- RC Setchfield Ltd to take over Lincs/Notts/Leics area
- Mark Watson Machinery becomes new dealer for County Durham
- Appointments extend Deutz-Fahr UK dealership numbers to 40
SDF UK has recently appointed two new dealers, taking the number of outlets selling its tractors to 40 and building on its recruitment of family dealerships with a strong history of service. The latest businesses appointed to the company’s Deutz-Fahr network are Lincs firm RC Setchfield Ltd and County Durham-based Mark Watson Machinery.
Located on Withambrook Industrial Park in Grantham, R C Setchfield is a family-run agricultural engineering business established in 1982 by Richard and Heather Setchfield, and today is a team of 16 people. The company focused initially on agricultural machinery servicing but soon expanded to include supply of both new machinery and spare parts.
Well-known as a materials handling equipment specialist, and with a full range of agricultural implement franchises, in the past year the company has seized on new opportunities to expand, replacing its former materials handler range with a Merlo franchise and signing with SDF to taking on the local area for Deutz-Fahr to move the company further into the full-line tractor sector.
“We are really pleased to be able to sign with SDF for the Deutz-Fahr franchise, not only because we now have a broader range of tractors from 66-335hp to offer, but also because there is an established park of Deutz-Fahr machines in this area,” says Hannah Setchfield, who joined her parents’ business in 2021 as chief operating officer, following a career elsewhere in business.
“We want to assure the owners of those tractors that we are here to provide the service and spares support we know is crucial to them, and we want to be able to show them why they can place their trust in us and in Deutz-Fahr to give them the products and back-up they need.”
The business’s sales are headed by Richard Setchfield, who is supported by area sales manager Ashley Clough, while its parts department is managed by Ian Johnson, assisted by Ian Harrison, running a comprehensive stores at the Grantham premises that includes Deutz-Fahr parts. Service is overseen by Adam Forster, with a team of five service engineers that have significant combined experience in the sector across a wide range of agricultural equipment.
“It’s great to be able to reassure farmers that Deutz-Fahr has a strong dealer presence again in the locality, and that we are ready to support the needs of owners and show prospective customers what the tractor range offers,” says Hannah.
“We pride ourselves on our service, and want to emphasise to both existing and potential Deutz-Fahr owners that we are here to provide the back-up they deserve.
“We are also keen to show prospective buyers what the range of Deutz-Fahr tractors can offer, and to this end we have tractors in stock ready for demonstration.”
The second recent appointment to the Deutz-Fahr network is that of Mark Watson Machinery as the brand’s dealer in County Durham.
In addition to its home county, the business, based at Tow Law, will cover the eastern area of both Northumberland and North Yorkshire, from Druidge Bay in the north down to Whitby in the south
From a family of well-known local farmers and garage owners, Mark Watson established Mark Watson Machinery in 1988, developing a business that has ultimately specialised in new and used farm machinery. By the 2000s the business focused on agricultural sales, with Mark running the company single-handedly until diversifying into haulage. Alongside the supply of new farm machinery from implement makers including Malone, Cross, M-Tec and Alstrong, the business continues to sell used farm machinery and provide specialist farm machinery transport. Mark’s daughter Emily joined the business in 2021 after studying agriculture at Newcastle University.
“We’ve held franchises for implement lines for some time, but although we have sold used models for a long while, we haven’t – until now – supplied new tractors,” says Mark.
“Although we have been approached several manufacturers over the years, I never thought a new tractor franchise was for us. But Deutz-Fahr has been my favoured brand right back to the days of its DX series, so when SDF came to us recently looking to fill a gap in its network, Emily and I were happy to talk further about taking on the franchise.”
That led to an agreement being signed earlier this year, and the business now has service-trained engineers, plus spare parts and tractors in stock ready for demonstration and sale.
“We currently hold a 167hp 6160, a 137hp 6135C, a 125hp 5125 and a 78hp 5080,” says Mark.
“We have a good spread of arable and livestock farms locally, so want to target sales from this end of the power scale right up to the 7, 8 and 9 series which top out at 336hp.
“We’re investing in service training and parts stocks, and are ready to demonstrate machines this summer. My phone is always on, so I’m keen to hear from farmers who’d like to see what a Deutz-Fahr can do on their own farm, and to talk about how we can support their businesses.”