| Machinery
Kubota ranked first in dealer satisfaction index
Kubota , the best company according to the European Dealer Satisfaction Index 2017 conducted by CLIMMAR .
T he Japanese company is ranked first in this year ’ s European Dealer Satisfaction Index , also known as the “ dealer satisfaction barometer ”. It has outperformed its competition and thus positioned itself at the top of the agricultural sector in terms of dealer satisfaction .
Kubota has been voted as the best company in terms of dealer
T his collaborative pilot program is focused on gathering agronomic and operator feedback on the use of this technology in everyday vineyard activities , with the ultimate objective of delivering autonomous solutions that are driven by the real-world requirements of winegrowers . The pilot program is the latest step in the New Holland Autonomous Vehicle Program and its exploration of the various applications that can benefit the most from this technology . The Brand unveiled its NHDrive™ autonomous solution in 2016 at the Farm Progress Show , and to date , has previewed it on the T7 Heavy Duty and T8 tractor ranges to illustrate possible row crop applications . The new pilot program with the T4.110F demonstrates that New Holland ’ s autonomous solution is applicable to the brand ’ s entire range of tractors , from high horsepower row crop all the way through to its specialty ranges . Carlo Lambro , New Holland Agriculture Brand President , explained : “ Sustainability and innovation are in New Holland ’ s DNA ; that ’ s how we help our customers to farm efficiently and profitably today – and anticipate the satisfaction at European level . On average , the brand surpasses its competitors by almost two points . The result of the CLIMMAR survey was disclosed during Agritechnica .
The well-known Dealer Satisfaction Index constitutes the statistical average of the points awarded to each brand by the European agricultural machinery dealers . Several countries participated in this survey , including the United Kingdom , Belgium ,
way their needs will change . We believe that specialty operations , and in particular those in the vineyard environment , could significantly benefit from the introduction of autonomous technology , in terms of productivity and sustainability . Our partner in the pilot program , E . & J . Gallo Winery , shares our commitment to innovation and sustainability in viticulture , as well as our objective of providing an autonomous solution that will benefit winegrowers around the world .” The pilot program is taking place in an E . & J . Gallo Winery vineyard in California , USA , with T4.110F tractors fitted with NHDrive autonomous technology . During the course of the initial research and development program , further progress has been made into the integration of the various component parts – specifically the sensing and perception elements and the signal receivers . As such , the T4.110F NHDrive maintains its sleek overall silhouette . This pilot is focused on a full range of vineyard maintenance and crop production tasks , which will provide feedback to further develop these activities during autonomous operation . These often repetitive applications , represent a broad cross-section of activities that are
Denmark , France , Germany , Italy , Poland , and the Netherlands .
Among all the different categories that were taken into account to analyse each company , Kubota clearly stood out in the following : after sales service and warranty , administration and terms of payment , manufacturer-dealer relations , and willingness to improve .
Kubota has evolved considerably over the last years , which has
undertaken in vineyards , and are also representative of those carried out by the wider agricultural community . The data generated during the pilot will enrich the New Holland Autonomous Vehicle Program , providing real-world detail on the full range of possible automated and autonomous applications . These include Operator Assisted Autonomy , where the NHDrive supports the operator in the cab , Supervised Autonomy , where the operator will be in the field and supervises unmanned vehicles , and ultimately Full Autonomy , with no local supervision . The research carried out within the scope of the Autonomous Vehicle Program is also generating derived technologies that are already available to customers in the New Holland PLM ®, Precision Land Management , offering . These are solutions , such as IntelliTurn™ – a allowed it to be the winner of this international recognition and overcome its strongest competitors .
“ We are proud of this important recognition and thank dealers who have acknowledged the hard work which the Kubota team puts in everyday to serve both dealers and customers . We will continue along this path in order to keep improving relations and service levels .” said Mr . Kazunari Shimokawa , President of the Tractor Business Unit in Europe .
New Holland presents NHDrive autonomous tractor
New Holland Agriculture is partnering with E . & J . Gallo Winery , the largest family-owned winery in the world , and loyal customer of New Holland specialty tractors , in a pilot project testing its NHDrive autonomous technology applied to T4.110F vineyard tractors . system that fully automates end-ofrow turning at the touch of the button – that help farmers in their pursuit of ever greater efficiency in their activities . Autonomous operation has a key role to play in enhancing the business and environmental sustainability of farming operations . It results in a more efficient use of resources through the increased accuracy and repeatability of activities , as well as uniform productivity throughout the working day . It helps increase the operators ’ efficiency through assisted operation : rendering some of the base operations autonomous enables them to concentrate on key tasks that require greater skills . A further benefit is the upskilling of labor through the automation of repetitive functions . Quite simply , it will help advance the future of farming .
44 | Farming Monthly | March 2018 www . farmingmonthly . co . uk