Finland Celebrates Valtra’s 60th Anniversary

Valtra is celebrating its 60th anniversary today. 450 members of the public, press, suppliers and customers have been invited to Jyväskylä for a future seminar and evening gala. Watch this space for pictures, stories and an announcement of something completely new.

Valmet tractor production began after the Second World War in Finland. Rifle, mortar and aeroplane motor factories were turned to the production of agricultural tractors, of which there was a great shortage after the war. The first Valmet 15 tractors were finished in 1951.

Only ten years later Valmet established a tractor factory in Mogi das Cruzes in Brazil. The first five Valmet 360 D tractors were finished in December 1960. The courageous and risky decision to establish a factory on the other side of the world has since been proven to be right: Valmet do Brasil is today a central part of the Valtra brand.

In 1978 Valmet bought the Swedish Volvo BM tractor operation. The roots of Volvo BM and its predecessors Bolinder and Munktell lie deep in Swedish industrial history. Theofron Munktell established a machine shop in Eskilstuna in 1832. The first tractor of Valtra’s Swedish branch was finished in 1913. Valmet and Volvo BM joined forces in 1978 and the first Volvo BM Valmet 05 tractor series we designed together was launched in 1982.

The AGCO SISU POWER engine factory in Linnavuori is closely connected to Valtra’s history. The Valtra tractors produced at Suolahti have always been equipped with AGCO SISU POWER engines, or those of its predecessors Sisu Diesel and Valmet diesel. Nowadays AGCO SISU POWER engines are produced in various factories around the world and they can be found, under the hood of Valtra and many other offroad work machines.

Valtra may be 60 years old but it knows its roots and sees the future with enthusiasm. The small Finnish producer has become a world wide tractor brand. As a part of AGCO, Valtra has gained the support of one of the largest agricultural groups in the world. Read the complete Valtra history.

How many Valtras do you own? Post your pictures on our Facebook page and on MyValtra.