Contract hire and service package delivers cost and management advantages

A cost-effective contract hire and service package that gives tractor users a fixed and reliable basis for long-term machinery management costings led to a deal for 15 new McCormick tractors from one of the largest farming operations in the eastern counties.

It is the second time that the 10,000-acre in-hand farming operation of the 22,500-acre Elveden Estate in Suffolk has renewed its fleet through a contract hire package with McCormick and local dealer Suffolk Agri-Centre.

"These are very difficult times for farming and our machinery has to work harder than ever before," says Elveden Farms controller, Lindsay Hargreaves. "The contract hire and service package put together by McCormick and Suffolk Agri-Centre has worked well for us in previous years and we're pleased to see it continue."

Elveden's farming activities are dominated by field-scale vegetables grown in rotation with cereals and grass. The fifteen new tractors – identical examples of the 152hp MTX150, McCormick's most popular six-cylinder model – will handle cultivations, seedbed preparation, sowing, irrigation, crop protection and harvest operations.

"The MTX150 is a popular, proven model that ideally suits the majority of Elveden Farms' field work requirements," explains David Eley, Suffolk Agri-Centre managing director. "The farm's policy of running a fleet of the same tractors, as opposed to a mix of models, simplifies day-to-day management because every tractor in the fleet can handle the implements and work that needs doing on any particular day."

The two-year contract hire and service package provides a fleet of modern tractors at fixed cost, which helps the Elveden management team produce accurate machinery costings and budgets. Contract hire also offers tax advantages and avoids the inconvenience of having to sell-on or trade-in the tractors when they come to be replaced.

The deal negotiated with Suffolk Agri-Centre also guarantees access to a back-up tractor in the event of a prolonged repair and the service agreement ensures the tractors are serviced regularly, correctly and on time by skilled technicians.

"We've developed an excellent working relationship with Elveden Farms since we first started supplying tractors in 2001," says David Eley. "It's a great advantage to both parties that our service technicians are familiar with the layout of this big farming operation and that the managers know our service personnel. We understand their business and that means we can support them in the best possible way."

The tractors themselves have established a long-standing record of performance and reliability in the hands of Elveden Farms' drivers.

"This latest delivery continues our successful reliance on Doncaster-built tractors," says Lindsay Hargreaves. "Through McCormick and Suffolk Agri-Centre, they continue to give us a cost-effective solution to our ever more demanding needs."