This December, the Norwegian-based Kverneland Group celebrates 10 years in the Kubota Group, being the Business Unit Implements in Kubota Holdings Europe. Since the acquisition by Kubota Group in 2012, Kverneland Group has successfully grown the portfolios of its implement brands, by supplying Kubota Implements to the Kubota dealer network, whilst continuing its long-term sales and distribution channels for the Kverneland and Vicon brands.
‘’This celebration is a great milestone and a solid confirmation of the existence, the vision, and the future of Kverneland Group’’ says Arild Gjerde, Executive Vice President, Sales & Marketing. ‘’ Having Kubota as our industrial owner provides a long-term commitment to the industry, business partners, and customers, but also nourishes synergies, such as Supply Competencies – Kubota Production System, critical mass, and joint developments”.
Kubota and Kverneland Group are closely collaborating in the development of smart system solutions for Tractor + Implement, such as TIM (Tractor Implement Management) and Telematics, driving joint developments in automation and digitalisation in agriculture.
Kubota’s global strength and infrastructure
Today, Kverneland Group supplies a Kubota implement range to the Kubota dealer network, driven to grow and strengthen the agricultural position of Kubota’s dealer and distributor network. Kubota Implements have been launched in 22 European countries covering close to 90 % of the EU Implement Market in value. Outside Europe, Kubota Implements are available in the US, Canada, Australia, and South Africa.
Kverneland Group looks forward to the future, continuing to be a part of the Kubota Group, providing customers with the latest innovations of implements in the agricultural business.
Kverneland’s seventy year Irish history
The Kverneland brand has a long history in Ireland, while Kubota is more of a newcomer. The Kverneland brand was originally imported by the Larkin family from Dublin in the 1950’s and the family firm established the brand as a quality product among Irish farmers and contractors. For a period, Bamford in the UK were also Kverneland importers and they sold some yellow coloured Kverneland ploughs into the Irish market in the 1960’s and into the 1970’s causing some confusion in the Irish market through their final location at Racecourse Road in Naas, that was to close in 1981.
In the 1980’s the Kverneland brand moved to Murphy Machinery of Kilkenny, who interestingly were also the Irish agents for the larger Kubota tractors in the early 2003 up until 2012 when Kubota changed its marketing plans. Kverneland Group Ireland was established in 1999 to operate the Kverneland, Kill and Taarup machinery brands and was operated by IAM Agricultural Machinery, which had relocated from Dublin’s Naas Road to a new base in Kilkenny in 1992.
Kubota’s Irish roots
Kubota is a relative newcomer to the Irish market, and prior to the arrival of the bigger tractors (over 50hp), they are not widely known other than in the landscape sector. Over the last 50 years some tractors were imported from Kubota UK through individual dealers, such as Atkins of Cork. The brand received a significant boost when Murphy Machinery of Kilkenny took over the Irish distribution for the larger tractors in 2003. Kubota UK took back that distribution right from Murphy Machinery in 2012 and currently supplies the Irish market from Kubota UK direct to Irish dealers.
Kubota reports 19% increase in revenue today
Kubota’s latest financial report for the nine months to the end of September showed a 19% increase in revenues across all segments of the business. Overseas revenue increased by 26.5% from the same period in the prior year because of increased revenue in Farm & Industrial Machinery and Water & Environment, while revenue from farm machinery sales increased by 21.3%.
In its financial report the company said, “Overseas revenue increased by 26.5% from the same period in the prior year . In North America, shipment of tractors made progress to replenish dealer inventories although the market trend is shrinking. In addition, sales of construction machinery increased due to demand for infrastructure construction. In Europe, sales mainly of construction machinery and engines were solid. In Asia outside Japan, development of dryland farming in Thailand has made progress despite decreased sales of farm equipment for rice farming due to adverse reaction from the government project in the prior year. In China, sales of tractors increased thanks to rush demand before the emission regulation, but this could not cover the decreased sales caused by the lockdown in the 1st half of this fiscal year. Sales in India increased due to consolidation of Escorts Limited.
Learn more about Kverneland Group:
Video: https://youtu.be/iqEl33SrCoE (We are Kverneland Group)
