68 | REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT CLAAS Harvest Centre Central Districts New CLAAS Harvest Centre for Central Districts The Central Districts team. T T Sue Russell Change is on the horizon for CLAAS Harvest Centre Central Districts, as the well-established Feilding dealership prepares to move to a purpose-built site in 2026 — a development that signals serious intent for the region and its rural customers. The new facility marks a major upgrade in both scale and capability for the CLAAS Harvest Centre. In a time where some businesses are conserving funds and making tough decisions, Landpower Founder and Director, Herby Whyte, has maintained his philosophy of consistently investing back into the company and community. “I have always held a long-term view of showing our commitment by investing in New Zealand agriculture, and this building is an expansion of our future,” Whyte says. The new purpose-built 10,000sqm site has been carefully planned to meet the needs of modern machinery, a growing customer base, and an increasingly sophisticated service network. According to Todd Fletcher, North Island General Manager for CLAAS Harvest Centres, the move is both a practical and strategic step forward. “It’s about future-proofing,” Fletcher says. “Our current site is no longer fit for purpose and our customers deserve facilities that reflect the investment they make in their equipment. This new site gives us the space, tools, and infrastructure to deliver the best support to farmers and contractors — not just now, but for many years to come.” As the value of machinery increases, protection and storage have become an essential part of the ownership journey. To support this, the new Feilding site will include a 50-metre-long pole shed along its eastern boundary. This structure will provide weatherproof storage for customer machinery — including large units like the CLAAS LEXION and JAGUAR harvesters — as well as new equipment awaiting assembly and delivery. Fletcher says. “These are high-value machines. They deserve to be treated that way when they’re with us.” The new facility draws from the proven design of the company’s Yaldhurst, Waikato and Bay of Plenty dealerships — delivering not only a consistent customer experience across locations, but a high benchmark for service efficiency and support. Built for modern farming, the design is focused squarely on operational excellence. The expanded workshop will be fitted with state-of-the-art tooling and gantry systems, enabling faster turnaround on repairs and maintenance — critical in peak season when downtime is costly for customers. That same future-focused mindset has influenced every part of the build. The rear wall of the workshop, for example, will be constructed to allow seamless extension down the track — ensuring the site can grow as demand increases. Proud to supply gantry cranes for Claas Harvest Centre • Gantry Crane manufacture & servicing • Pressure Vessels • Mechanical Engineering • Plant maintenance and installations • Steel Fabrication • Machining 36 Armstrong Street, Palmerston North P. 06 357 4039 | E. m.taylor@nivenengineering.co.nz www.nivenengineering.co.nz Proudly supporting Claas Harvest Centre In line with Landpower’s broader strategy to hold more parts closer to where equipment is working, the new building includes a parts store ten times the size of the current one. It will carry over $2 million in inventory and has been designed with expansion in mind. “We’re seeing more customers running larger fleets with more complex machinery,” Fletcher explains. “It’s essential that our parts availability and servicing capabilities keep pace with that. This facility extends our current capacity and allows us to better service our larger customers.”
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