Vretens Annual Chronicle 2024
Tradition and innovation for forests
2024 has been a year of both challenges and progress for Vreten. In a difficult market, Vreten has chosen to focus on its strengths: combining traditional quality with innovative solutions. Kristian Jonsson, CEO of Vreten, summarizes the year:
- It has been a tough market, but with an increased focus on product development for us.
Changing needs of the forest owner
During the year, we have seen changes in the needs of forest owners, which have also shaped our product range. Forest owners are increasingly investing in large forwarders, while tractors today often require extensive rebuilding to work in the forest.
- Tractors are not built nowadays as they were in the past. They are less well adapted to the forest today and often require major modifications to function properly. Our investment in new valve controls makes the job easier for the forest owner. We also believe that solutions such as the waist lock will be of great benefit to those who do a lot of driving where starting and stopping is a major part of the driving. We believe that the focus on smaller Trailers will also be useful for the market where it is seen that a smaller tractor is better suited to the forest to take out, for example, individual wind traps," says Krisitan.
Meeting challenges
One of the most notable challenges during the year has been forecasting production.
- We have been working on technology for export markets, especially air brakes. This has meant many chassis redesigns to make everything work. Despite this, we have seen strong sales figures for our 9- and 10-ton wagons, and an increased interest in both larger and smaller models," says Kristian.
The ability to tailor solutions to different needs has been a success factor during the year.
- We have built a number of Trailers for municipalities where they often want a combination trailer that can handle many tasks. We have products that can be used to drive in the forest with a classic chopper trailer, lift a rice cassette in place if they are going to go and pick rice along a path or the like, put on a dumper truck with the crane to be able to drive gravel, soil, etc. We also have buckets to put on the crane to be able to load, for example, soil in the truck. They are used extensively and for many different tasks in such a business, and there we have a large range with more different products.
One of the most recent examples is an implemented project for Alingsås municipality.
- They bought such a trailer and added radio control for the crane, which makes it possible to stand outside the tractor and work. The trailer is also prepared to be supplemented with a flatbed later.
International markets
In export markets, both the Czech Republic and Norway showed strong growth during the year. For Germany, a large market with specific requirements for air brakes, extensive development work has been carried out.
- That job is largely done, and we are ready to start delivering," says Kristian.
Another highlight was the launch of the waist lock - an innovation that gained international attention and resulted in the award of the Sølvakset at Agroteknikk in Norway.
- It's a well thought-out solution where we have solved some of the problems and the awkward moments that exist when moving, but at the same time it does not make the product significantly more expensive. It is still affordable! Kristian concludes.
The future looks bright
With an expected increase in the market and a range of new products in development, Kristian is now looking ahead to 2025.
- More new products will leave Vreten in 2025. We will also be fine-tuning our website, where spare parts and components can be easily ordered. Stay tuned," concludes Kristian.