A leading machinery company – The Scot JCB Group – has launched a new division to handle its operations in the agricultural sector.
The company has combined two of its farm machinery divisions – AM Phillip Agritech and Kelso & Lothian Harvesters – to form Scot Agri.
It said the new division will provide machinery sales, service and parts for a range of brands including JCB, Massey Ferguson, Valtra, Horsch, Ktwo and Vicon.
It will operate across eight depots in Scotland – Forfar, Fraserburgh, Huntly, Perth, Glenrothes, Muir of Ord, Haddington and Kelso.
Scot JCB said its current agricultural depots will be dual-branded with Scot Agri for agricultural products and Scot JCB for construction products.
“The rebranding of Kelso & Lothian Harvesters and A M Phillip Agritech to Scot Agri unifies our agricultural companies under one brand while maintaining the same industry-leading service we have always provided,” said Scot JCB Group joint managing director, Robin Bryant.
He said the group’s other divisions – Stewart Plant Sales (SPS) and Scot Industrial Air (SIA) – will also be given a “fresh new look” with updated logos.
The Scot JCB Group runs a network of 20 depots from Carnforth in the north-west of England to Fraserburgh in the north-east. It took over Kelso & Lothian Harvesters in 2014 and AM Philip Agritech in 2018.
Sales boost
Meanwhile, the latest figures from the Agricultural Engineer Association (AEA) show continued growth in the UK tractor sales market.
The figures reveal 1,103 tractors over 50 horsepower (hp) were registered last month – this is 75% more than in May 2020 and 10% above the average for this time of year.
AEA agricultural economist, Stephen Howarth, said the figures came as no surprise as the market faced Covid-19 disruptions last year.
He added: “This brought the total for the year to date to 5,371 machines, 21% more than in the opening five months of 2020 and 7% up on the five-year average.”