New Holland
History of New Holland and the Blue Tractors
New Holland is a major manufacturer of tractors and other agricultural equipment in North America and across the world. It is the third largest player in the North American market for tractors. The current company organization of New Holland was formed in 1991 as the result of a merger between Ford New Holland, Inc. and Fiat Geotech. New Holland tractors are best recognized by their pure blue color. But there is a history prior to 1991 of the New Holland blue tractors that makes the roots of what it is today.
It was the New Holland Machine Company in 1895 where it all started. The location was New Holland, Pennsylvania where a man by the name of Abe Zimmerman built his first feed mill in a repair shop. His business continued into building other agricultural products and was incorporated in 1903.
The market for tractors was very competitive in the early 1900s. One of New Holland's competitors, Fordson, was introducing mass-produced tractors known as the Model F Series. In 1919, Fiat produced what it called a Model 702 tractor in Italy. The agricultural machinery business was doing very well during this period and the New Holland Machine Company was no exception. New Holland would continue to do well up until 1930.
The Great Depression affected the agricultural industry as a whole. And, the New Holland machine company was also unable to escape its effects. The company continued to struggle the next ten years and following that tumultuous period, New Holland was purchased by four investors who saw promise in the company. New Holland, under new leadership, introduced the world's first hay-bailer which was automated to the extent that it could pick up hay and tie it. The popularity of this new product helped to sustain New Holland until 1947.
Sperry entered the scene in 1947. Sperry, the famous electronics firm, acquired the company to form Sperry New Holland. Sperry New Holland would enter into the agricultural equipment industry producing high-end harvesting equipment. Meanwhile, a European agricultural equipment company named Claeys was becoming one of the largest players in that region and in 1952 released the first self-propelled combine harvester--the first of its kind in Europe. Another player in Europe, Claeys introduced the first combine-harvester that was self-propelled and in the early 1960s it would enjoy a status of being one of Europe's largest combine manufacturers. Sperry New Holland would later purchase part of Claeys in 1964.
The 1980s would see the entry of Ford into the arena. Ford had long been a leader in the agricultural machinery industry and was popular for their affordable line of tractors. Ford was not only a major player in the United States but in global markets as well. Ford bought New Holland in 1986 and immediately consolidated its tractor division to form Ford New Holland, Inc. By 1990, Ford New Holland tractors would be seen in numerous global markets to include countries in North America, Europe, Latin America, Central Asia, and South America.
New products and streamlined operations were the focus from 1991 to 1993. Ford New Holland wanted to reduce the time of production to market and turnaround time for producing components. Improvements were also made in the management and operation of the company's supply chain. 1993 would also see a new line of tractors named the Genesis Line which consisted of the 140- and 210-horsepower models. The Genesis Line of tractors was very popular for Ford New Holland and the company would realize sales of 10,000 units in the short span of two years.
Fiat purchased a 20% share of New Holland in 1994. This was the portion previously owned by Ford. Later, in 1995, the company became New Holland North America. Also in 1995, the company had a 21% share of the global agricultural tractor market. New Holland continues to operate today and offers tractors in series TT-A, TN-A/TND-A/TNS-A, T4000/F/V, TD, TK4000, TLA, T5000, T6000, TV6070, T7000, T8000, and T9000.
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