November 9, 2012 — RDO Equipment Co. announces a partnership with Vanderfield Pty Ltd., a growing Australian John Deere dealer group. RDO Equipment Co. joins the Vandersee family (founders and current owners of Vanderfield) as shareholders in Vanderfield Pty, Ltd.

Gordon Vandersee founded Vanderfield in 1963 and the company became a dedicated John Deere dealership in 1970. Vanderfield was instrumental in bringing cotton pickers into Australia and since 1996, the company’s headquarters location in Toowoomba has been acknowledged as one of the largest individual John Deere dealerships in Australia. Vanderfield currently sells the complete range of John Deere agricultural machinery across its eight locations.

Founded in 1968 by fourth generation potato farmer Ron Offutt, RDO Equipment Co. is a family�owned and operated company with more than 60 locations in nine U.S. states and partnerships in Russia and Ukraine. The company offers products including John Deere agriculture and construction, Vermeer and Topcon equipment.

"RDO Equipment Co. places a high value on partnering with our employees," commented RDO Equipment Co. CEO Christi Offutt. “Along with customers, we consider our employees as a primary stakeholder group in our business. The Vandersee family and the Vanderfield employees have created a solid foundation for future growth which will likely lead us to entering new Australian markets in the near future providing value to customers and opportunities for employees. We anticipate a great long-term partnership with the team at Vanderfield."

"We are excited to be joined by such a strong group with a great customer focus and a proven track record. We see tremendous synergies with the two companies," said Bruce Vandersee, managing director of Vanderfield.

"Both companys' roots are very similar," said RDO Equipment Co. founder and chairman Ron Offutt. "We each understand that the best method of success is to put the customer first and to provide them the best service we can while creating the best possible workplace culture for our employees. This is our core business philosophy, and our partners at Vanderfield believe this as well."

Gordon Vandersee, founder of Vanderfield, added, "This is an exciting development for the little company I started with my family in a tin shed in Toowoomba in November 1963. I am more than delighted to have people of the caliber and quality of the Offutt family as shareholders in the company as it grows into the future."