Senior leaders at Kubota have previously stated they intend to grow that brand’s presence in the agricultural equipment marketplace — and they’ve made some significant investments in recent years to do just that.
Among those were the acquisitions of two implement manufacturers: Norway-based Kverneland, in 2012, and Great Plains, based at Salina, Kansas, in 2016.
Tillage implements figure prominently among the products those shortline brands are known for.
When Kubota announced the purchase of Great Plains, Kubota USA’s senior vice-president of sales, marketing and product support, Todd Stucke said, “We intend to respect the distinctiveness of the brands, trademarks and operational strengths. Doing so will allow employees, dealers and customers to do business with the same great companies they have come to know and trust.”
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More than a decade after that Great Plains deal, the decision to retain both individual shortline implement names remains Kubota’s long-term intention.
“Great Plains was integrated into Kubota in 2016,” says field product specialist Chris Ennis. “But Great Plains has been a longstanding solid name in the ag industry since 1976. The decision was made it will stay as Great Plains. Kverneland in Europe is going to remain Kverneland.
A few implements have been integrated into the Kubota brand lineup, though, such as its Kverneland-designed round balers.
“Some of our high-speed discs, our CD Series, they will be branded Kubota orange, and some of our planters,” Ennis adds. “But that’s more on the Kverneland side. Everything manufactured by Great Plains in Salina, Kansas, will remain Great Plains green.”
The Kubota-branded CD high-speed compact discs are available in up to 23-foot working widths. The company will also offer chisel cultivators up to 16 feet with the Kubota brand, along with ploughs. The remainder of the brand’s tillage offerings include Kverneland packers and ploughs, along with the full line of Great Plains implements.
“It’s very individual field-based solutions we try to offer,” Ennis says. “We want to sell equipment based on agronomy, because when it does a good job we all look good. We have the equipment to do it. It’s just a matter of picking the right piece.
“This is our 50-year anniversary for Kubota Canada. Within that 50 years, we’ve come a long, long way on the tillage side.” — S.G.
