As Maschio Garspardo’s new UK distribution subsidiary prepared to start full operations at premises in Lincolnshire from 1 November, the parent company in Italy has forged an alliance with French cultivator maker Gregoire Besson.

The formal agreement covers shared skills, expertise and investment in tillage equipment R&D, joint purchase of components for greater economies of scale, and product distribution partnerships.

See also: Ranked: Europe’s biggest farm equipment manufacturers

Luigi De Puppi, Maschio Gaspardo managing director, said: “This partnership not only creates new leadership in the vital field of soil cultivation, but also strengthens our joint ability to invest in innovation and technology, while opening up new prospects for expansion, particularly in Eastern Europe, the UK and North America.”

The companies’ two tillage product lines are largely complementary.

Maschio Gaspardo caters for a wide range of farm sizes and tractor power, while Gregoire Besson specialises in bigger, higher output equipment for very large farming enterprises.

The Italian company manufactures seed-bed and stubble cultivators, subsoilers, disc harrows and ploughs in sizes up to nine furrows at a newly expanded factory in Romania.

Maschio power harrows and rotary tillers are built at its headquarters plant in north-east Italy, near Venice.

Gregoire Besson operates from north-west France, near Nantes.

It produces heavy cultivation implements and top-end ploughs in sizes from four to 14 furrows covering up to 7m with each pass and catering for tractors up to 600hp.

The company has not had a UK-based operation for some years, but its export sales department continues to trade with several well-known dealers here, mainly supplying ploughs.

Maschio Gaspardo’s GB distribution business, located near Newark, has been set up to expand the product range available here.

Expansion grows from the half dozen or so handled by importer Opico to more than 27, including balers, mower-conditioners, fertiliser spreaders, mounted and trailed sprayers, direct drills, hedgecutters and inter-row cultivators.

These will all be revealed at the Lamma show in January.