AMAZONE Report - Issue 44

The current position in the AMAZONE Group

At present, many companies in Germany and Europe are operating in a very challenging environment, with a significant slump already looming in various sectors. 

Fortunately, we are continuing to see a strong demand for agricultural machinery, both at home and abroad. We have received a very high volume of orders in the AMAZONE Group for more than a year now, some of which extend well into 2023. The situation with our suppliers is still acute, but AMAZONE stands on very solid foundations thanks to longstanding supplier relationships and its high level of in-house manufacturing. As a result, shorter delivery times are possible, depending on the product. 

The exploding prices for electricity and gas and threat of shortages are also hitting us hard, of course. The effects can only be roughly estimated at the moment, because, as we all know, the situation is developing very dynamically. However, we generally keep the energy costs for our products as low as possible and have been able to improve the energy efficiency of our production facilities year on year. We achieve this through certified energy management in all areas of the company. We are also producing an ever-increasing proportion of our electricity requirements with high-performance photovoltaic systems. Together with the use of the company’s in-house combined heat and power plants, it has been possible to save considerable amounts of energy and reduce the CO² emissions by about 7 million tonnes within the last eight years at the German sites alone. 

Customer interest in modern AMAZONE technology is high. Agricultural machinery, with its high productivity and input cost saving, is increasingly in demand in many regions of the world. The AMAZONE Group will benefit from its strong international position as a result of its innovative product range, even in the event of fluctuating development in individual markets. Our new products, such as the high-performance ploughs and the SCHMOTZER hoes should also be spotlighted here. 

We currently expect sales to grow in the 2022 financial year and are optimistic about 2023, where we can assume that the business development will be stable at least.

We wish you and your family a Happy and Healthy 2023.
 

The AMAZONEN-WERKE Management team
 

PARTNERS IN FOCUS

Congratulations are in order in Austria - Landtechnik Karl Deschberger turns 70

The Upper Austrian company Landtechnik Karl Deschberger celebrated its 70th anniversary in June 2022. The company, now in its third generation, invited guests to a two-day anniversary market on 11 and 12 June at the branch in Prambachkirchen to mark the occasion.

Karl Deschberger laid the foundations for the agricultural machinery company in 1952 with the purchase of an old forge in St. Marienkirchen near Schärding. The forge gradually developed into an agricultural machinery workshop with the production of the first trailers with pneumatic tyres, the training of an apprentice and the sale of the first combine harvesters.

The premises now cover a total area of more than 40,000 m², and Landtechnik Karl Deschberger currently offers state-of-the-art machinery, the best service and efficient spare parts supply from its St. Marienkirchen and Prambachkirchen locations.  
The Deschberger family has been successfully selling our products in Austria for 20 years. Our sales representative Leopold Eder offered his warmest congratulations for both anniversaries and expressed his thanks for the longstanding successful working relationship.

Cooperation with strong partners

Autonomous fieldwork with AMAZONE

The dream of the agricultural sector: fieldwork with robots. The robot is called "AgBot" and is manufactured by the Dutch company AgXeed. The AMAZONE Group and Claas are strengthening their cooperation with the start-up company, AgXeed B.V. by taking a financial stake in the company. 

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The “AgBot” with its tracked crawler chassis is the ideal tractor for use in conjunction with AMAZONE soil tillage and seeding systems. In addition to soil tillage and seeding, the new 4-wheel Agbot can also be used with Schmotzer hoes. Furthermore, the universal FTender front hopper for seed and fertiliser and the FT-P front tank for plant protection agents and liquid fertiliser can be combined with various mounted AMAZONE machines, depending on the application. Various sensor systems constantly monitor and analyse the working process. The focus is on the optimum process and better working quality when considering an autonomous rig. The development has been ongoing for two years now and the deployment of the autonomous cultivation system is getting closer and closer.

The future at AMAZONE has begun!
 

Machinery news

Top marks from the DLG - Precea precision air seeder in a new dimension 

The new Precea precision air seeders impress our customers with their high precision, intuitive operation and high output. The extremely high level of commitment of all AMAZONE employees and our sales partners has made a decisive contribution to this. The new Precea 6000-2AFCC has enabled AMAZONE to extend its unique offering on the market with the perfect combination of the KG rotary cultivator and Precea precision air seeder.  

Firstly, the well-known robust rotary cultivator in 6 m working width works the area to be seeded very evenly via the “on-grip” tines that create the ideal growing conditions. The compactly designed Precea then places the seed very precisely via an over-pressure singling system with the PreTeC coulter. The percentage emergence was exclusively rated as "very good" by the DLG. Supplemented by the new FTender mounted front hopper, an extremely efficient machine with a working width of up to 8 rows is therefore available. The amalgamation of several work steps into a single pass makes this Precea combination an extremely economically attractive machine for large-scale farms and contractors as a result of a considerable increase in efficiency. 

Go to for the Precea Performance Tour https://www.precea.net

Another top advantage: a new change-over system allows the fast conversion of this combination from the Precea precision air seeder to the Avant seed rail with RoTeC or TwinTeC coulters. A highly flexible and extremely manoeuvrable cereal drill combination is generated when the FTender is coupled again. This model, and its technological advantages, enable us to complete our range and position ourselves very successfully in new markets.

AMAZONE faces up to the demands in plant protection

DirectInject, the new direct injection system, impresses expert juries 

Quick, flexible and needs-based metered addition of plant protection agents - these are the key characteristics of the new unique DirectInject direct injection system from AMAZONE. 

The demands on our customers and their existing technology are constantly increasing, especially with regard to plant protection. Products and agents must be used precisely where they are needed in the field for optimum crop production. Furthermore, there are restrictions relating to protection-sensitive fields and bodies of water which farmers must also consider when selecting these plant protection agents. In contrast, agriculture is moving towards larger crop protection sprayers for greater area output and more economic use of machinery.

AMAZONE has developed the new DirectInject direct injection system, in order to be able to react to different conditions in the field when using larger crop protection sprayers whilst also providing maximum flexibility in product selection and metering. The special feature of DirectInject compared to conventional systems is the fast response time of the injection process and its complete integration into the spray agent circuit and operation of the sprayer. Where differentiated, immediate applications were otherwise not possible, they can now react to the situation in the field in just one pass. Time saved, a reduction in the use of plant protection agents and optimum crops are the result.

These added values also convinced the juries of the DLG Innovation Award and the Farm Machine Award. AMAZONE DirectInject was awarded a silver medal and the title of Farm Machine 2022 in the crop management category. 
 

A successful start after a long break

AMAZONE at agra 2022 in Leipzig

After a two-year break caused by the corona virus, we once again participated in the agra agricultural exhibition in Leipzig. The “agra” is the most important industry platform of the agriculture sector in eastern and central Germany. In addition to our standard product range, we presented our new developments - the Cobra shallow cultivator, UX 8601 trailed sprayer and precision air seeder - on our large stand from 21 to 24 April 2022.

After the long interruption, this exhibition was very well received by the professional audience and interested consumers. Our stand was very well attended on all four days and the interest in our product range corresponded to the good mood among many of our customers. Direct order taking was no means uncommon at this agra. 

However, the focus was on advisory discussions with our AMAZONE sales promotion team and representatives. Overall, visitors and exhibitors took away a positive outlook.

AMAZONE groundcare equipment at the GaLa-Bau in Nuremberg

Profihopper & IceTiger

The GaLa-Bau is a major trade exhibition for groundcare equipment. The green space maintenance industry met at the Exhibition Centre, Nuremberg from 14th to 17th September for the first time in four years. It goes without saying that AMAZONE was also present. AMAZONE presented its Profihopper, Groundkeeper and winter salt spreader models, including the new large and small IceTiger, at an attractive stand. 

The AMAZONE stand was not only very well attended by the external trade exhibition visitors, but our employees also took the opportunity to renew and strengthen valuable contacts face-to-face. Employees from Gaste and Forbach in France, including the plant manager Frederic Descamps, as well as our representatives informed the numerous visitors about the innovations. At the end of the exhibition. we could state with satisfaction: AMAZONE is also extremely well represented in the groundcare sector.

From around the world

RAPID KB Ltd. on a course for growth - A strong partner in Bulgaria

RAPID KB Ltd. was founded in 1990 and is successfully managed by Mr Plamen Bogoev. The family-owned company is the leading importer for the AMAZONE and Claas range in Bulgaria.

With its headquarters in Sofia, branches in Ruse, Dobrich, Stara Zagora and Montana, and its sales partners in Yambol and Trstenik, RAPID KB covers the largest agricultural areas in the country and continues to expand. Mainly wheat, barley, rape, maize and sunflowers are grown in Bulgaria, whereby the climate in north and South Bulgaria is completely different because of the Balkan Mountains. 

RAPID KB regularly participates in all the important trade fairs and exhibitions in Bulgaria. In May 2022, RAPID KB showcased itself at the BATA AGRO trade shows in Stara Zagora, where a total of 160 companies participated on over 35,000 m² of exhibition space. 

The Rapid team works closely together with Bulgaria's agricultural universities and colleges and invests specifically in education and training. Numerous practical demonstrations, presentations of the latest innovations and technologies coupled with the constantly growing trade and service network continue to guarantee success.

AMAZONE TOO is growing in Kazakhstan

Company-owned premises in Kokschetau now in use

In 2010 the management of AMAZONEN-WERKE decided to establish a branch in Kazakhstan. With its 22 million ha of arable land, this country still offers huge potential for AMAZONE machinery today. 

Dr. Tobias Meinel, formerly our product manager for large-area seeders, relocated to Astana with his family and raised awareness of the previously almost unknown AMAZONE brand with demonstrations, field trials and participation in field days and trade fairs. 

A good dealer network is in place in the meantime, and both sales and the team are steadily growing. The Condor direct seeders are highly sought after owing to the very dry conditions in the country, but the Pantera self-propelled crop protection sprayer, the Catros compact disc harrow and the UX 11201 trailed sprayer are also becoming increasingly popular.

The positive development led to the decision to acquire a property in Kokshetau in the middle of Kazakhstan's most important agricultural region. This step was implemented in May 2022. AMAZONE TOO purchased an existing site with an office building, spare parts warehouse and machine storage. To the great delight of all AMAZONE employees in Kazakhstan, their new home was ready to move into at the end of June and is an investment in the further development of the location in this very promising Central Asian market.

Plant in Hungary expanded

Increase in capacity and quality

AMAZONEN-WERKE acquired the Vogel & Noot plough factory in October, six years ago. Since then, machinery and equipment have been modernised step by step.

An additional machining centre has recently been brought into service in the Hungarian factory in Mosonmagyaróvá. The 4-axis horizontal machining centre not only replaces some of the old machines but also increases the production capacity and the quality of the components. The centre is equipped with a double pallet changer, so that components can be inserted and removed during primary processing time. Expensive downtimes are thereby reduced to a minimum and the capacity of the plant optimally utilised.

It cuts tempered welded assemblies and forged parts for the ploughs from Hungary and for other locations within the AMAZONE Group with significantly reduced machining times.
 

HIGHLIGHTS

100 years of SCHMOTZER history - Hoes are in demand once more

The SCHMOTZER company in Bad Windsheim was the first to recognise that hoeing cereals and other crops was useful. SCHMOTZER presented its first hoe in 1922, i.e. one hundred years ago. This was not only suitable for weed control but also prevented the evaporation of soil moisture by crumbling the surface.

SCHMOTZER'hoes quickly gained a good reputation and became real sales hits. Hoeing technology was soon perfected, and a large number of different models were offered. At its peak, this led to the development of a self-propelled tool carrier, which was christened the “Schmotzer Kombi". This was not only provided with the various hoeing tools, it could also be equipped with other agricultural machinery such as fertiliser spreaders, sprayers and seed drills. The "Schmotzer Kombi" was a bestseller, and many thousands were produced.

Later, hoeing went out of fashion somewhat and was replaced by chemical weed control. In the meantime, it has been recognised that the use of chemical agents should be reduced. As a result, Schmotzer is attracting attention once again and, with its one hundred years of experience in hoeing, is taking a leading position in the market.
SCHMOTZER Hacktechnik GmbH & Co. KG has been a wholly owned subsidiary of AMAZONEN-WERKE since 1 January 2019 and is working on the further development of professional solutions for the world market.

Reorganisation of the management

In view of the growing market in the area of hoeing, the internal demands on the company structures are increasing. In order to further develop the business, the management of SCHMOTZER Hacktechnik GmbH & Co. KG was supplemented by a second position as of 21.03.2022. 

Mr Thomas Bedenk will manage the business of SCHMOTZER Hacktechnik GmbH & Co. KG together with Dr. Rainer Resch. Dr. Rainer Resch continues to be responsible for the product range as well as design and development. Thomas Bedenk will take over responsibility for sales and (product) marketing, while also continuing in his role as product manager, which he has held since January 2020. Mr Bedenk brings a high level of practical relevance through his own organic farm and draws on many years of experience in the agricultural sector as well as knowledge from his work in the agrochemical and seed industry.
 

Once upon a time

The Intrac 6.60 tractor from Deutz (KHD)

The brothers Alois and Ludwig Limbrunner run a successful farm in Upper Bavaria. The two brothers have a great passion for historical agricultural machinery and have spent countless hours completely restoring the “Deutz Intrac 6.6o“ tool carrier, which was presented for the first time at the DLG Exhibition in 1985, with the result that it is once again fully operational out in the fields.

The Intrac 6.60 is completely equipped with AMAZONE kit, i.e. an AMAZONE reciprocating harrow and packer roller in the front hydraulics, an AMAZONE TT transport box on the loading area for filling the seed drill with seed, as well as an AMAZONE KG rotary cultivator sowing combination with packer roller and an AMAZONE D8 seed drill with a following harrow in the rear hydraulics. This is tillage “to perfection” – seedbed preparation and sowing of the grain and harrowing - all in one pass!

Production of the Intrac was discontinued in1990 as part of Deutz’s cooperation with Daimler Benz, more's the pity! 

Patented plough goes to southern Germany

The last AMAZONE Cayron plough 

AMAZONE built its first plough in 1894 under the product name HDG. After almost 120 years, a new plough, the Cayron, was added to the production range in 2013. A team of experts developed a modern plough which was able to establish itself among the many
ploughs on the market. AMAZONEN-WERKE gave it the name "Cayron". 

It had several innovations which we patented and which provided considerable advantages for the user. This development was interrupted when we had the opportunity to take over the Vogel & Noot plough factory in Mosonmagyaróvár in Hungary. From then on, we continued to develop and modernise Vogel & Noot ploughs, using some of the patents from the Cayron.

The last plough from the Cayron series manufactured in Leipzig has now been sold. This sale was completed by Claas Main-Donau GmbH & Co. KG in Gollhofen, one of our most loyal and most important dealers in southern Germany. The new owner of the last Cayron is Mr Gerd Kuhstrebe, who already owns an AMAZONE plough and runs a contracting business in addition to his own farm. He and his customers will certainly be very pleased with this versatile implement. 

IN BRIEF

Relocation of the large machinery production from Leeden to Bramsche - Location change went smoothly

With annual sales growth of more than 10 per cent, the AMAZONE Global Parts Centre in Leeden has become too small for the space in just a few years. In line with the strategic objective of concentrating production at the Gaste and Bramsche sites, the production lines in Bramsche have been extended, in order to centralise the complete sprayer production there. At the same time, space has been created in Leeden for the expansion of the Global Parts Centre and the Used Machinery Centre.

The conversion of the Bramsche plant was completed in the spring of this year. Preparations for the relocation of the production of the Pantera crop protection sprayer, the ZG bulk fertiliser spreaders and the Primera DMC large area seed drill proceeded at full speed. Thanks to careful organisation, assembly in the new 7,000 m² premises started up again in August.
Mr Achim Kuhl organised the relocation of the assembly shortly before his retirement in close cooperation with his successor Andreas Tönnies. After the successful relocation of the production lines, Mr. Kuhl said goodbye after more than 40 years in the service of AMAZONEN-WERKE! 

Andreas Tönnies had already taken over responsibility in Bramsche as plant manager and is now in charge of the consolidated assembly of the mounted, trailed and self-propelled sprayers, the trailed fertiliser spreaders and the DMC large area seed drill.

Agrargenossenschaft (AG) Bad Dürrenberg

Many years of fruitful cooperation 

The Agrargenossenschaft Bad Dürrenberg agricultural coop has been a reliable partner of AMAZONE/BBG for decades. The operation, which is located in the immediate vicinity of the Leipzig production site of AMAZONEN-WERKE, had been cooperating with BBG even before the reunification of Germany and has intensified this cooperation in the following years. 

The agricultural coop manages an area of 4,300 hectares, of which 4,200 hectares consist of arable land with a wide crop rotation, including all types of cereals, rape, maize and beet, as well as 36 hectares for flower mixtures and pollinator plants. 

The Landwirtschaftliche Dienstleistungszentrum GmbH, which concentrates on services for the support of all kinds of agricultural work, the direct marketing of the company's own agricultural products and the company's own transport facilities, also belongs to the agricultural cooperative. They also run Landgut Friedensdorf GmbH, which is a certified organic farm. 

AMAZONE machinery plays an important role in the company's machine fleet. For example, we are excellently represented with our machines in the sectors of crop protection, fertilisation, seeding and soil tillage. In addition, the farm assists us as a professional partner for testing and implementation in the area of soil tillage. Another aspect of the good working relationship is the support and advice of visitor groups. 

Cooperation with colleges and universities

‘Getting To Know Us Evening’ for students with a difference

In addition to diverse projects which AMAZONEN-WERKE is developing with various colleges and universities, we constantly host numerous students who are writing their bachelor's or master's theses or who are simply completing an internship at our company.

In order to familiarise these students with AMAZONEN-WERKE, Timo Klemann, head of the crop protection product line, organised a barbecue evening at the Wambergen trials centre.

In the course of the evening, the students were shown the Controlled Row Farming trial fields, and this new method of cultivation was explained to them. Afterwards they were taken through the refurbished factory museum, which we have set up in the hallway of the farmhouse, by our senior partner. Here the students were shown the agricultural machinery which has been developed and produced umpteen thousand times across almost 140 years of AMAZONEN-WERKE‘s existence – from winnowers and potato sorters, worm auger fertiliser spreaders and manure spreaders to modern soil tillage, fertilisation and seed drills.

The presentation met with great interest; after all, this is an important chapter in the development of European agricultural technology. There was ample opportunity for everyone to ask questions or discuss issues which had been addressed during the subsequent evening meal consisting of meat and sausages from the barbecue.

AMAZONE PEOPLE

Horst Tschörtner has retired - Mister IT listened to everyone’s concerns

Horst Tschörtner has retired after almost 45 years with the company. The longstanding head of the administrative and personel department in Hude and head of the corporate IT organisation began his career in October 1976 as a “jobber in the company“ and then underwent training as an industrial clerk, which he completed in 1981. Just one year later, when the first IT system was implemented in Hude, Mr Tschörtner assumed responsibility in an important position in the company. He built up the IT department in Hude and installed an effective IT organisation at every location, which is why he was appointed head of the corporate IT organisation by the management in 1990. A few years later, he was first appointed head of personnel and subsequently head of administration in Hude. 

As head of personnel of a growing company, the training of future specialists was important to him. He also encouraged those who had not had an easy start in life. He was the contact person for the employees for any concerns or difficulties, and he was also appreciated by the management as a person of trust. Mr Tschörtner was also very active outside the company, e.g. in the Hude community foundation, where he organised the annual wish tree campaign for children at Christmas. AMAZONEN-WERKE would like to thank Mr Tschörtner for his many years of loyalty to the company, his dedicated work and the mutually supportive working relationship.

Lukas Allinger – industrial technician and representative

Constantly on the road for AMAZONE

Mr Lukas Allinger has been on the road for AMAZONE for one year. As our representative for southern Germany, he is responsible for our passive soil tillage range, i.e. disc harrows, cultivators and ploughs. He organises the provision of training and carries out practical demonstrations, in order to demonstrate the quality and excellence of our products on the field. 

He completed his training as a fitter at Stegmüller Stahl- und Metallbau and then worked at Heißenhuber Bioenergie KG. Mr Allinger passed his master craftsman's examination at the Eckert Schools in Regensburg and then worked for Claas Südost-Bayern for almost three years. In the process, he got to know many important dealers and customers. In the meantime, he has familiarised himself with the technique of passive tillage and has already
carried out some impressive work here, which has also led to many sales.

Mr Roland Arnold, Dipl. Eng. (FH) in mechanical engineering

Successful development department in Hude

Mr Arnold successfully completed his studies in mechanical engineering at the University of Applied Sciences Wilhelmshaven in 2003, after he had spent some practical semesters in Mexico towards the end. He also met his wife in Mexico, which is why he lived and worked in Mexico for a total of 13 years. He initially worked in the automotive sector, before joining the global concern, Case New Holland as a product manager and project manager for the development of tractors in 2010.

He returned to Germany with his wife and children in 2014 and started as a project manager in Hude. With a large team of dedicated colleagues, he took the Cataya and Centaya seed drills to the production stage. Together with Mr Rüdebusch and the project teams, he developed and refined new methods, e.g. design reviews, preliminary costing and early warning meetings. Finally, he became head of the design and development department in 2017. In this regard, he built a harmonious team from the design staff, which is now taking our large-area sowing combination and precision seeding technology to new levels after the makeover of the mounted seed drill combinations. Our plant in Hude is ideally equipped for the future with these three supporting pillars. 
 

Roy Stier – Master of Arts

Innovative developments with ambition

Mr Roy Stier is one of our successful new generation of designers. With John Deere as a practice partner, he completed a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University in Mannheim. After his studies, Roy Stier joined AMAZONE in Hude as a designer in January 2013 and developed the current metering system of our Cataya, the conventional cam wheel seed drill. 

He moved to tool design for seed drills as team leader and further developed our coulter technology. At the same time – and this deserves special recognition – Roy Stier continued his studies in Oldenburg and gained his Master of Arts in Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship. His excellent work and ambitious further training convinced our design manager, Roland Arnold, who entrusted him with the management of the trailed seeder team in 2020. Here he formed a productive team, with whom he created a new and innovative concept for the trailed seeding combination after a relatively short time.

The management of AMAZONEN-WERKE follows the work of the team with great interest and is convinced that this development will help AMAZONE to take a giant step forward.
 

Sustainability is essential for life (and survival):

Successful energy management

A total of 10,000 photovoltaic modules, which cover an area as big as six football pitches, gleam on the roofs of the production buildings in Gaste, Bramsche, Leeden, Altmoorhausen and Leipzig. The combined installed capacity of the solar installations is 3,000 kilowatts. The latest solar installation has just been erected at the Hude-Altmoorhausen plant and will come on stream in the near future. We generate the electricity for our own use for the most part. This guarantees both low electricity costs for many years and reduces the load on the power stations in the current difficult situation. Last but not least, we are making progress on the road to CO² reduction. 

In the last six years, the AMAZONE Group has invested approximately 4.2 million euros in various energy-saving measures. More than 5 million euros have already been saved over this period, in order to be able to continue to produce AMAZONE machines economically. The AMAZONE energy management team, together with our energy scouts, will continue to be active in this area.