Landscape & Urban Design Issue 37 2019 | Page 29

one that a company can be built around. Is there one specific product from Kubota that is seen as the benchmark for all future products that get released? The UK business was born out of our ‘B our customers and dealers which meant we are concentrating on focusing that we were able to develop a machine our attention on the aforementioned that met their needs perfectly. This set technologies. the precedence and today, Kubota has the broadest range of diesel powered direct collect mowers, making us This was recognised this year by Kubota winning the annual ‘Diesel of market leaders in the field. the year’ award, awarded by Diesel tractors have developed a great deal At Kubota, we find that the key innovative engine of the year, with and are still seen today as being the to maintaining such a fantastic Kubota being the first Japanese benchmark for quality, reliability and reputation is to spot the next industry winner of the prestigious European engineering excellence. requirement that hasn’t yet been engine award. series’ tractors. Over the years, these These machines are the core of Kubota’s business just as much as they were 40 years ago – we even hear established. From this, we are able to develop a machine or adapt a much needed feature for it, helping us to stay ahead of the game which is key to our International, presented to the most 6. We know from personal experience that Kubota attends a lot of industry events all over success. the world, are trade events still a the UK! 5. We know the brand is always that you have as much success with 4. Kubota just seems to go from products and opportunities but what from customers who still have some of the very first Kubota tractors to enter strength to strength and continues to be an industry leader but what is the key to the huge success of the brand? Obviously there is a lot of factors to take into consideration to build such a fantastic reputation but what you would you say is the main USP for the brand? The business continues to grow which is ultimately down to us listening to and learning from our customers and dealers to develop products which meet their needs in the ever changing groundcare landscape. We can turn to our G21 product here, which first hit the market in 2000. Direct collect on this type of machine was a relatively new concept at the time of launch, but we, as a business, learnt about the important requirements of looking at new ventures, new can we look to expect to see from Kubota in the coming months? priority for Kubota and do you feel trade event as you did in the past with a lot of business now being done online? Trade shows are an important part The challenge of complying with of our yearly schedule and offer a emission regulations is an ongoing great opportunity to meet face to face concern and one that we will continue with dealers, suppliers, media and to face. Every manufacturer will customers alike. The spike in the use have to comply with the regulations of the internet has naturally impacted put in place, however, as we make trade show attendee numbers over the our own engines and are recognised years, with a lot of modern businesses as the world leaders in the field, we relying on online transactions. are perfectly placed to adapt to the changing needs. Even with online being so prevalent, Understandably, new machinery shows adds real value and allows development can take a long time to visitors to see our products in person complete to get to production stage, which can really help in getting them but excitingly, we are experimenting over the purchasing line. with LPG, Gasoline, Diesel, Battery, GPS, Remote control technology. Although it is doubtful that we will see many new products imminently, the ‘touch and feel’ aspect of trade The shows also give our customers the chance to see the product without the need to visit our HQ or dealerships and allows us to touch base with key industry contacts, all under one roof. In addition to attending the many industry events throughout the year, we also attend local shows to support our wider dealer network. This allows our dealers to get in front of their potential end user customers and build upon both new and existing relationships. For more information, visit: www.husqvarna.com/uk/ products/robotic-lawn-mowers/ automower-awd/