Industry Summary Articles

Trimble announced today that it has added its first distribution partner in Latin America to its Vantage™ network—a global network of independent distribution partners that provide growers, advisors, retailers, co-ops and local OEM dealers with precision agriculture expertise for the entire farm.

Trimble and Geo Agri have worked together for more than 20 years and have developed a strong relationship that promotes and delivers Trimble precision agriculture solutions to farmers in Brazil. Both companies recognize the growth potential of farming, and as a result, have jointly developed a growth plan for a new Vantage distribution network in the region. Committing to this new plan, Geo Agri will be the first Vantage distribution partner in Latin America—Vantage Centro-Sul.

Vantage Centro-Sul will be headquartered in the current Geo Agri office in Ribeirão Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil and will offer Trimble total farm solutions throughout the states of Sao Paulo, Minas Gerais and Goiás. As part of Vantage Centro-Sul's expansion plan, it will also open dedicated offices in Minas Gerais and Goiás in the near future. Vantage Centro-Sul will continue ownership, operation and management of the Trimble Authorized Service Center for Trimble products at the Ribeirão Preto location. Their state-of-the-art facility provides service to equipment under warranty as well as refurbished units for the Brazilian territory.

"Geo Agri has done an excellent job over the last 20 years representing Trimble, and we are very pleased with how the two companies developed a shared vision to support the evolution of the Brazilian farming ecosystem," said Guillermo Perez-Iturbe, regional director of Trimble Agriculture, Latin America. "One of the main objectives of the Vantage network is to develop a deeper understanding of the farming practice within a specific geographical territory. Our goal is to get closer to the Brazilian farmers and learn more about their daily challenges. In addition, we intend to further develop the Vantage network by adding additional distribution partners in different geographic regions across Brazil and throughout Latin America." 

"We are proud to be the first Vantage distribution partner in Latin America and see this expansion of our business model as a necessary step to increase the sophistication of technologies in local farm practices," said Gustavo Streiff, partner and sales director for the former Geo Agri, now Vantage Centro Sul. "On-board technology, high-accuracy GNSS systems, sensors, farm management information systems and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will require a greater level of expertise and integration that we can now provide with our expanded business model. Geo Agri, now as Trimble Vantage Centro-Sul, will have the required tools and domain knowledge to integrate those technologies and offer more innovative services to its customers and partners."

As the complexity of integrating multiple systems together across a farming operation increases, so does the need for seamless service and support from technicians that have in depth knowledge in all areas of precision agriculture. Vantage distribution partners complete an extensive level of training to install, set-up and support the entire Trimble precision agriculture portfolio from planning through reporting. The Trimble agriculture portfolio has evolved from guidance and flow & application control systems to now include advanced solutions for irrigation and water management, agronomy coaching, plant health monitoring, soil analysis, variable rate application, and desktop and cloud-based management.

Vantage distributors provide a premier level of technical expertise, customer service, and support capabilities and operate with a strategy that fosters technology interoperability in mixed fleets used on a farm. Vantage distribution partners are committed to providing reliable, responsive and dedicated in-field service and support as well as creating a hassle-free experience for the grower and their advisor when implementing advanced technology solutions. They also provide training so farmers and advisors have a better understanding of how to use the technology in a way that best meets their farming needs.

To view the original press release, please click here.

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