John Deere & Co., the world’s largest manufacturer of agricultural equipment, may finally allow American farmers to repair the company’s products on their own.
A pioneer of integrating advanced computer systems into farming machinery, John Deere controls more than half of the tractor market in the United States. As John Deere machines became increasingly high-tech over recent years, however, many American farmers complain that they have to travel farther and pay more at designated locations to get them fixed.
A memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed on Jan. 8 between John Deere and the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) will hopefully bring some change. In the private agreement, the Illinois-based farming equipment giant said it will commit to provide individual farmers and independent repair shops with the information they need to diagnose, maintain, and repair the company’s smart tractors….