US spray firm locates a spot in precision farming
4 August 2000
US spray firm locates a spot in precision farming
By Peter Hill
SPRAYING Systems, the US-based manufacturer of TeeJet spray nozzles and controllers, is staking a claim in the precision farming field with the acquisition of two specialist companies in the US and Denmark.
The purchase of LH Agro – which makes a range of sprayer, spreader and seed drill monitors and controls plus yield loggers and grain loss monitors – provides Spraying Systems with a ready-made range of GPS hardware and software.
Midwest Technologies, which trades under the Mid-Tech name, also produces control system electronics which are widely used on sprayers in North America, as well as PC software for precision farming. More significantly, perhaps, Mid-Tech is regarded as the leading manufacturer of direct chemical injection systems for crop sprayers.
"Mid-Tech and LH Agro are recognised leaders in their areas of specialisation," says Dave Smith, chief operating officer at Spraying Systems. "The addition of these companies to our organisation will allow us to produce the broadest line of electronics for agricultural field machinery."
Both companies were previously owned by InterAg Technologies of the US but bought their independence when InterAg became a wholly-owned division of Deere & Co last year. This business now forms the core of John Deere Special Technologies Group, based in Atlanta, Georgia.
Spraying Systems says LH Agro and Mid-Tech will continue to operate separately but no further news of any integration or product sharing plans is likely to be forthcoming until final details of the LH Agro acquisition have been completed.
In Britain, Spraying Systems nozzles, controllers and sprayer accessories are sold through Surrey-based TeeJet North Europe. LH Agro has subsidiaries in Germany and France, as well as a UK business at St Ives, Cambs, which also sells Mid-Tech products across Europe. *