XtraBlatt Issue 02-2020

INTERVIEW
dentist, or accountant? Probably not! This is why at this
point I would like to appeal for more understanding of the
dealership situation. Nowadays the services involved have to
satisfy customer – and industry – demands that are spiralling
upwards regarding the required know-how levels of our teams
and naturally the reliability of the machinery after service.
But these external costings are only one side of the coin. What
dumps an almost greater load on our member companies are
the payment rates for guarantee and warranty work. After
all, one third of paid workshop hours are so called internal
hours. Of these, almost a quarter are down to guarantee and
warranty work. And this is where not a few dealerships stand
just at the brink of disaster. Those paying just 35 € or 40 €
per mechatronics hour and then asking for a reduction in the
hours on the invoice, and maybe also on travel costs too, have
– pardon me – totally lost touch with reality. As a rule, the
manufacturer should be responsible for any gaps in guarantee
and warranty cover. It cannot be the problem
of the service partner if new products are
rushed onto the market increasingly faster
with the trials carried out beforehand fewer
and fewer. Those who cause the problems in
this respect must shoulder the responsibility.
XtraBlatt: Does the problem lie with all
makes, in your experience?
Kopplin: No. Here, there are certainly clear differences. The
manufacturers of tractors and of harvest machinery have
already done a lot of homework regarding guarantee costs.
Certainly, there’s room for improvement here and there.
But after long discussions we’ve achieved a lot, not least
“THOSE WHO CAUSE
THE PROBLEMS IN
THIS RESPECT MUST
SHOULDER THE
RESPONSIBILITY.”
ULF KOPPLIN
encouraged by our regular membership surveys. In such
questionnaires, we don’t just stick to queries on guarantee
themes, but also on a whole series of different aspects at
various levels. Incidentally, these questionnaires on dealership
satisfaction with their manufacturer suppliers are not only
carried out nationally, but also on a European basis. Using
the responses allows us to make step-by-step
improvements in our cooperation.
XtraBlatt: You explicitly mentioned tractors
and harvest machinery. What can you say
about the implement manufacturing
sector?
Kopplin: Here lies the greatest need for
improvement on the subjects I’ve already
discussed. This is why in spring 2020 we conducted an appropriate
survey with around 180 dealerships taking part in
Germany alone. The differences in the results for individual
manufacturers were sometimes substantial. On the other
hand, a few makes, such as Krone and Horsch, came through
with marks clearly above the average, putting them right at
the top of total ranking. For companies where this was not
the case, there are acute grounds for discussions.
their trading partners as, for example, does Krone. With
smaller dealers, there arises the question at some point if,
under their own resources, the total effort required in sales
and service, whether for tractors or implements, will continue
to be worth it. As always, this depends on the individual
situation and expectations. But for businesses dealing with
only implements, I don’t see much of a future. After all, their
workshops have to support the respective firm with enough
income. And this depends on machine population and a good
basic level of equipment in the workshop. Mostly, this doesn’t
work out without self-propelled machinery on sale. In trading
and servicing, I also see a future for complete packages. As
specialist enterprises, we must be allowed to earn money in
trade, despite the pressures on margins through structural
change.
XtraBlatt: Is the training for skilled dealership staff able to
keep up with the technical developments in the industry?
Kopplin: This is certainly one of the greatest challenges of
our time and one of the core tasks for our association. The
fact is, the vocational education and training structures do
not everywhere keep up with technological progress. This
doesn’t only apply to the master mechanic in the companies
but just as much the examination committees, the schooling
and training regulations, the chambers of crafts and trades
and the technical colleges. Because of the foreseeable and,
even now sometimes, acute shortage of teachers, my greatest
fear currently lies with the schools.
But we too, must react here. For instance, giving extra
encouragement for the integration of more electronics and
digitalisation in training. This is why I’m especially pleased
that the LBT was last year one of the candidates from 176
applicants from many branches to be awarded funding for
a support project in the Federal Ministry of Education and
Research (BMBF) innovation competition ‘InnoVET’. This
triumph put us up amongst the leaders in the field and
polished our professional image – a good sign.
XtraBlatt: What does the support project entail?
Kopplin: Very briefly, the core idea is the further development
of vocational education and training of specialist and
management personnel for agricultural and construction
machinery engineering with a focus on the digital changes
and increasing automation. We hope the result will increase
the attractivity of professional education for existing and future
generations of specialist personnel in this work. After all,
at the risk of repeating myself, the dealerships and, above all,
the many committed colleagues involved are the performance
providers in our branch, and in the relationship between
industry and customers. Let us hope that this remains so!«
Ulf Kopplin values very highly the standard of knowledge and qualifications of
agricultural and construction machinery mechatronic engineers compared to that in
other technology branches.
XtraBlatt: Can a dealer in farm machinery earn a living from
one implement manufacturer alone, i.e. without tractors
and combine harvesters?
Kopplin: I believe this would be difficult. I can, however,
certainly imagine that on many farms, tractors actually play a
secondary role. The really big players in trading have no choice
but to accept the exclusivity demanded by the long liners
over the whole product range. The medium sized category
of dealerships , companies like those of our members, are in
a good position with tractor and implement manufacturers
when the makes traded are well positioned on the market,
and the manufacturers involved also give good support to
THE LANDBAUTECHNIK-BUNDESVERBAND* …
... is an association of company owners
in the skilled labour and specialised dealership
sector. Nationally, it represents
some 4,500 businesses, dealerships and
service firms on approx. 5,700 locations
with almost 44,000 employees and a
total annual turnover of 9 bn Euro. The
association is organised on a federal
basis comprising the respective federal
guild association, the 40 LandBauTechnik
guilds and the 10 state associations. At
national level, the federal association
coordinates overriding specialist themes,
organises congresses, exhibition presentations,
and – through its own academy
– a comprehensive schooling and
seminar system. It also prepares work
aids, information services and advises
companies and regional associations.
With six manufacturer societies and the
Federal Specialist Group for Motorised
Machinery, the association represents the
interests of dealerships with the industry.
It is also internationally linked within
the European association for the branch:
CLIMMAR.
*THE NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY AND EQUIPMENT DEALERS AND REPAIRERS ASSOCIATION IN GERMANY
52 53