Farming Monthly National May 2016 | Page 60

| Tyres Recognition for Mitas as a John Deere “Partner-level Supplier” Mitas has earned recognition as a Partner-level supplier for 2015 in the John Deere Achieving Excellence Program. he Partner-level status is Deere & Company’s highest supplier rating. The Prague based company was selected for the honor in recognition of its dedication to providing products and service of outstanding quality as well as its commitment to continuous improvement. Company employees accepted the recognition during formal ceremonies held on 13 April 2016 in Zweibrücken, Germany. Mitas is a supplier of radial agricultural tyres to John Deere’s operation in Europe, Russia, United States and Mexico. “Mitas has received the Partner-level award five times since 2004,” said Jaroslav Čechura, T Mitas’ CEO. Mitas supplies radial agricultural tyres to John Deere factories in Mannheim and Zweibrücken in Germany, Domodedovo in Russia, Waterloo and Augusta in the United States and Saltillo in Mexico. “The Partner-level award from John Deere is an important acknowledgment of the quality of Mitas tyres and moreover the service beyond the product provided by the Mitas team,” added Lutz Rose, Mitas' key account manager for John Deere. Suppliers who participate in the Achieving Excellence program are evaluated annually in several key performance categories, including quality, cost management, delivery, technical support and wavelength, which is a measure of responsiveness. John Deere Supply Management created the program in 1991 to provide a supplier evaluation and feedback process that promotes continuous improvement. Bridgestone adds free financing to their premium agricultural tyre product line-up Tractor tyre finance is not a completely new concept to farmers and agricultural contractors. Premium tyres are downright expensive and fitting out a tractor fleet can set a business back by more than the cost of a new family car. he AG division of Bridgestone UK Ltd has caught on to this and is now offering 0% deals over 24 months on all new VT and Firestone MaxiTraction tyres, providing you go to an authorised Bridgestone dealer. This convenience is available across mainland UK, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland. The finance is provided by third party finance companies and networked to the dealerships electronically ensuring seamless response times. Essentially a leasing contract, there is no VAT to pay upfront and no documentation fee. The buyer negotiates a price with the dealer, signs paperwork when approved, and pays a monthly rental (plus recoverable VAT, when registered) T over two years without a penny or cent in interest due. At lease end, ownership is obtained from Bridgestone automatically. The financing means keeping your capital dry for supporting business initiatives and cash flow, and saving interest on borrowings. Just launched, the initiative is already proving popular with Bridgestone AG customers, and the company is already talking about extending the advantages to Firestone dealers covering the larger range of Firestone agricultural tyres. AG Product Manager for Northern Europe, Steve Hewitt says: “Bridgestone has a great reputation as the world’s largest manufacturer of all types of tyres, and financing is a service that we have never offered farmers before, so we want it to be the best. It is 60 | Farming Monthly | May 2016 also our way of giving even more to our customers, so that you can choose how to manage your money when buying from us in a very straightforward way.” For decades, Bridgestone has remained at the forefront of the agricultural tyres segment through its legendary Firestone brand. Thanks to this long history and its powerful legacy, Firestone is the world's leading brand of agricultural tyres with a strong presence in Europe. Earlier Firestone range upgrades and expansion have allowed the Bridgestone company to cover about 95% of current market demand for tractor tyres. The recently introduced Bridgestone-branded VT-TRACTOR will complete the needs of the highend agricultural tyre segment, giving Bridgestone a full portfolio of products able to meet all market requirements with Firestone products in standard and IF categories and Bridgestone products in the VF category. The VT-TRACTOR’s superior traction allows farmers to work faster in the field and cover up to 0.9 hectares more than its competitors over a 10 hour period. Coupled with the tyre’s excellent fuel economy, generating savings of up to 36 litres per 50 hectares vs. benchmark competitors, the VTTRACTOR guarantees a lower total cost of ownership. The most important feature of the VT-TRACTOR tyre, however, is its very low and very evenly distributed contact pressure. Internal testing also revealed that the VT-TRACTOR provides up to 26% larger lug contact area than the same competitor tyres tested, resulting in very low soil compaction and thus greater crop protection. www.farmingmonthly.co.uk