Matt Ristow (left) and Maury Salz (right)

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Following nearly two decades at Claas and an even longer career in the farm equipment industry, Claas Omaha President Maury Salz announced his retirement. Matthias “Matt” Ristow has assumed the role of president of CLAAS Omaha, the combine production company for CLAAS in North America.

“We would like to thank Maury very much for his successful work at Claas throughout the years. Many of our North American operations were shaped and further developed under his hard work and effective leadership,” says Leif Magnusson, president of Claas Global Sales – Americas. “He had a hand in the evolution of the Lexion combine in North America for nearly two decades.”

During Maury’s 19 years at Claas, he was responsible for a wide range of North American operations including research and development, purchasing, quality, logistics and manufacturing. Most recently, Salz oversaw the production of the all-new 8000-7000 Series Lexion combines, which returned to the bright “seed-green” CLAAS color after many years of Caterpillar yellow.

In 2018-19, Maury served as president for the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) and actively participates in executive committees for the advancement of Agricultural and Biological Engineering. He officially finished his year-long commitment to the organization as past president at the ASABE International Meeting this July.

The incoming Claas Omaha president, Matt Ristow, has been with the company for 6 years — first serving as vice president – Finance & Operations, and now president & managing director, Business Administration. The planned transition has been a smooth one.

Matt was born in Germany and came to the United States as a high school exchange student. He continued his higher education in the U.S., receiving a bachelor’s degree in business general administration and a master’s in international business from Fresno State in California. Matt returned to Germany and worked for the largest privately held service company in Europe, holding progressive positions overseeing controlling before returning to the U.S. and beginning an international career that led him from the U.S. to the United Arab Emirates and Turkey in senior executive positions.  

“We wish Maury the best of luck in his retirement on his family farm in Northwest Iowa,” says Magnusson. “Looking ahead, we are extremely excited for Matt to take on this new role. We recognize his dedication to continuously improving our products, and we are more than confident in his leadership for Claas of Omaha.”