Thailand’s New Holland dealer learned first-hand why it is important to make farming easier and more productive
By switching from farming the land to selling agricultural equipment, Auychai Tractor’s Managing Director is helping farmers meet the challenges he once faced himself.
Bangkok, 15th August 2018
If anyone knows exactly what kind of mechanised assistance Thailand’s farmers really need, it is Mr Somchit Teinthong, Managing Director at one of the most successful New Holland dealerships in Thailand. This is because Mr Somchit started his working life in farming, joining the same profession as his father, and discovered it was a tough path to follow. Today much of Mr Somchit’s passion about his work comes from seeing how modern agricultural equipment can help other farmers, making their farm work easier, more productive, and more economically sustainable than it used to be.
The business Mr Somchit manages, Auychai Tractor Udonthani Company Limited, typically sells about 100 New Holland machines each year. Most of those sales are tractors. Auychai Tractor employs 25 people and operates out of two branches in the northeastern provinces, one in Nong Bua Lamphu and the other in Sakonnakhon. In these areas sugarcane and cassava are the main crops.
Mr Somchit’s father also farmed sugarcane and cassava, as well as corn and soy. He owned two tractors, both Ford 5000 models, and Mr Somchit’s interest in these machines inspired him to leave behind the hardships of farming and start selling spare parts for tractors. Those family-owned machines also explain Mr Somchit’s affection for the famous ‘blue tractors’ of Ford first and then New Holland, a loyalty which endures to this day.
During the years Mr Somchit’s sales career progressed: from being the boy who tinkered with his father’s tractors and the young man who sold spare parts, he became an official dealer for New Holland.
Auychai Tractor sells and services a full range of New Holland tractors, but four models are especially popular with the dealerships’ customers. The 75 hp TT4.75 tractor is designed for maximum comfort, easy operation, and productivity. The 47 hp TT45 tractor, often used where cassava crops are grown, is from the TT Compact Series which redefined the economy tractor market by packing the performance of bigger machines into smaller dimensions. The 47 hp TCR48 tractor is versatile and easy to use, being compatible with a wide range of implements.
And the 80-105 hp 10 Series tractor, favored by sugarcane farms, is notable for its combination of great power and economy.
Mr Somchit said: “Many of our customers are like me: they have grown up knowing that New Holland products have great quality, strength, and heritage. But there’s more behind New Holland’s popularity, and that’s the high-quality customer support. Many of our customers are located quite close to our showrooms, but even those who are 100 kilometers away know they can count on us for fast service. Specialised technical knowledge cascades from New Holland, who train our dealer technical staff, to our customers, who we support with operational and technical advice.”
When Mr Somchit first entered farming more than 30 years ago, the main worry was finance, and for many of Thailand’s agricultural businesses this remains a concern today. For this reason, Mr Somchit believes “one of the most important forms of support our business provides to farmers is a full range of competitive and flexible finance packages made available by CNH Industrial Thailand, together with finance provider G-Capital.”
The current retail financing program aims to make it easier for Thai farmers to invest in new equipment, benefiting from New Holland Agriculture’s high premium tractor offering under affordable conditions.
“The training and technical advice we give customers on machine maintenance is also financially important, because it helps farms reduce servicing costs and downtime”, he added.
Income was too often unreliable when Mr Somchit and his father were farmers, but New Holland and dealers including Auychai Tractor are showing how investment in modern mechanised solutions pays back by improving productivity and profitability. Farmers will always face challenges such as climate unpredictability and crop price fluctuations, but New Holland and its service-focused dealers are helping to smooth-out the path to success.