The Kubota approach to innovation is paying dividends for groundscare professionals

Adapting to shifting markets and developing new products while enhancing existing models is second nature to Kubota. Matt Wilson, the manufacturer’s Groundcare Product Manager, explains the need for continuous refinement.

It was famously once said that: “Innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity, not a threat.”

In other words, instead of viewing shifts in the market or environment as disruptions, manufacturers should see them as stepping stones which allows them to proactively create solutions and foster growth.

This quote from Steve Jobs, the Apple visionary, can be applied in many different ways to many different industries.

But it seems appropriate to the continuing evolution of Kubota as one of the world’s leading machinery innovators and manufacturers. Indeed, the Japanese company has its own well-established three-part philosophy which underlines everything it does and which its UK arm has adopted wholeheartedly.

Kubota’s overarching tagline – For Earth, For Life – centres on supporting the sustainable development of people, communities, and the environment. The corporation underscores all its product development across three critical pillars: food, water, and the environment. 

It is a philosophy and approach that has both stood the test of time in the company’s long and successful history and helps understand the way it views key issues such as product development.

In the last decade, this product evolution has arguably ramped up even more with advances in new engine technology, the advent of battery power and the shift in climate conditions which is having a daily impact on the working lives of groundscare professionals.

As Matt Wilson points out, this evolution often starts with something fairly straight-forward and although vitally important it often gets overlooked – listening.

“Every new product and every enhancement of an existing machine actually starts with what the market wants,” he explains. “We are always gathering information from the market, from our dealers and from our customers and they all have a big say in what we do next.

“We regularly talk to our existing customers and get to understand what they like, what they need and how tasks performed with our machinery. It gives us a full picture of real-life tasks which may need consideration by our research and development teams.

“Take electric and battery power as an example, it is still very early days for the industry and for us as manufacturers and so the information we gather from our customers and from the market is very important.

“It is also important for us to plan properly and this information we can gather is crucial. What we do not want to do is find out issues and problems at the 11^th hour. That is why we test our prototypes with the market too, so we can address any of the issues. These prototypes are often 99% market ready, but there is always room for improvement and whatever feedback we can get is very important.

“Another example is the growth of zero turn mowers in the UK. We are seeing customers who are more interested in what the zero turn offers and that is why we continue to develop this product range too.”

A perfect combination

This philosophy of product development and evolution can be clearly seen in the growth of Kubota’s FC Series of ride-on mowers.

Since Kubota acquired the Gianni Ferrari business several years ago, it has taken big steps to marry the excellence of Italian engineering and style with the Japanese cornerstones that have elevated it into a global success story.

It is a marriage that, for some at least, might not necessarily work on paper. But, as can be seen by the expanded FC Series range, it is one that is already setting new benchmarks for such models.

“The product range already existed,” continues Matt. “What we have done is bring in Japanese standards of efficiency and productivity to develop this range and introduce new models, backed by the existing power of the Kubota dealer network. That dealer network is such a major plus point and has been important in developing the FC Series.”

The result is a model range that Matt insists is as far removed from a “one size fits all” approach as you can get. 

“In many ways we have been gifted this great product line, but the work that has happened on the FC Series since Kubota took on Gianni Ferrari and its staff in Italy has taken it to another level,” he says.

“This new line-up is so important for us as a company, but also for the market. It comes at a time when budgets are being squeezed and the market is demanding much more from their investment. We knew we had to provide customers with something extra. It was already a brilliant mower, but what we have done is make it just as fantastic at other tasks.

“It is about giving customers more, a 365-day-a-year machine that can adapt to different tasks and requirements. It is almost like the Swiss Army Knife of ride-on mowers.”

What provides this extra value is the ability to change the FC Series to suit a customer’s working day, from flail mowing and rough management to finer turf cutting. The evolution also incorporates the range of attachments the FC Series is able to operate, which takes the machine into new realms such as artificial turf maintenance and management.

Other new attachments create the opportunity for it to be more of an estate management machine, something which is becoming increasingly important in the sports world for football and rugby clubs with their massive investment in training academies and golf courses looking to enhance the experience of its patrons.

From the ground up

The FC Series also works brilliantly below this elite level, from groundscare contractors servicing multiple clients across many different surfaces to grassroots organisations aiming to produce high level finishes.

“We do work closely with associations and trade bodies too when we are developing these products and ranges,” Matt continues. “That often feeds into the grassroots level where they are also pushing for the best quality surfaces and facilities they can achieve.

“The Japanese culture is always about reaching higher standards. The FC Series is proof of that culture.”

With this continuous strive for improvement, attaining higher standards and setting new benchmarks, future-gazing can actually prove quite problematic. The rapid rise of electric and battery power has proved a phenomenal story for the industry – although is not necessarily the answer to life, the universe and everything as far as professional groundscare is concerned. Indeed, with Kubota’s R&D teams working well advance of current trends, as Matt says predicting the “next big thing” is never easy.

“But one thing I do know is that we will be at the front of whatever comes next,” he adds. “It is exciting to look forward and Kubota has never been a company that stands still.”

The evolution of the FC Series, the growing popularity of the zero turn models Kubota now offers to the UK market, combined with the company’s well-established compact tractor ranges, utility vehicles and other groundscare solutions, seems to back up Matt’s claim.

Far from being a threat, innovation remains at the heart of what Kubota delivers to the groundscare industry and it is something which continues to help drive standards up for professionals around the country.