Press release

Inauguration of the CLAAS site in Ymeray, France

CLAAS officially inaugurated its new campus in Ymeray on Thursday. In the presence of Cathrina Claas-Mühlhäuser, Chairwomen of the CLAAS Group’s Shareholders’ Committee, Frédéric Verbitzky, President of CLAAS France, due to the pandemic was only able to welcome a few guests on site to the event. However, more than 2000 people were invited to follow the event virtually.

An onsite event with very limited numbers.

About sixty people attended the ceremony in compliance with risk mitigation measures. Alongside Cathrina Claas-Mühlhäuser, Thomas Böck, CEO of the CLAAS Group, Martin von Hoyningen-Huene, the new President of CLAAS Tractor, representatives of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Chamber of Agriculture, local authorities and legislators, the members of the Executive Board of CLAAS France, the partners CLAAS Financial Services, CLAAS Réseau Agricole and, of course, the representatives of the Group of dealers belonging to the CLAAS Network in France as well as the architect and representatives from the construction companies were also present.

A multi-functional complex, unique in the world of machinery in France.

With the CLAAS Campus in France, the CLAAS Group and its subsidiary CLAAS France have chosen to build a truly innovative establishment. This multi-functional facility unites nearly all the trades at the service of the Brand and its professional agricultural customers at a single site.

The complex consists of four elements:

  • A large 650 m² showroom, known as the Technoparc, that can be used as a machine showroom as well as a reception room or television studio.
  • The main administrative and management offices of CLAAS France, CLAAS Financial Services and CLAAS Réseau Agricole SAS are grouped together in the Head Quarters.
  • The CLAAS ACADEMY training centre, which hosts 2,500 trainees a year, is composed of eight halls and classrooms and provides technicians and salespeople with ideal conditions to enrich their knowledge of tractors as well as self-propelled harvesting machinery, grass harvesting eqipment, handling machines and new technologies.
  • The logistics platform that stores and distributes spare parts to the 250 CLAAS Network service points in France.

Thomas Böck - Cathrina Claas-Mühlhäuser - Fréderic Verbitzky.

A technological showcase

Cathrina Claas-Mühlhäuser, Chairwoman of the Shareholders' Committee, unveiled a large sculpture of the famous knotter in front of the main building - the history of the CLAAS Group began with this invention. Her grandfather, August Claas, applied for a patent for this outstanding invention in Germany on 18 May 1921, exactly 100 years ago. In fact, France had already issued the patent on 17 May, one day before the Reichspatentamt in Berlin. The sculpture thus represents the origins of the company and CLAAS's close connection to the French market, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

A magnet for the machinery trades

Frédéric Verbitzky, President of CLAAS France, intends to take advantage of the exceptional facilities to make the CLAAS Campus in France a showcase where agricultural professionals can discover and try out the most efficient machines on the market, as well as test new technologies. The CLAAS Campus will also provide a very rewarding image of the agricultural machinery sector to attract young talent to the trades which serve the agricultural industry. Out in the countryside, yet just a few dozen kilometres from the Paris region – one of Europe’s largest metropolises – the CLAAS site is ideally located to help open a new chapter in the history of agriculture in France.

The Technoparc, ready for the opening event.

The CLAAS Campus in France in figures

  • Land area: 16 ha.
  • Covered area: 20,000 m².
  • Number of staff onsite: 120.
  • Investment: 20 million euros.
  • Construction began on 1 September 2019.
  • Teams moved in on 31 August 2020.
  • Inaugurated on 20 May 2021.