New for 2020

The 2020 award is sponsored by the Nebraska State Chamber of Commerce and RSM, the fifth largest accounting firm in the United States. Bryan Slone, President of the Nebraska State Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Partner, Michelle Luett, of RSM, presented the 2020 award alongside the Governor of Nebraska, Pete Ricketts. Matthias Ristow, President & Managing Director, and Matthew Koch, Director of Manufacturing, gratefully received the award on behalf of CLAAS Omaha.

Upon acceptance of the award, Mr. Ristow and Mr. Koch expressed their appreciation to the employees of CLAAS Omaha for their steadfast contributions and strong commitment to this season’s company targets. Ristow stated that despite the impact of the global pandemic upon production itself and on the company’s suppliers, CLAAS still successfully delivered all combines on time to our customers.

The first of October also marked the beginning of Manufacturing Month in the U.S. Governor Ricketts kicked off the national event in Nebraska with a press conference, hosted in the CLAAS North America show room. During the press conference, Governor Ricketts stressed the importance of jobs in manufacturing as the second largest economy in Nebraska and discussed various steps companies such as CLAAS have taken to continually develop its workforce. The Governor specifically highlighted the recent creation of the ICATT Apprenticeship Program and thanked CLAAS for bringing this new program to Nebraska.

Bryan Slone of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce also noted that Nebraska’s highly productive work force, affordable real estate and utility cost, the general low cost of doing business, and the high-quality transportation networks make Nebraska a natural fit for manufacturing growth.

Always looking forward, CLAAS Omaha will continue to focus toward the modernization of the local manufacturing industry for Nebraska and the U.S. as a whole.

Photo Cutline:

(Photo (L-R) Bryan Sloan, President of Nebraska State Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Michelle Luett, Partner RSM; Pete Ricketts, Governor of the State of Nebraska; Matthias Ristow, President & MD Business Administration COL; Matt Koch Director Manufacturing COL; and Tony Urban, National Tax Consulting Leader for the U.S., RSM.)

About CLAAS of America Inc.:

CLAAS of America Inc. offers a wide variety of technologically innovative tractor, combine, forage harvester, baler and hay tool products to provide growers optimum performance in the field. These premium equipment lines are designed by a dedicated engineering staff located at numerous factories worldwide and focused on the production and design of harvesting equipment. The design, performance and reliability of this equipment have made CLAAS an international market leader.

“We’re extremely pleased to introduce these new innovations to our full line of hay and forage harvesting products,” says Matt Jaynes, Product Manager at CLAAS of America. “Our customers who run hay and forage-based operations need more than just robust machinery; they deserve harvesting systems that work together seamlessly. These six models we’ve added to our line of ORBIS headers and DISCO mowers will support day-to-day operations and help customers achieve optimal results when harvesting, so they can make the most out of each hour in the field.”

Multiple headers for multiple crops

The newly designed ORBIS 450 and 900 feature a frame stamped from a flat piece of metal, with no welded joints, for the strongest possible header. The knives, crop flow guides and Christmas trees on the new ORBIS 900 are all PREMIUM LINE, making the header more durable and providing more consistent cutting and feeding. The ORBIS 450 features a working width of 15 feet, while the ORBIS 900 has a working width of 30 feet, the smallest and largest headers within the ORBIS range.

Despite its large working width, the ORBIS 900 is able to follow ground contours for optimal performance. This is made possible by a new tilting frame that enables a +/- 5° correction in combination with an exclusive AUTO CONTOUR hydraulic swing movement compensation. In addition to the two standard sensor bands at the outer edges, a third, centrally fitted sensor band is available as an option. This provides an enhanced ability to follow ground contours, especially on uneven ground. The ORBIS 900 also features a folding design that allows the operator to fold and unfold it in 22 seconds for easy transport between fields to get the job done faster.

Top crop quality in all operating conditions

The new “10 Series” DISCO 24, 28 and 32 rear-mounted mowers are designed to work flawlessly year after year. The smaller working width (7 feet 2 inches to 9 feet 10 inches) disc mowers include the same professional-grade MAX CUT cutter bar featured on larger, more expensive mowers and a double gearbox. The new range of mowers are quickly attached to the tractor using a category 2 or 3 quick-hitch. A new feature for all side-mounted DISCO disc mowers is a center-of-gravity hitching system, which ensures that the mower bed has a uniform contact pressure over the entire working width. The mower bed quickly responds to changes in ground contour, resulting in clean hay and even stubble.

Optimized for heavy duty usage, CLAAS has released the all-new “100 Series” DISCO 360 rear mower. The 360 mower features the same high-end MAX CUT cutter bar with quick knife change for perfect cutting quality and ground following. It also features a double gearbox, integrated breakback device and quick blade change. Thanks to the working width of 11 feet 2 inches, there is no job too big for the DISCO 360 rear mower.

About CLAAS of America Inc.:

CLAAS of America Inc. offers a wide variety of technologically innovative tractor, combine, forage harvester, baler and hay tool products to provide growers optimum performance in the field. These premium equipment lines are designed by a dedicated engineering staff located at numerous factories worldwide and focused on the production and design of harvesting equipment. The design, performance and reliability of this equipment have made CLAAS an international market leader. For more information, visit www.claas.com.

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Matthias “Matt” Ristow has assumed the role of president of CLAAS Omaha, the combine production company for CLAAS in North America.

“We would like to thank Maury very much for his successful work at CLAAS throughout the years. Many of our North American operations were shaped and further developed under his hard work and effective leadership,” says Leif Magnusson, president of CLAAS Global Sales – Americas. “He had a hand in the evolution of the LEXION combine in North America for nearly two decades.”

During Maury’s 19 years at CLAAS, he was responsible for a wide range of North American operations including research and development, purchasing, quality, logistics and manufacturing. Most recently, Salz oversaw the production of the all-new 8000-7000 Series LEXION combines, which returned to the bright “seed-green” CLAAS color after many years of Caterpillar yellow.

In 2018–19, Maury served as president for the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) and actively participates in executive committees for the advancement of Agricultural and Biological Engineering. He officially finished his year-long commitment to the organization as past president at the ASABE International Meeting this July.

The incoming CLAAS Omaha president, Matt Ristow, has been with the company for six years — first serving as Vice President – Finance & Operations, and now President & Managing Director, Business Administration. The planned transition has been a smooth one.

Matt was born in Germany and came to the United States as a high school exchange student. He continued his higher education in the U.S., receiving a bachelor’s degree in business general administration and a master’s in international business from Fresno State in California. Matt returned to Germany and worked for the largest privately held service company in Europe, holding progressive positions overseeing controlling before returning to the U.S. and beginning an international career that led him from the U.S. to the United Arab Emirates and Turkey in senior executive positions.

“We wish Maury the best of luck in his retirement on his family farm in Northwest Iowa,” says Magnusson. “Looking ahead, we are extremely excited for Matt to take on this new role. We recognize his dedication to continuously improving our products, and we are more than confident in his leadership for CLAAS of Omaha.”

“Just three years after opening, in 2003, we began our partnership with CLAAS after picking up the hay tool line. Now, 17 years later, we couldn’t be more excited to expand our business even further with the premium brand of CLAAS products,” says Gary Klyn, founder of GJ’s Farm Equipment, now GJ’s Harvest Centre Inc. “With the expansion brings a new name change, which will better represent us as a focused dealer for CLAAS. CLAAS is a world-class company committed to expanding their business in southwest Ontario and we are thrilled to grow with them.”

GJ’s began as a repair shop in 2000 by Gary and his wife, Corrie. Since then, their customer commitment has expanded to include the sale of new and used equipment as well as exceptional parts and service departments. The facility’s expansion will allow them to continue providing top-of-the-line, dependable equipment for their current and future customer base.

“GJ’s Harvest Centre Inc. represents what it means to be a committed CLAAS dealer, and we are excited about their upcoming expansion,” said Eric Raby, President and General Manager – Sales, CLAAS of America. “The southwest Ontario region remains an important market for CLAAS, and with the new and improved facility, we are able to continue our growth and expand our brand’s reach in the area. This is a direct reflection of the hard work and relationships GJ’s has built with their growers.”

To learn more about GJ’s Harvest Centre Inc., visit the company website.

About CLAAS of America Inc.:

CLAAS of America Inc. offers a wide variety of technologically innovative tractor, combine, forage harvester, baler and hay tool products to provide growers optimum performance in the field. These premium equipment lines are designed by a dedicated engineering staff located at numerous factories worldwide and focused on the production and design of harvesting equipment. The design, performance and reliability of this equipment have made CLAAS an international market leader. For more information, visit www.claas.com.