Components, the market rewards customization
Although machines are rolling off the assembly line with an increasing number of accessories, the demand for aftermarket components appears to be unaffected by downturns. People are buying a wide range of items, from floor mats to wireless and battery-powered LED lights. However, in recent years, digital technologies have dominated the market, following the trend of Agriculture 4.0
There are the tractors, with their standard equipment, and then there are accessories, otherwise known as options, that can be added at the time of signing the purchase contract. Every brand - in fact, every range of every brand - has its own list of options. This list varies in size, depending on the positioning of that range: the higher the cost, the broader the list of possible customizations becomes. However, when it comes to customization, it enters a very personal realm where the offering, no matter how extensive, cannot satisfy everyone. Hence, there has always been a parallel market for accessories - products from component manufacturers or entities outside the parent company - through which it is possible to build your "own tractor" piece by piece. This tractor is different from all the others and is exclusively ours: it satisfies us functionally because it precisely meets our needs, and aesthetically because it is just as we imagined it. The phenomenon of customization is widespread in motorcycling and is growing, especially in some countries, in the automotive industry, where it has acquired the name "tuning". But it is also present in the agricultural sector, whether out of necessity, as some devices are required that the parent company does not provide, or for the pure pleasure of distinguishing one's machine from the mass production. The very name - mass production, in fact - suggests a focus on standardization rather than catering to personal preferences.
What is added, and why. There are essentially two reasons why farmers and contractors make various modifications to their machines: one is operational, and the other is purely aesthetic. The former can serve various purposes, such as making the vehicle more efficient, safer, or even more comfortable. On the other hand, aesthetic modifications, as one might easily imagine, aim to adapt the tractor, which typically leaves the factory with a standard color and appearance, to the owner's taste. In some cases, these modifications can be quite unconventional. This need for personalization is more prevalent than one might think and is supported by the wide range of color choices available in the automotive industry. Manufacturers are recognizing this trend and, with increasing frequency, are offering at least one alternative color option to the standard one. For example, New Holland and Landini offer two shades of blue darker than the standard color, Deutz provides black for some of its ranges, and Antonio Carraro offers customization options as well. However, the award for personalized colors undoubtedly goes to Valtra, which, right at the time of purchase, provides a choice of three or four different colors and adds several more with the Unlimited program. This program is dedicated to customizing machines and includes dozens of different accessories, from branded seats to steel trims, tire self-inflation systems, and equipment for using the tractor in military settings.
The manufacturers' offerings are on the rise. The case of Valtra is an extreme example but indicative of a very specific trend: the increasing availability of factory-installed accessories and more complete configurations offered by manufacturers. To see this, you only need to browse through the configuration systems that many brands now have on their websites. The well-known lists of options, which we mentioned earlier, have expanded year after year, partly due to the influx of technology into agricultural machinery. Today, they allow you to essentially customize a tractor, enhancing its hydraulics, electrical system, and especially the cabin features, including special seats, branded floor mats, electric mirrors, Bluetooth systems, speakers with subwoofers, and much more. This wealth of details may raise the question of whether there's still a need for the so-called aftermarket. With so many accessories that can be installed during the production phase, does it make sense to add new ones once the machine has left the factory?
Unlimited Customization. Apparently, yes, it's possible. While the range of accessories offered by manufacturers is extensive, it can't satisfy all needs or budgets. That's why there are still many who prefer to purchase a basic tractor and then equip it with what they need or what they prefer purely for aesthetic reasons, like a specific color. It's essential to consider that alongside new tractors, often bought with rich configurations, there are still over a million older machines, some dating back decades, with equipment that doesn't compare to the latest generation of vehicles. For these reasons, the purchase of aftermarket components is far from declining. To understand which accessories are currently in high demand and which are on the decline, we conducted a small survey among major component suppliers, finding fairly unanimous opinions. Primarily, they explaine that components are added to improve the efficiency, comfort, and safety of the machines, while aesthetic modifications are less common and primarily involve the color of the body, often extending to the color of the wheels or sometimes only the wheels themselves, and the exhaust, which is given a chrome finish. Inside the cabin, there is a demand for floor mats and seat covers, sometimes customized with the company's name. The list of performance-enhancing customizations, on the other hand, is longer.
Lighting systems. According to all the interviewed experts, these are among the most requested components, even though modern tractors generally come well-equipped with them. LED lights dominate and are rapidly replacing halogen lamps, which were a must until a few years ago. They do so thanks to a higher number of lumens (a measure of brightness) and significantly lower energy consumption, which has a positive impact not only on fuel consumption but also on battery life. Batteries are increasingly stressed due to the pervasive technology integrated into agricultural machinery, leading them to have shorter lifespans. For this reason, it's not uncommon for users to choose higher amperages than the historical 60-80 range that used to meet the power needs of agricultural tractors when replacing them. Reduced power consumption and technological advancements have given rise to interesting equipment, such as magnetic LED lights. These lights are powered by batteries and can be easily moved from one tractor to another or between different parts of the equipment, depending on the requirements. They are turned on through a wireless connection with the vehicle's cabin where they are installed.
A particular category of light is the so-called "rotating beacon", which is a flashing light mounted on the roof of the cabin and is turned on when traveling on the road with loads attached to the lift. The latest models, once again, are battery-operated and wireless. They are activated by a remote control that the operator can keep in the cabin, perhaps attached to the ignition key. In this case as well, convenience is a winning feature.
Cameras. We find them, in the ranking of the best-selling accessories, just behind the lights, and once again, credit goes to technological advancements that have made cameras small, manageable, and, most importantly, affordable. Farmers install them behind large equipment or in front of ballast to monitor the terrain during maneuvers. However, they are mainly placed at strategic points on machines other than tractors. They are mounted on the head of telescopic handlers to see the load's position, or on the exhaust pipe of the combine harvester and the discharge pipe of the forage harvester, for example. For the latter, there is a solution that seems to be designed for those who spend their day on this equipment: a wireless camera with the ability to connect to two monitors simultaneously. This way, the images appear in both the forage harvester's cabin and the neighboring tractor's cabin, allowing both operators to see the carriage's fill level in real-time.
Digital Technologies. The most significant surge in aftermarket equipment has occurred in the last three years in the field of precision agriculture and telemetry. Thanks to the tax incentives of Agriculture 4.0, which, as several operators say, allowed the sector to skip a generation, moving from an initial contact phase with new technologies to advanced digitization. This process primarily involves young farmers, who are fortunately much more numerous than a few decades ago in our countryside. Agriculture 4.0 was an extraordinary plan to promote digital technologies in new machines, but it also spurred the digitization of existing vehicles and equipment in operation. With a tractor equipped with Isobus, telemetry, and automatic guidance, many farmers are elevating their equipment to the same level, once again favored by the price drop that typically accompanies technologies a few years after their introduction. This applies, for example, to mechanical equipment digitization kits. With an affordable cost and without extensive skills, it's possible to make Isobus equipment that originally didn't even include an electrical wire. The benefits of Isobus are well-known, and farmers increasingly appreciate them, equipping themselves accordingly. The same goes for automatic guidance systems, the trend of which has remained more or less constant for some years. New tractors either come with them as standard or are prepared for installation. However, as we mentioned earlier, there are hundreds of thousands of older machines that can be equipped with automatic guidance thanks to systems attached beneath the steering wheel. Simultaneously, there's been an increase in the sale of aftermarket displays. They are used to display information from Isobus equipment (on non-Isobus tractors, of course) or images from cameras, screens for automatic guidance, and so on.
Analog Accessories. Let's step away from technology for a moment, though not entirely, to analyze some trends in more traditional accessories. Among the most requested components, seats still remain, even though modern machines are generally well-equipped in this regard. However, not all of them. Entry-level machines, for example, often do not offer many choices when it comes to seats. This is even more apparent in the case of budget-friendly brands, especially those produced in emerging countries. Nevertheless, due to the significant price difference compared to European models, some people prefer to purchase one of these tractors, knowing that they will later need to equip it with a more comfortable seat, either to be purchased separately or to be installed directly at the dealership. Furthermore, many specialized tractors, although not all, have less rich seating equipment, which can be a problem, especially for operators of a certain size. Staying in the cabin and focusing on comfort, there is still a high demand for joysticks and multiple levers that unify the controls of the equipment, making them electrohydraulic. We must not forget refrigerators (for tractors lacking them), floor mats, and seat covers, as well as Bluetooth systems and supports for tablets and cell phones, now ubiquitous in the cabin. These items, along with additional lighting and perhaps an exclusive color, allow you to make your tractor truly unique.
