The colour of progress is orange – and Smith Power Equipment is steadily painting South Africa orange. In 2000 the company became the distributor of Kubota in South Africa, and the orange machines now enjoy 8% market share in the tough tractor market.

This is remarkable, especially when considering the fact that Kubota specialises in smaller, but technologically more advanced, tractors.

Wally Bergman, Managing Director of Smith Power, says: “A freight train is coming and it’s colour is orange!”

The plan is to establish ten Smith Power branches over the next two years to support the more than forty dealers in the various regions. The first branch was opened in Somerset West, with Nelspruit following suit and Johannesburg awaiting its turn.

“Our aim is client support,” says Wally. “A client should not need to drive more that 100 km to buy parts or to obtain technical support.”

Smit Power also plans to increase its involvement in the implement market, so that they can offer farmers a more complete range of solutions. Together with Kubota equipment, the company supplies a wide range of other products for farming, industry and the retail trade. Wally says the various departments do not exclude one another, for “how do you change a light bulb high in the roof of your store, or how do you move and stack your crates full of fruit?”. Smith Power has the solution for all these tasks.

This year, Smith Power’s stand at NAMPO sparkled with new equipment and technology:

The new Kubota M7-172 attracted the attention of maize farmers with its 126,8 kW or 170 hp. This Kubota strongman will enable crop farmers to also enjoy the benefits of advanced Japanese technology. These tractors will only be available next year, but farmers are welcome to contact their Kubota dealers for demonstrations. Here, Wally Bergmann explains to farmers how Kubota’s technology is in a class of its own with features such as the strong three-point hitch, external hydraulic cylinder, 9,5 tonnes lift capacity, air brakes, trailer brakes and closed hydraulic system for vacuum planters.

The Kubota U15-3 mini trencher can work on any terrain. It has a reach of 3,9 m in all directions, digs 2,3 m deep and lifts a weight of 850 kg up to 3 m high. Charl Kemp, Robert Keir and Tom Bloom say the machine is a mere 1,24 m wide, enabling it to move with ease in any orchard or vineyard.

The one that everybody wants: Smith Power offers a wide range of quads for work and play. The new Polaris Ranger XP 1000 EPS has a powerful 61 kW engine with independent four-wheel drive and active downhill control, seating for three people, electric power steering, and it can carry a load of 454 kg.

Fuel is fast becoming unaffordable. Storing fuel presents challenges, especially if you are a contractor, and mixtures for two-stroke engines are not always what they are meant to be. The use of power equipment became easier with Smith Power’s top-class EGO Power Plus batteries, chargers and range of equipment onto which the batteries clip easily and conveniently to deliver unbelievable power. The 56V Arc Lithium-Ion battery is recharged within only twenty minutes and then you can work with it for 40 minutes. This means that you can work all day with two batteries and a recharger. You can mow lawns, cut brushes, blow and saw to your heart’s content.

Contact your nearest Kubota dealer for more information on the orange range, visit www.kubotasa.co.za, or contact Robert Keir on 011-284-2024 or robertk@smithpower.co.za to learn where you can obtain these outstanding products.