AGCO Challenger to expand business in Africa
Manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment and solutions AGCO plans to further develop its Challenger farm machinery business in Africa.
Challenger’s product offering includes tracked tractors and sprayers built by AGCO in North America for the African market. AGCO's Challenger manufacturing plant in Jackson, Minnesota has been the subject of multi-million dollar investments over the last five years including a 6967m2 expansion to the tractor assembly line and the opening of a new visitors’ centre.
Increasing productivity
In 2013, a $42m upgrade and expansion was announced for engineering and manufacturing facilities to improve quality and increase production capacity. The upgrade included new component manufacturing facilities, new robotic welders, end-of-line quality testing, and new engineering and collaboration capabilities using virtual reality modeling in 3D.
In Europe and Middle East (EME), where the Challenger product has more of a niche market position, AGCO has proposed to integrate Challenger into the organisation of its Fendt operation from January 2018. The proposed organisational change in EME is subject to formal consultation processes. The proposed changes in EME, it says, will not affect the Challenger business in Africa, Asia Pacific, North and South America.
