Strong partnership: develop solutions together
The close partnership between CT Agro and HORSCH stands for joint growth, technical innovation and proximity to customers. The co-operation between the two companies results in solutions that are customised to the requirements of Kazakh agriculture.
CT Agro was founded in 2000 by Klaus Tischer. In the past 25 years, the company developed from a regional dealer into a leading partner for agriculture in Kazakhstan. In 2014, CT Agro became part of the Dutch Reesink Group. Another significant step was taken in 2021: the contract for the construction of a joint assembly plant in Petropavlovsk was signed between CT Assembly, HORSCH and Claas. It was officially opened in 2022.
Close to the customer
By now, CT Agro has over 15 subsidiaries in all agriculturally relevant regions of Kazakhstan. Around 300 employees in sales and service and around 100 in the production plant ensure that machines are not only sold, but also sustainably taken care of. For Managing Director Jörg Voschepoth, this is a crucial point: "We are where our customers are. With our network and regional roots, we don't offer standards - we offer solutions and support."
You can already see it in the name: What many people don't know: The “C” in CT Agro is an “S” in Cyrillic. The two letters CT therefore stand for service and technology - exactly what the company wants to offer its customers. “Our objective is to respond to individual requirements and find customised solutions.” These solutions are developed in close dialogue with the farmers. CT Agro prefers to work with medium-sized family farms that, like the company itself, are deeply connected to agriculture. “We try to pass on this closeness to practice,” Voschepoth explains. “Our aim is to understand local agriculture and include it into our daily work.”
Varied requirements
This is also necessary due to the variety of conditions: Kazakhstan is around 7.2 times the size of Germany and has a population of around 18 million. Agriculture is concentrated in the north, east and south of the country. "The conditions are extremely varied," Voschepoth says. Large-scale arable farming dominates in the north, rainfall tends to be low, and the climate is very continental. Farmers mainly grow spring crops. In the east, the soils tend to be sandy which is why there is a lot of irrigation. Potatoes and partly vegetables are grown here. In the south, agriculture is more fragmented, and the climate is partly subtropical - without excessive rainfall. These regional differences mean that a standardised approach rarely works. "We have to know exactly what challenges our customers on site are facing. A machine that works perfectly in the north of Kazakhstan may be unsuitable in the south."
The importance of proximity and intensive dialogue with the customers is not least proven by the supply of spare parts - an issue that has become more pressing due to geopolitical developments. "Spare parts used to be delivered from Europe in ten days. Today, it sometimes takes 30 to 45 days," Voschepoth says. More complex supply chains are to blame, for example because of ferry routes or transit routes via third countries. To respond to this, more goods are stored locally, and new strategies are developed for an even closer, forward-looking co-operation.
"We carry out After Seeding Checks with many farms. In the periods when machines are not running, we check them together and make them fit for the next season. This is necessary to continue to offer a stable service," Voschepoth states. In addition, new branches were opened in recent years and additional specialised staff was hired to provide customers with even better support.
Joint assembly plant
A visible sign of the close co-operation with HORSCH is the joint assembly plant with Claas in Petropavlovsk which has been in operation for three years. “The plant was a huge step for us,” Voschepoth says. “Not only because it allows for producing closer to our customers, but also because it gives us access to local financing programmes.”
However, the importance goes beyond business factors. “For many customers, it sends a strong signal: the manufacturers are serious about Kazakhstan,” he explains. Local production also means faster availability of machines, more predictable service and a more targeted flow of spare parts. And: customers benefit from subsidies as the products are officially manufactured locally.
Prime example Sprinter NT
A central component of the co-operation between CT Agro and HORSCH is the development of joint solutions. The Sprinter NT is a prime example. The tine seed drill was specially developed for the conditions in Kazakhstan. “Robust, easy to operate, large working widths - these are the requirements of our customers,” Voschepoth comments. Previously, the Sprinter HD with wing coulters was the common method - among other things for simultaneous mechanical weed control. When the Sprinter NT was introduced in 2010, it was ahead of its time. Many farms had not yet adapted to the new cultivation concept, particularly because the chaff distribution during combine harvesting often was not optimum. As a first step, the CT Agro team convinced the customers of the need for an optimised residue management at the harvest - and thus of the prerequisites for a successful switch from HD to NT. At the same time, chemical crop care was also introduced to the farms - both together allowed for higher yields at lower costs.
Between 2010 and 2014, this technology was still in the development phase - less than 10 % of the machines delivered were Sprinter NT. CT Agro focussed more on consulting and demonstration. By 2016, the ratio had shifted significantly: Sprinter HD and NT were evenly balanced. The increasing introduction of GPS on farms also contributed to this. As a result, the importance of the 24 m version in particular increased enormously. Only GPS allows for sowing precisely between the rows at all.
Professionalisation
At the same time, agriculture in Kazakhstan itself also changed: wheat cultivation used to dominate with a kind of four-year rotation - three years of wheat, one year fallow. Fallow land meant no income. Today, more and more farms rely on oil crops such as rapeseed or sunflowers. Thus, real crop rotations which also pay off economically develop for the first time. The share of farms that still work with fallow land is now less than 10 % - with a downward trend. Professionalisation in agriculture is also evident in the area of digitalisation - for example with HorschConnect. “By now, HorschConnect is part of the Sprinters' standard equipment and is a great tool especially for the service team.” The distances for the service staff are often very long. With HorschConnect, the function and performance of the machines can be monitored online. This means help can be provided more quickly. “This is very well received and has also become an important sales argument for us.” CT Agro played a decisive role in the introduction of HorschConnect in Kazakhstan and contributed significantly to the rapid establishment of this technological innovation on the market by means of intensive training sessions where the practical benefits were explained in detail.
Partnership with perspective
The Sprinter NT or the introduction of HorschConnect are good examples of the co-operation between CT Agro and HORSCH. Obstacles were overcome together until the machine concept was successful in Kazakhstan. “You can only achieve this if you work together well and if you are on the same page,” Voschepoth emphasises. CT Agro is the only HORSCH dealer in Kazakhstan - with official importer status. The partnership is based on trust, open communication and common objectives. "We don't just work alongside each other, but with each other," Voschepoth says. "We develop strategies together, adapt machines and overcome challenges – at eye level." Despite the progress already made, CT Agro and HORSCH still see enormous potential - not only in the partnership, but above all in Kazakh agriculture itself. Kazakhstan has huge agricultural areas, growing professionalisation and increasingly entrepreneurial farms. These are optimum conditions for the future. Jörg Voschepoth sees great potential especially in the area of tillage: "There is still room for improvement here. Many farmers still rely on simple technology. We want to show them that there are better solutions." But the focus goes beyond individual sectors of technology. CT Agro pursues a holistic approach: “All in all, we want to be a strong partner for the farmers in the sectors of service and technology development in Kazakhstan and expand our activities even further.”