The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on businesses around the world, with many countries forcing non-essential businesses to shut their doors in order to slow the spread of the virus. If not facing closures, many businesses have opted to change their operating status or take alternate measures to ensure the success of their supply chains. Many ag equipment manufacturers have had to take steps like these, the frequency of which has increased as COVID-19’s reach extends around the globe. 

What follows is a chronological list of manufacturer announcements, closures and statements cataloguing the reactions of the industry to this growing situation. The list will be updated as announces are released and readers can check back here for timely information on manufacturer press releases. If you know of any information that should be included, please send a note to bthorpe@lessitermedia.com.

• Trimble, Feb. 14, 2020 — During the company’s 4Q19 earnings report, Senior Vice President and CFO David G. Barnes mentioned coronavirus when looking into the new year. “We are actively monitoring the potential impact coronavirus could have,” said Barnes, “Our business with customers in China represents about 2% of Trimble revenue, and this business will be heavily impacted in 1Q20.”
• Kubota, Feb. 19, 2020 — In the company’s 4Q19 earnings report, it was mentioned in Kubota’s 2020 forecasts that “the negative impact of the spread of the novel coronavirus is not included in these forecasts because it is difficult to estimate any impact on Kubota’s operating results.”
• Alamo Group, March 3, 2020 — During its conference call with analysts on March 3, Alamo Group said it expected possible disruption of components sourced in China. Executive Vice President and CFO Dan Malone discussed how the coronavirus is affecting the company. He said Alamo buys between $40-$50 million in component parts from China and while most of these parts can be sourced from elsewhere, there are exceptions. “Most of our agricultural division sales would be exposed through such a disruption,” he said. “But as of today, our major suppliers are back up and running, they’re not necessarily at full staff.” At the time of the conference call, Malone indicated the company was expecting delays and pursuing alternative sourcing options.
• John Deere, March 11, 2020 — A report from the Quad City Times said that Deere was enacting certain travel restrictions for its employees as COVID-19 continues to spread throughout the U.S. Jen Hartmann, director of Deere’s strategic public relations, said, “We are monitoring the evolving COVID-19 outbreak closely and have put restrictions on all international travel until the threat subsides. In addition to restricting all international business travel and domestic business travel by air or rail to business critical only, Deere & Co. has temporarily suspended all international travel from, to and through several locations including China, Italy and South Korea. Domestic travel by vehicle is not restricted.”
• CNH Industrial, March 11, 2020 — In a press release, CNH Industrial announced the temporary closure of its Italian manufacturing facilities to “implement additional safety measures,” in addition to extending the company’s “Smart Working” (working from home) program, enforcing social distancing, providing face masks and deep cleaning facilities.
• Manitou, March 17, 2020 — In a report from KHL.com, Manitou Group announced the temporary closure of its facilities in France in response to the spread of COVID-19. The company noted the closures were both an effort to limit the spread of COVID-19 and a response to the closures from many of its “partners, customers and suppliers.” The closure affected all French operations excluding “spare parts, customer service and central functions.”
• CNH Industrial, March 20, 2020 — The company announced a two week suspension of the majority of its European assembly operations. The shutdown affected the company’s agricultural, construction, commercial and specialty vehicles production facilities. The release stated that most component facilities would remain operational at low speed to supply CNHI manufacturing facilities outside Europe. The release also stated the continued operation of most CNHI parts depots and dealer locations in Europe.  The shutdown was driven by “disruptions in the European supply chain that do not allow for efficient operation.” Affected plants include the New Holland plant in Basildon, UK, the dual-brand Jesi factory in Italy and the Case IH plant in Steyr, Australia.
• Titan International, March 23, 2020 — The company announced its manufacturing facilities would remain operating as normal, while practicing social distancing and preventative measures. The facilities affected according to a company press release were in the following locations: Des Moines, Iowa; Freeport and Quincy, Ill.; Bryan, Ohio; Jefferson Ga.; and Union City, Tenn. The company noted it was not experiencing infrastructure or supply chain issues.
• John Deere, March 23, 2020 — In response to the spread of COVID-19, Deere withdrew its 2020 financial guidance, saying the ultimate magnitude of the outbreak’s effects “could be material” but will be determined over time. The company said it would continue domestic operations and planned to continue to operate in other parts of the world “to the extent possible.” Deere said some facilities were reducing operations or temporarily shutting down in response to COVID-19.
• AGCO, March 23, 2020 — The company withdrew its “sales, earnings and other guidance.” AGCO also announced that production had been reduced or halted in several European facilities, “largely due to material shortages and constraints in the European supply chain.” The company said it would provide an update in connection with its 1Q20 earnings announcement. Christoph Gröblinghoff, chairman of AGCO/Fendt management also explained in a separate statement that a lack of supplier components only allowed AGCO to continue the Fendt manufacturing assembly until March 24.
• John Deere, March 24, 2020 — A report from Bloomberg reported that Deere had halted production at six plants in Brazil to slow the spread of COVID-19. Two plants were scheduled to shut down March 25, while the other four were scheduled for March 30. Deere’s Latin America distribution center was reported to remain operational.
• Argo Tractors, March 26, 2020 — In a press release, the company announced the suspension of production activities until April 3, along with a reduction in office activities. The manufacturer emphasized “the continuity of technical support, sales and customer assistance via email and telephone and in the meantime the spare parts supply operations.”
• Alamo Group, March 27, 2020 — Following a previous announcement of the temporary closure of its facilities in France, Alamo Group announced the temporary closure or reduced production at several of its manufacturing facilities, including a several day closure of its Milwaukee plant. The company additionally announced its French facilities and UK operations would resume operation in the second half of April. As of this release, the company had around 500 employees working remotely.
• Briggs & Stratton, March 27, 2020 — A report from BizTimes Media said 5 top executives at Briggs & Stratton Corp. would take a combined $1 million cut in their base salaries in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Todd Teske, chairman, president and CEO of Briggs, took the largest cut at 40%, or by $385,200. The pay cut began on April 1, the start of the company’s fourth quarter.
• JCB, March 30, 2020 — The company announced it would restart production at a UK facility to manufacture ventilators, following an appeal from Prime Minister Boris Johnson to help reduce the national ventilator shortage. The factory being used to manufacture ventilators had been closed since March 18, alongside 8 other JCB UK manufacturing plants following a fall in demand caused by the COVID-19 crisis.
• CNH Industrial, March 30, 2020 — According to a report from The Hawk Eye, a CNH Industrial plant in Burlington Iowa announced temporary layoffs for possibly up to 4 weeks. The plant’s three production lines were said to be returning as staggered lines in the following 2-4 weeks. Layoffs came after two groups representing CNH Industrial employees at the Burlington location and the company’s Racine, Wis. Location, United Auto Workers Local 807 and Local 180, filed grievance with CNH Industrial over safety concerns related to the spread of COVID-19. One employee, however, said staff were told layoffs were related to a “lack of work to be done, not because of safety concerns.”
• CNH Industrial, March 30, 2020 — The company announced the withdrawal of its 2020 financial outlook presented on Feb. 7, 2020, due to “deterioration of the macro-economic environment triggered by the global spread of the COVID-19 virus and the resulting market uncertainty.” The company said it plans to provide further updates in CNH Industrial’s 1Q20 earnings report on May 6, 2020.
• CNH Industrial, March 30, 2020 — CNH Industrial announced the suspension of the majority of its manufacturing operation in North and South America for two weeks starting March 30. According to a press release, the impacted North American locations would be mostly those that manufacture construction and agricultural equipment, but most component facilities would remain operational at low speeds. North American parts depots and most dealer locations were said to remain open. Affected South American locations were those manufacturing construction and agricultural machinery, commercial vehicles and powertrains. Parts depots and the majority of dealerships were said to remain open.
• CNH Industrial, March 30, 2020 — According to an internal memo obtained by Reuters, acting CEO Suzanne Heywood referenced that CNH Industrial may be delaying the Iveco & FPT Industrial spinoff it announced last September. In the note to employees, Heywood said, “While the fundamentals of our … strategy are strong and remain valid, we will also need to be flexible and intelligent in how we adapt to the challenges we face.” In a later note from J.P. Morgan concerning a call hosted by Heywood, it was noted that, “The strategic rationale for the spin remains, but timing may change given current market conditions; management did not provide an official statement on timing at this point.”
• Briggs & Stratton, March 31, 2020 — The company announced reduced activity and temporary closures at several factories, in addition to the continued implementation of safety precautions such as deep cleaning, social distancing, working remotely and restricting business travel. The company said that it expected its 3Q and 4Q results to be adversely impacted by the pandemic and withdrew its financial outlook for the fiscal year ending June 28, 2020.
• AGCO, March 31, 2020 — A statement from AGCO said the company would be halting production at its Beauvais, France, and Brengaze, Italy, manufacturing facilities from March 17 and 16, respectively.
• Sonalika Tractors, March 31, 2020 — According to a report from ETAuto, the company extended warranties on its tractors by 3 months for customers whose warranty is scheduled to lapse between March and May of this year. The company also said it would honor any scheduled maintenance that was missed as a result of India's lockdown. The report confirmed Mahindra has announced it would similarly honor missed scheduled maintenance and warranty renewals once the lockdown was lifted, even if the validity had expired.
• The Toro Co., March 31, 2020 — According to a report from Rural Lifestyle Dealer, the company announced temporary suspended production/reduced level of production at certain facilities, in part due to anticipated reduced demand for products in certain businesses.
• Kubota, April 1, 2020 — According to a report from Global Atlanta, the company announced the closure of its two manufacturing plants in Georgia through April 13, located in Gainesville and Jefferson. The article said the plants would be disinfected following 3 of Kubota’s employees being diagnosed with COVID-19. Kubota confirmed that the 3,000 employees affected by the closures would continue to receive salary and benefits.
• Doosan Bobcat, April 1, 2020 — The company announced it would halt production at certain facilities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. For facilities in North Dakota and Minnesota, the temporary shutdown will begin Monday, April 6, with facilities resuming normal operations Monday, April 20. The Doosan Portable Power manufacturing facility in Statesville, N.C., will suspend production effective Saturday, April 4, and resume operations Monday, April 20.
• Raven Industries, April 2, 2020 — According to a report from Keloland, Raven Industries’ facility in Sioux Falls, S.D., was manufacturing protective gowns for local healthcare professionals, using plastics from the Raven engineered films division.
• John Deere, April 2, 2020 — According to a report from Muscatine Journal, an employee at the company’s Waterloo Foundry Operation tested positive for COVID-19. According to the report, Deere officials said the foundry “enacted what was already a robust disinfecting and cleaning protocol” in response to the confirmed case.
• CNH Industrial, April 3, 2020 — The company announced an extension of its closure of its European assembly operations, through April 17.
• John Deere, April 3, 2020 — According to a report from Herald & Review, John Deere Cylinder Works in Moline, Ill., temporarily halted production following a confirmed case of COVID-19 among its staff. A statement from the company said the facility’s operations were due to resume the following week.
• Vermeer, April 6, 2020 — The company announced the intermittent shutdown of its plants “to balance production demand by scheduling intermittent week-long shutdowns across individual U.S. facilities.”
• Mahindra & Mahindra, April 7, 2020 — According to a report from Autocar Professional, the company began manufacturing faces shields at its Kandivali manufacturing plant in Mumbai as of March 30. The mask was designed by Ford Motor Corp. Additionally, Rajesh Jejurikar, executive director, auto and farm sector, confirmed the company had “provided tractors to Municipal Corporations to the state of Maharashtra for sanitation purposes.”   
• AGCO, April 7, 2020 — According to a report from the Kansan, the company notified workers at its Hesston, Kan., manufacturing facility, that several staff members had potentially been in contact with with a person who tested positive for COVID-19. The date of potential contact was March 31. The employee was asked to self-quarantine. The facility was not closed.
• AGCO, April 7, 2020 — The company announced engineers at AGCO’s Beauvais plant in northern France have started assembling face shields instead of tractors using a newly-installed additive or 3D printing system to produce the frame. The shields are destined for a local hospital in response to an industrial campaign to meet immediate demand for 13,000 units at 94 hospitals and medical centers across France. The Massey Ferguson Additive Manufacturing team is handling the operation, with Hewlett Packard providing the printing compound and sports equipment maker Decathlon the transparent plastic shield.
• JCB, April 7, 2020 — The company announced its catering teams are preparing more than 37,000 meals a week for distribution in communities around its factories in the UK and India. This comes at the suggestion of Lady Bamford, wife of group chairman Lord Anthony Bamford. The JCB UK headquarters factory is also developing fabricated housing for a medical ventilator being developed by a consortium of manufacturers.
• Alamo Group, April 7, 2020 —The company announced it has partially reopened operations at its plant in Daumeray, France, and has plans to re-open two other French factories as well as two factories in England. Two of the company's four facilities in Canada are closed, and its Milwaukee facility has reopened. The company also announced that it has furloughed around 1,200 of its 4,300 employees as a result of temporary plant closures.
• CNH Industrial, April 7, 2020 — According to a report from NTV ABC, the company has closed its manufacturing facility in Grand Island, Neb., where it manufacturers combines. The facility was set to run through April 9. The report also noted the facility has its own clinic and doctor that have been advising the company.
• Kubota, April 7, 2020 — According to a report from OrilliaMatters, Kubota Materials Canada Corp., based in Orillia, Ont., was using 3D printers to create straps for face masks. The report stated "Kubota is working with Georgian College, which has a laser cutter that can cut the clear plastic used for face shields. Kubota would produce the other plastic components of the shields."
• John Deere, April 9, 2020 — The company announced it had begun manufacturing protective face shields at its John Deere Seeding Group location in Moline, Ill., in collaboration with UAW, the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and the Illinois Manufacturers Assn. The first 25,000 shields will go to 16 U.S. Deere facilities for local distribution, and Deere has ordered supplies to make 200,000 more.
• TAFE, April 9, 2020 — According to a report from Orissadiary, Tractors and Farm Equipment (TAFE) has announced it will provide free tractor rentals for 90 days to small farmers in the Uttar Pradesh state of India through its JFarms Services platform starting April 1. The program will be available initially in 16 districts with plans to include more. Around 3,000 Massey Ferguson and Eicher tractors and implements will be available for farmers to rent.
• New Holland, April 13, 2020 — According to a report from News Today, New Holland Agriculture in India extended machinery warranties by 30 days for equipment whose warranty is still in effect between March 24 and April 14 of this year. 
• Art's Way Manufacturing, April 13, 2020 — In its earnings report for the first quarter of fiscal year 2020, the company announced it had "lowered our expectations as the impact of COVID-19 has brought new challenges to our business and leaves us uncertain as to what to expect from a demand perspective for the balance of the year."
• AGCO, April 14, 2020 — According to a report from The Kansan, AGCO confirmed that an employee at its facility in Hesston, Kan., had tested positive for COVID-19. The company confirmed that the employee had not been at the facility for more than 14 days. AGCO had sent 25 employees home in the previous when it was notified of another potential positive test for COVID-19. In an April 14 report from North Queensland Register, AGCO Australia, New Zealand and Far East Vice President and Managing Director Warwick McCormick said AGCO had only had 11 confirmed cases among its 22,000 employees.
• CNH Industrial, April 14, 2020 — The company announced that its U.S. facilities had donated 2,500 KN95 masks to local healthcare facilities. Each CNH Industrial site in New Holland, Pa., Grand Island, Neb., Racine, Wis., Wichita, Kan., and Lebanon, Ind., was able to donate 500 KN95 respirator face masks to their local medical communities.
• CNH Industrial, April 15, 2020 — The company announced that its senior management had elected to temporarily forego part of its compensation. CNH Industrial's Board of Directors have agreed not to take any of their remuneration for the rest of year, with acting Chief Executive Officer Suzanne Heywood taking a 50% salary reduction for three months. The company's Global Executive Committee will take a 20% salary reduction for three months. 
• John Deere, April 15, 2020 — A report from KWWL said a contractor at the John Deere Drivetrain Works facility in Waterloo, Iowa, had tested positive for COVID-19. The company confirmed the employee had been self-quarantining and had not been at the facility since March 31.
• Escorts, April 15, 2020 — A report from ETAuto said the company had halted all production at its facilities and closing all its offices through May 3 in light of a government extension of a country-wide lockdown.
• TAFE, April 16, 2020 — A report from KrishiJagran said the company had donated 20 million rupees ($261,139) to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to support government initiatives to fight the pandemic. The report also stated several TAFE facilities had been used to distribute food, medical supplies and personal protective equipment.
• Norwood Sales, April 16, 2020 — According to a report from INFORUM, Norwood Sales reported that nine of its employees had tested positive for COVID-19 at its facility in Horrace, N.D. The company had its first reported case on April 1. As of April 9, Norwood Sales closed its Horrace facility for deep cleaning. The site is now regularly disinfected and employees' temperatures are taken upon arrival at the facility.
• Gates Manufacturing, April 17, 2020 — According to a report from KTIV, the company will close its facility in Brandon, S.D., for a week starting April 20, after nine employees tested positive for COVID-19. The company stated there is also a reduced demand for products. It was reported that employees will still receive benefits and customers will still be served during the closure.
• Raven Industries, April 17, 2020 — In a press release, the company confirmed that it had three confirmed cases among its 1,300 some employees and that all cases were at its Sioux Falls, S.D., location.
• Jacto Inc., April 17, 2020 — According to a report from Rural Lifestyle Dealer, the company provided sprayers to local police agencies to help with disinfecting their vehicles and equipment. 
• Doosan Bobcat, April 20, 2020 — According to a report from Sun Sentinel, Doosan Bobcat announced it would be returning 2,200 employees to work at its three facilities in North Dakota after two weeks spent implementing safety measures at the facilities.
• Türk Traktör, April 20, 2020 — A report from Hurriyet Daily News said the company, owned by a joint between Koç Holding and CNH Industrial, had reopened its factories as of April 20.
• Manitou, April 21, 2020 — According to a report from Vertikal, Manitou has begun partially resuming production at its facilities in France and Italy with limited production. The re-opening of factories will allow the "gradual re-establishment of the supply and production chain, in preparation for a full resumption, probably next month." The company's facility in India remains closed.
• John Deere, April 21, 2020 — According to a report from Our Quad Cities, an employee at Deere's Harvester Works facility in Moline, Ill., has tested positive for COVID-19. The employee was last at the facility on April 16.
• The Toro Company, April 21, 2020 — According to a report from Rural Lifestyle Dealer, the Toro Company announced that it is giving $500,000 to assist families and communities worldwide that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grant funding from the Toro Foundation will span all regions where The Toro Company operates, and will focus on providing food, health and humanitarian assistance to helping people adversely impacted.
• Valmont, April 22, 2020 — As part of the company's earnings report for the first quarter of 2020, Valmont withdrew its 2020 financial guidance. The press release also reported the temporary closing of a facility in South Africa, and stated the company's operations in Argentina, France, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines and South Africa had been affected by the outbreak "but all are anticipated to resume operations in early May."
• John Deere, April 23, 2020 — A report from KTVO confirmed the company's Ottumwa Works facility in Ottumwa, Iowa, had no confirmed cases of COVID-19.
• CNH Industrial, April 23, 2020 — A report from KVRR said CNH Industrial would be re-opening its plant in Fargo on May 5 and allowing almost 600 employees to return to work. Union leaders said they had come to an agreement with the manufacturer on ensuring that employees would be safe on the job.
• Bridgestone Americas, April 27, 2020 — A report from We Are Iowa said the company had reported a confirmed case of COVID-19 at its Des Moines Ag Tire Plant. Bridgestone had previously closed the factory in earlier in late March but reopened it a few weeks later.
• Mahindra, April 28, 2020 — A report from Financial Express said the company had opened 40% of its tractor dealership, as the Indian government recently classified ag equipment dealerships as "essential." The report also said Mahindra had plans to slowly restart manufacturing in the middle of May.
• AGCO/Fendt, April 28, 2020 — In a press release, the company said it would be restarted production later in the week at the following facilities in Germany: Marktoberdorf, Asbach-Bäumenheim, Waldstetten and Hohenmölsen. The report also mentioned that AGCO had been producing 3D printed face shields at its facility in Asbach-Bäumenheim since the beginning of April.
• CNH Industrial, April 29, 2020 — According to a report from Reuters, CNH Industrial is planning to restart production at 4 of its facilities in Italy on May 4. This includes facilities in Modena, Foggia and two facilities in Turin. The facility in Modena  produces ag equipment, while the other three facilities produce engines and parts for engines. The company said production was at around 20-30%, with only a few hundred of the 4,500 employees returning thus far. It was also reported that the facilities were producing medical equipment for hospitals in Turkey.
• CNH Industrial, April 30, 2020 — The company announced it will extend warranties in its New Holland and Case CE brands in India.
• John Deere, May 2, 2020 — According to a report from Quad-City Times, Deere is planning to pause production at its Davenport and Dubuque facilities in May 11, with a plan to reopen on May 26. 
• New Holland, May 4, 2020 — According to a report from Echo News, the New Holland plant in Basildon, England, will reopen later in the week ending May 8.
• CNH Industrial, May 5, 2020 — The company confirmed that 75% of its European facilities and 60% of its plants in North America, South America and the Rest of the World were open and operational to varying degrees. The company said in a press release it expects the vast majority of factories to be open by the end of May. 
• Argo Tractors, May 5, 2020 — The company confirmed in a press release it had restarted production at its facilities on May 4. 
• CNH Industrial, May 6, 2020 — In its earnings report for the first quarter 2020, the company confirmed it would be extending the timeline on its Transform2Win strategy, including the spin-off of On-Highway Activities, due to market conditions.
• Trimble, May 6, 2020 — In its earnings report for the first quarter of 2020, the company announced it would not provide a financial outlook for either the second quarter of 2020 or the remainder of the year. 
• Cub Cadet, May 7, 2020 — The company announced that, during the pandemic, it will partner with lawncare provider TaskEasy to provide free lawn mowing to first responders and emergency workers in more than 12,000 cities in the U.S.
• Kubota, May 12, 2020 — In its earnings report, the company announced it would revise its financial outlooks to "undetermined."
• CNH Industrial, May 14, 2020 — According to a report from WZFG, the company reported a confirmed case of COVID-19 at its factory in Fargo, N.D.
• CNH Industrial, May 18, 2020 — According to a report from NTV, CNH Industrial has reopened its facility in Grand Island, Neb., after having been shutdown since April 7.
• Kubota/Escorts, May 18, 2020 — According to a report from ETAuto, the opening of a factory meant to produce tractors for a joint venture between Kubota and Escorts has been delayed. The factory was slated to open in June 2020 but is now expected to open in the third quarter of the financial year 2020-21.
• John Deere, May 19, 2020 — According to a report from WRDW, John Deere confirmed an employee at its factory in Grovetown, Ga., had tested positive for COVID-19. According to the company, this is the only confirmed case of COVID-19 in a John Deere employee.
• John Deere/Yanmar, May 22, 2020 — According to a report from IVT International, the two companies had joined forces to help disinfect the streets of Indaiatuba in Brazil. The operation used a Yanmar Solis 90 CV tractor to spray a solution of water and sodium hypochlorite at night.