RDO Equipment has officially taken over as the John Deere Construction and Forestry Equipment dealer in all Australian states except Western Australia.
RDO Equipment general manager of sales Mark Kuhn said the brand would make a big impact on the domestic market, particularly once Australian customers were able to purchase the full line of John Deere products, including, graders, wheel loaders, dozers, backhoes, excavators, articulated dump trucks, skid steer loaders and mini excavators.
Mr Kuhn said he expected the full range to be in place by early next year, with the products sold and serviced by a strategic dealer network, supported by a new John Deere parts depot and a highly trained team.
"People are looking forward to this change. They're excited about the expanded product range, everyone wants more product, and they're excited by RDO's approach to partnering with customers," he said.
"It's actually simple stuff that makes good customer relationships. It's getting back to people, it's letting them know what's going on, doing what you say you will do and being accountable.
"We have put together a strong team here in Australia, including lots of industry veterans with really solid experience, and all of our people are passionate about the business. We're 100 per cent focused on the John Deere product."
John Deere Construction and Forestry Asia Pacific and Africa managing director Jeff Kraft, said the company was excited about what the new distribution agreement meany for the Australian market.
"This is a strategic partnership for us," he said.
"We see the Australian market as an important part of our Asia-Pacific and indeed our global brand footprint.
"We've made strong investments in this market and we're looking forward to working closely with RDO to expand John Deere Construction and Forestry's profile in Australia. We foresee a very positive future here."
RDO will offer Australian John Deere customers an initial eight dealership sites, mostly utilising existing Vermeer facilities.