Dealer update: Fendt, Manitou and Merlo make changes

May 09, 2023

The new-look Chandlers RFM business has taken on Horsch's full range of cultivation, drilling and spraying equipment at its four depots west of the M5 – Bridgnorth in Shropshire, Ross on Wye in Herefordshire, Martley in Worcestershire and Raglan in Monmouthshire.

This follows Chandlers Farm Equipment's acquisition of fellow Agco dealer Ross Farm Machinery (RFM) earlier this year.

The company has ordered a large stock of Horsch machines and should have parts available from this month.

See also: Revealed: Britain's biggest farm machinery dealers

James Sinclair (left) with Russ Brett © Chandler RFM

Fendt has partnered with Arwel's Agri Services, based near Lampeter, mid-Wales, to cover Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.

Arwel's Agri also offers Krone grass kit, tankers from Cross and Stewart trailers.

B&B Tractors has seen its Manitou territory grow following Chandlers’ decision to relinquish the franchise.

As a result, the dealer will open a dedicated Manitou depot in the Sleaford/Swineshead area of Lincolnshire, which will trade as B&B Machinery.

The family-owned and managed business currently works out of four depots covering Nottinghamshire, South Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Leicestershire.

Merlo has two new dealers, with telehandler specialist RC Setchfield taking responsibility for the brand in south Lincolnshire and Hardwick Agricultural Engineers charged with sales and service around Brompton-by-Sawdon in Yorkshire.

The Hardwick deal follows the decision of Murton-based Yorkshire Handlers to give up the franchise as it winds down after 27 years representing Merlo.

East Midlands outfit Henton & Chattell has penned a deal with Kubota that will see it break into the world of farm machinery.

The family-owned business, which is one of the largest garden equipment distributors in the UK, will sell, service and support Kubota's agricultural and grounds care machinery from its base in Nottingham.

This will include the M-series tractors, implements and R0 compact loaders, and the RTV utility vehicles.

Boss ORV, importer of Corvus UTVs, has added a handful of names to its dealer roster. These include IJ Jones Engineering in south Devon and Roberts Rural across Somerset, Devon and Dorset.

Further north, responsibility falls to Stuart Taylor in Lancashire, Carrs Billington at its branch in Morpeth, Northumberland, and Alan McCracken ATV Services around its Castle Douglas base.

Grange Machinery has extended its distribution network with the appointment of Claas dealer Manns, which has seven depots in East Anglia, Kent and Leicestershire.

The agreement will see the East Yorkshire firm's low-disturbance toolbars and looseners sold alongside Manns’ existing range of Horsch cultivators and drills.

John Deere dealer Tallis Amos (TAG) is to offer Mazzotti's range of self-propelled sprayers, from 2,000- to 6,000-litre capacity, to its customers in South Wales and the West Midlands.

Spare parts specialist Spaldings has secured an exclusive distribution agreement for Dutch Openers tine drill coulters in the UK and Ireland.

The Lincoln-based company had previously shared distribution rights for the Canadian manufacturer's products.

The Dutch "Universal" coulter range includes various low-draft points for single- and double-row seeding, band sowing and liquid or solid fertiliser placement, and these can be fitted on drills from several popular brands in the UK.

As a result of the agreement, supplies of genuine Dutch coulters from other outlets will be run down.

Drill manufacturers Horsch and Sumo will continue to be supplied direct by Dutch Openers, with Spaldings handling replacement and conversion kit sales for drills already in service.

The Russells Group is to supply and support Bauer slurry pumps, separators and associated equipment to dairy and other livestock farmers, and its crop irrigators to arable farmers.

The business operates from 12 branches from Northallerton and Leyburn in North Yorkshire, south through the East Midlands to Rothwell, near Kettering, Northamptonshire.

Richard Larrington has launched a new hire service for its trailers, all of which will be provided with a rear mudguard for mounting to the tractor's three-point linkage. They also come with hydraulic rollover sheets that can be operated from inside the cab.

Larrington is promising a 50% discount on rental costs should the trailers be purchased prior to the end of the hire period.

Mobile dryers from Italian firm Agrex are now available through the Thorburn Group in the north of Britain and Perry of Oakley in the south.

North Yorkshire-based JW Installations has joined the Tornum Group, having distributed the firm's grain handling products in the UK for the past decade.

The business will remain an independent subsidiary and continue to operate as normal.

Danish firms Bogballe and Bredal, both specialists in the manufacture of mineral fertiliser spreaders, have merged.

Together, the companies employ 109 staff across three factories.

By joining forces, they hope to pool research and development efforts to improve technology beyond their existing digital solutions for on-board weighing, section control and variable-rate applications.

The move should also benefit distribution. Bogballe's mounted spreaders, which offer working widths of up to 45m and capacities of 5,500 litres, are currently sold in 45 countries, while Bredal's high-capacity trailed models up to 36m and 19,000 litres are shipped to 25 countries worldwide.

Zetor UK is now importing simple, low-cost Metal-Fach round balers, potentially allowing smaller farms to take baling in-house.

Only two fixed-chamber models from the Polish firm's comprehensive range will be available – the Z562 and the Z562 RN.

These have a 1.8m-wide pick-up and produce a 1.2m-diameter bale, with the RN version including a feeder rotor and 13 knives to chop the crop and increase bale density.

Twine tying is standard, net wrap is optional and they have a centralised lubrication system.

On-farm prices for the Z562 start at £15,873.

Claydon has expanded its production facility in Wickhambrook, Suffolk, after seeing a twofold rise in UK sales and a surge in export demand.

The 1,300sq m development was supported by a £267,400 Growing Business Fund Grant from the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership.

It will double production capacity of its Evolution and Hybrid drills, Straw Harrows, TerraStar light cultivators and TerraBlade inter-row hoes, which are now sold through dealers in 22 countries.

Vaderstad is to add 12,600sq m to its Swedish factory, providing more space for assembly and painting as it targets an annual output of 10,000 machines by 2028.

This will allow it to accommodate new models such as the Inspire and Proceed drills, and handle the growing demand for Tempo models.

The site currently produces equipment for all global sales regions except North America, where production is located at its factories in Langbank, Canada, and Wahpeton, US.

Pottinger has officially completed the second phase of development at its new rake and baler plant in St Georgen, near Grieskirchen, Austria. The site, which took 18 months to construct, includes a cathodic dip priming and powder coating line.

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