation, will create a development and growth program for interns that will serve as a multi-year pathway to help minority students develop competencies and capabilities that align with post-collegiate career opportunities.

“Solving farmers’ most pressing challenges requires continuous innovation and diverse thinking. The AAF partnership with MANRRS enhances our ability to innovate for farmers by building a more diverse talent pipeline. We are thrilled to be able to offer these talented students development opportunities at AGCO,”

said Eric Haggard, Director, Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at AGCO Corporation.

The program will be advertised and available at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other minority-serving institutions. The scholarships will also include invitations for the 16 selected students to participate in the MANRRS 36th Annual Training Conference and Career Expo. Across the United States, MANRRS has a database of over 8,000 members and 55 university and college chapters in 39 states.

“MANRRS is excited about this new program. Our funding support and partnership with the AAF will help more exceptional talents within our network develop their leadership skills while contributing to the transformation of the agri-food industry. To develop state-of-the-art innovation and make strides towards zero hunger, the agricultural industry must be well-positioned to attract diverse talent like our MANRRS members,”

said Ebony Webber, Chief Officer of Operations, MANRRS National Office.

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Facing the multiple requirements of agricultural tires, the range includes different tire sizes with tire widths up to 800 mm, rim diameters of 46”, and tire diameters of up to 2.05 m. Thus, John Deere is expanding its existing Continental tire selection for mid tractors. Continental has been supplying John Deere with the Tractor70 and Tractor85 tires since 2019. Now, customers can specify all John Deere 6M and 6R series models with all Continental tires approved ex-works.

TractorMaster and VF TractorMaster: flexible use on field and road

Both tire models are characterized by their particular robustness, durability, and high mileage. The radial tires have a five percent higher lug surface area than comparable agricultural tires due to the special design and application of the d.fine lug technology developed by Continental. This ensures longer mileage. The tire’s material and the so-called n.flex technology ensure its particularly high stability of shape and impact.

The carcass material made of stretchable nylon is flexible enough to withstand an impact – without losing its original shape. Furthermore, the flexible material allows the tire to adapt particularly well to uneven ground. Thanks to this flexibility, the tire quickly returns to its original shape.

“With the TractorMaster, John Deere is expanding its tire portfolio with a test winner in the agricultural tire segment, which stands for efficiency and cost-effectiveness,”

says Jens Mund, Key Account Manager for agricultural tire original equipment at Continental Commercial Specialty Tires.

In 2019, the German Agricultural Society (DLG) certified the TractorMaster premium quality and Continental tire competed against other European premium tire manufacturers in the DLG test.

Both product lines are manufactured at the state-of-the-art Continental plant in Lousado, Portugal.

The partnership underlines Continental’s Agricultural Growth Strategy

John Deere has been offering its customers Continental agricultural tires since 2019. Jens Mund continuous:

“We are delighted that John Deere is expanding its tire range with further tires from us. This underscores our growth ambitions in the agricultural sector.”

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Companies to Explore Opportunities to Develop Technologies, Products and Services for Farmers to Support Profitable, Sustainable Agriculture

ADM and Farmers Business Network announced that ADM has made an equity investment as part of FBN’s latest capital funding raise and that the companies have signed a letter of intent to expand their existing relationship through a wide range of potential future areas of cooperation.

This partnership combines ADM’s scale and expertise across the global food and agriculture value chain with FBN’s cutting-edge digital farm commerce and data-analytics capabilities to identify opportunities to increase farmer profitability, expand sustainable agricultural practices, and provide farmers unprecedented convenience and product accessibility.

ADM and FBN have agreed to examine several areas of collaboration, including developing premium end markets for low-carbon grain that will reward farmers for the adoption of regenerative practices.

They will also explore working together to advance innovative technologies, like those currently offered through FBN’s Gradable platform, to improve access and data security for producers who market grain to ADM locations. Other areas of potential cooperation include:

• Enabling FBN’s 30,000 farmers to conveniently sell grain to ADM’s extensive network of origination facilities with full digital transactional record-keeping, sustainability tracking, and payments through FBN’s Gradable Platform;
• Advancing research to develop new biologicals, seed traits, fertilizers, and crop protection products;
• Enabling FBN farmers to conveniently and transparently purchase ADM products such as fertilizer and animal nutrition with FBN’s leading e-commerce and finance platform; and
• Increasing farmer convenience and input product access by leveraging ADM’s substantial physical distribution network for FBN farmers.

“Differentiated grain and sustainable solutions are two of ADM’s strategic growth platforms, and FBN is the perfect partner to help power our success as we work together to find new ways to cultivate incremental value for stakeholders across the food, sustainable solutions, and agricultural value chain. We’ve already been working with FBN and producers to connect verifiable low-carbon crops with market demand, and now we’re excited to explore new areas of growth, from digital technology and analytics to e-commerce, to shared infrastructure and geographical expansion,”

said Greg Morris, president of ADM’s Ag Services & Oilseeds business.

“Our mission as a company is to improve the profitability of family farms around the world for generations to come and this partnership with ADM promises to accelerate the development of our technologies, including our grain and sustainability platforms, that are designed to increase farmers’ profit potential. This partnership enables us to double down on putting farmers first by further investing in technologies that lower costs, improve transparency, and create local community development opportunities in rural areas,”

said Amol Deshpande, FBN co-founder, and CEO.

The companies are also continuing their pilot program, launched earlier this year, to use FBN’s Gradable platform to measure and verify the carbon score of soybeans, and to connect farmers with customers eager to purchase low-carbon intensity crops and products that command premium prices.

“Producers have played a leading role in advancing sustainable agricultural practices, and now we have new tools to quantify the beneficial impact they’re having on the environment so we can go to market differently. We’re excited to work with FBN to advance these innovative technologies, and we look forward to doing even more to help support producers,”

Morris added.

ADM’s minority investment in FBN is being made via ADM Ventures, the company’s corporate venture capital arm. ADM Ventures invests in cutting-edge startups with disruptive technologies across three key areas: human nutrition, animal nutrition, and sustainability. ADM Ventures also seeks startups that utilize ADM’s assets and feedstocks to produce sustainable materials, in addition to technologies that enhance the effectiveness or efficiency of ADM’s operations.

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Yara North America, Inc. with Heliae Agriculture, has launched the BetterSoil Alliance to support the California almond industry in the pursuit of sustainable farming practices to improve water productivity and soil health while decreasing their carbon footprint.

Through the Alliance, sustainably-focused solutions will be put to the test to understand their collective impact on critical issues the almond industry faces including water scarcity, drought, and rising temperatures; all of which are challenging the long-term viability of the almond industry.

Almond growers and advisors are invited to participate in implementing the solutions through customized crop and soil nutrition programs that will be developed by mid-November. Participants will be eligible to receive a sustainability reward based on water productivity and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), as well as recognition in the Alliance.

Data collected from participating growers’ orchards will be used to better understand the positive impact the solutions implemented in the program can have. Yara North America, Inc. and Heliae Agriculture will help fund a portion of the sustainability rewards, however, to acknowledge as many growers as possible, the companies are calling on the industry to participate through pledges to help fund the sustainability awards.

“To support the longevity of the California almond industry we are focused on bringing practical solutions that positively impact food production by improving water use productivity and soil health. We know by collaborating with others across the industry; growers, advisors, hullers, processors and food companies, for instance, we can achieve more. This is why we have launched the BetterSoil Alliance, with the belief that industry partners will come together and accelerate building out sustainable solutions through discovery and collaboration to address this urgent need,”

said Debbie Watts, VP Yara North America.

Participating growers and advisors will have access to the agronomic expertise of Yara North America, Inc. and Heliae Agriculture. Additionally, they will receive support in implementing crop nutrition and soil management solutions that include YaraLiva Calcium Nitrate; produced in Norway and featuring a very low carbon footprint, and PhycoTerra a superior, nature-based soil microbial food, specifically produced to feed the dormant microbes-including fungi and bacteria.

Yara North America, Inc. and Heliae Agriculture hope the program will help demonstrate these products together synergistically drive almond yield and quality while improving soil health and structure. Moreover, independent third-party trials show a measurable improvement in water productivity (crop per drop) when YaraLiva Calcium Nitrate and PhycoTerra products are used in tandem.

“Improving soil quality serves as the foundation to improving water use that helps optimize crop yield and quality. Between the increased consumer demand for almonds and tightening water supply in California, growers need solutions that increase yield and improve soil health and soil structure for future crops,”

said Norm Davy, Heliae Agriculture.

Source: Yara

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Bobcat announced a new partnership with the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (SDF), a nonprofit organization committed to strengthening disaster response in America by training highly skilled canine and handler search teams. The partnership spotlights SDF’s National Training Center in Santa Paula, California, where shelter dogs are trained to become rescue dogs through simulated rubble piles and mock disaster sites.

Founded in 1996, SDF has trained 180 certified first responder and canine teams that have deployed to 216 disasters and missing person searches. Through this partnership, Bobcat equipment is used to create and maintain realistic onsite training environments at the 125-acre National Training Center, which is designed to simulate conditions in various types of natural and manmade disasters.

“We are excited to partner with the Search Dog Foundation and help support their mission to provide search and rescue training for dogs and their handlers. The Search Dog Foundation empowers lifesaving work that truly matters to all of us. Bobcat is honored to support these heroic first responders, who act with courage, determination, and toughness,”

said Laura Ness Owens, vice president of marketing, communication, and public affairs at Doosan Bobcat North America.

At SDF’s National Training Center, dogs must learn to crawl through tunnels, maneuver on ladders, navigate unstable surfaces and detect human scent beneath debris. A Bobcat T750 compact track loader, Bobcat E35 excavator, and a variety of Bobcat attachments are used for brush-clearing, trenching, road maintenance, moving rubble to create new training courses, and learning opportunities, and modifying existing courses for the dogs and their handlers.

“This important partnership with Bobcat enables us to train the next generation of search teams by constructing realistic environments and more challenging training scenarios at our campus. Bobcat’s support is helping our teams reach the highest skill levels needed for certification and maintain deployment readiness,”

said SDF’s Senior Director of Communications and Handler Operations Denise Sanders.

Over the past 25 years, SDF and its dogs and handlers have worked to save lives in hundreds of disasters, such as Hurricanes Katrina, Harvey, and Irma, the Oklahoma City bombing, California mudslides, the World Trade Center attacks and earthquakes in Nepal, Haiti, and Japan.

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