Farm tractor makers, Kubota, Mahindra and TAFE, best known for their proficiency in producing tractors on the lower end of the horsepower range, are obviously not satisfied with their slice of the tractor and ag equipment market.
Japanese tractor manufacturer Kubota, which pioneered and made its reputation on producing compact and utility tractors, has made no secret of its ambition to grow market share. Its strategy includes expanding its business by adding higher horsepower tractors along with a wide range of hay tools and other production farming equipment to its product lineup.
It currently offers tractors up to 135 horsepower with plans to take that up to 200 horsepower, probably sometime in 2016.
Meanwhile, Mahindra USA announced that it is going to go one better than Kubota in terms of attractive financing. The Indian manufacturer says it will offer financing of 0% for up to 84 months on all tractor models along with a host of other incentives for the remainder of 2013. Kubota is currently offering 0% for 60 months on a range of its tractors and performance-matched Allied equipment.
Mahindra, which touts itself as “the number one selling tractor brand in the world based on volume,” will also extend its range of tractors to 150 horsepower by the end of next year with the goal of penetrating the production agriculture segment of the tractor business.
Another Indian tractor manufacturer, Tractor and Farm Equipment Ltd., (TAFE), says it plans to “launch a new product every quarter” while leveraging its long time relationship with AGCO Corp.
In an October 16 interview with the Business Standard, Mallika Srinivasan, chairman and chief executive officer of TAFE, said the 30-50 horsepower equipment is at the heart of the market and it has been the growth driver for the company, which is the second largest tractor maker in India, behind Mahindra.
She describes the partnership with AGCO as “one of its kind” in the industry. “We are closely working together to leverage the strengths of both the organizations. We are working on a new product based on their platform for the international market, and later it will be followed to India.
“The program is expected to be rolled out in the next year and some of the products will be manufactured in India. Some of the international products will drive technology and quality into the domestic market and we will have the first-mover advantage through this partnership.”
Srinivasan said this effort would be the focus of TAFE moving forward. “We will launch a new product every quarter, which will be developed in-house. While the company launched the Rotavator for domestic and international markets last month, we look to launch products for planting, seeding, harvester and land preparation.”
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