The Joskin company, which is today internationally known, are well known for all types of agricultural machinery exporting into 60 countries with an estimated €139,836,000 consolidated turnover.
The family business founded in 1968 by Victor Joskin, who wanted to dedicate himself to the agricultural world, set up his contracting business, starting with a new hall on site of Soumagne in 1972. In 1974 was the beginning of the import of agricultural machines which the company started manufacturing its own slurry tankers in 1984.
His wife, Marie-José Joskin, joined him in 1970 to ensure a sound treasury management of the company that kept growing. At the head of the company for more than 50 years, Marie-José and Victor were joined in the 1990s by their three children, Vinciane, Didier and Murielle. Despite an outstanding growth and a presence across the world, the company’s DNA, focusing on the family and its members’ well-being, remained intact.
In only 50 years’ time, Joskin has managed to become one of the biggest names in the agricultural world. Today, its machines criss-cross the countryside all over Europe and in many regions of the world.
Every year, machines are delivered to more than 60 countries. Driven by the willingness to internally master all strategic phases of the production and service chain in order to optimise them, the company has rapidly evolved as an international group. It has now five production factories that are perfectly adapted and strategically spread over the European continent.
Aiming at efficient, durable and affordable agricultural machinery, Joskin rapidly tried to produce quality implements that were perfectly adapted to the challenges of time while providing a real added value. This range is built around four main axes: spreading, transport, livestock and grass care.
With over 50 years of experience and more than 120,000 machines sold throughout the world, Joskin puts its resources more than ever at the service of the farmer by offering products that are increasingly adapted to the evolution of the agricultural world.
To see through this mission, they are constantly investing in the design and production of their machines. Either in the research and development of new solutions, in production techniques or in the search for better materials, working hard to keep improving the production standards to offer the best agricultural machinery.
For maximum finish and quality of Joskin machines, they try to master their entire production, by developing and producing 85% of the components of the products themselves.
The firm use a lot of automated machinery in the production lines to speed up the process, as robots can work 24/7 as well as maintaining the standard. In turn this gives more time for the staff to work on quality control and other jobs throughout.
Murielle Joskin, head of communication and HR added: “There is also a shortage of skilled staff here, so the automation helps fill gaps where possible. I do think it is the future however we still need workers. We want our employees to be able to speak a minimum of two languages as we feel it is important for the community of our company.
“There is a lot of farmers sons and daughters that do come to work here.”
Through the use of the SAP production management software, Joskin can ensure a full traceability of each machine component. In order to guarantee short delivery times, Joskin manufactures its entire product range all year round at a constant pace.
To help with the constant pace of machinery the advantage series was introduced, which is a mass production of machines that Joskin wanted to prove was possible to reduce the price of agricultural machines while increasing the quality. The concerned models are assembled on a dedicated assembly lines to produce identical series of machines. Producing a large quantity of a model implies more advantageous prices for the raw materials, a more profitable distribution of the workforce and a higher efficiency of the automated machines.
The company are constantly recalculating production costs to ensure the price is right for customers. The Joskin production includes 76 models, 396 versions and 1200 options.
In order to ensure that their machines are of a constant quality, regardless of the factory or production department, Joskin chose to centralise the storage of the components and deliveries. This allows the quality department to examine and approve the suppliers’ goods.
The surface treatment is a crucial step that guarantees the quality and longevity of the machines. For an optimal protection against corrosion, Joskin uses a 2k component paint of industrial quality. Before being coated, the parts undergo shot blasting and the application of an epoxy painter.
A key characteristic of Joskin is the majority of machines are galvanised to ensure a long-lasting protection against corrosion and a maximum service life. Hot-dip galvanising bath sits at 450 degrees, and is a complex process – the steel is first coated with three layers consisting of a mixture of steel and zinc, and an outer layer of pure zinc.
The reputation of a brand also depends on a good service, in which Joskin has made the availability of spare parts a top priority.
Victor Joskin has always considered the spare parts as the nerve centre of the group: without spare parts, no repair is possible. Given the permanent stocks of spare parts, Joskin guarantee their availability even years later, which will secure the value of machines through time.
“Our activity as regional dealers allows us to be daily on the field and it reminds us every day of the importance of a fast and quality service. Either regarding the before-sales advising or the after-sales service, we are working hard to ensure you an experience that meets your expectations,” said Mr Joskin, who works with more than 600 dealers worldwide.
The team run seven different departments, split on language to ensure there is always someone to understand. “Sales are better this year than they were last year, however all elements of sales, production and delivery have to be well balanced for our company to be successful,” said Didier Joskin, head of production and IT.
“Our biggest problem is the stock we put to dealers, we would never leave them stuck with any of our products, but we do find it dangerous to have old stock sitting, we want to keep it fresh in all of our dealers.
“It is important that we keep our business well balanced and put our customers first,” he concluded.
Expansion
The main sites are in Soumagne in Belgium, with Spaw Tech also in Belgium, the two sites in France are in La Vieille-Lyre and Bourges and one in Trzcianka, Poland.
The latest is being built in Luxembourg, with the completion of the building construction scheduled for the end of October 2024, and the start of the installation of the major equipment is scheduled for January 2025.
As a result, the factory is scheduled to be commissioned in the third quarter of 2025.
Vinicane Joskin, head of administration and finance, said: “We want to continue to update our premises when we can, by adding our new Luxembourg site, it is a new market for staff, and it is a good location for our business."
In addition to this things are moving in La Vieille-Lyre, with an expansion project underway to add a new 6000 m² building.
Wishing to meet a growing demand Joskin commented, this extension will include new welding workshops, an automatic shot-blasting machine for large parts, and a painting area.
As a result, 40% more production capacity will be added to the plant, for a total of 21,000 m² of usable floor space.
There is no doubt that this extension with modern production capacity will benefit the Leboulch brand.
The aim is to double the number of Leboulch tipping trailers and muck spreaders produced annually.
The building is scheduled for commissioning before the end of 2024.
The kit at Joskin
Slurry tankers
Innovative tankers with a real added value for the farmer, have been awarded the ‘machine of the year’ title three times, with the models, Volumetra (2017, SIMA), Modulo 2 (2019, SIMA) and the X-Trem2 (2020, Agritechnica) taking the applause.
There are two types of chassis used for the Joskin slurry tankers, self supporting chassis or a universal chassis.
A large part of the range is the self supporting chassis, which is welded under the tank over its entire length. Traction stations are more homogeneously distributed over the whole tanker but the total weight is also reduced. The independent universal chassis is particularly suitable for heavy duty works, these models allow to focus all strains occurring during transport as well as the efforts of the rear implement directly on the chassis.
However, to choose the right slurry tanker, it is first and foremost essential to choose the right type of pump. Joskin offers several systems for different uses and conditions:
Vacuum: Creates an atmospheric pressure difference between the inside of the tank and the surrounding air. Ensuring the pump does not come into contact with the liquid being sucked in.
Vacu-storm: Combines the effects of a vacuum pump on the suction side and a centrifugal pump on the discharge side.
Centrifugal pump (storm): Propels the slurry out of the pump by the centrifugal force created by the rotation of a screw inside an eccentric pump body. This system allows for higher flow rates to be achieved.
Lobe pump: Uses the mechanical action of two lobe rotors whose rotation creates a vacuum on the suction side to draw the slurry into the pump body. The pump does not take much place even if it has a high capacity and can be used to transfer slurry.
Spiral pump: Uses the mechanical action of an eccentric screw to suck in and discharge the slurry. This pump can suck and discharge thick slurry, even through long pipes, as well as carry out transfers form one pit to another.
Garda/ Julia: Mechanical drives combines two pumps: Centrifugal and vacuum. The centrifugal force can be increased to six bar for watering and breeding in mountainous areas.
Muck spreaders
Joskin offers a complete range of muck spreaders in order to meet all needs. These models are designed to ensure a side and uniform spreading pattern for all types of solid fertilisers.
Tipping trailers
Tipping trailers are made of high tensile steel which have a significantly reduced empty weight for a higher loading capacity and sturdiness.
Silage trailer
The Silo-Space2 is a new generation of optimised silage trailer to increase the farmers and contractors profitability.
Its design is based on a tapered body with moving floor to fluidly and very quickly unload silage.
Toppers and choppers
The Joskin rotary pasture toppers and choppers are specially studied to meet the various agricultural, for example mowing leftovers, fallows, and horticultural needs including maintenance of open spaces and brush clearing. Driven by a vertical transmission shaft, their cutting system ensures a precise cut of the vegetation.
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