CLAAS opens new R&D center in Omaha to expand North American machinery testing

The 44,800-square-foot facility will coordinate testing under North American field conditions and support the company’s broader investment in the region.

CLAAS has opened a new Research & Development Center in Omaha, Nebraska, expanding its engineering and testing capacity for agricultural machinery designed for the U.S. and Canadian markets. Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen joined company employees and community leaders for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Oct. 8.

The center is part of CLAAS’ multi-year, $100 million investment and growth strategy for North America, according to CEO Jan-Hendrik Mohr. The 44,800-square-foot facility, which includes about 12,000 square feet of enclosed space, provides 25% more capacity than the company’s previous off-site R&D location. CLAAS said the site will support engineering jobs and bring field-testing data closer to the teams responsible for analyzing results and refining machine performance.

Testing for North American conditions

The Omaha center will serve as the hub for CLAAS’ North American testing activities. Tests will be conducted on farms across the continent to evaluate equipment under different soil, weather and crop conditions, with engineers analyzing the findings at the new facility.

Located on CLAAS’ Omaha campus, the center sits alongside the company’s North American headquarters, LEXION combine assembly plant and CLAAS Training Academy. The campus employs more than 250 people and brings manufacturing, engineering, training and customer support operations together at one site.

“The ability to test machines in those conditions, bring the data back to Omaha and work directly with our engineering teams helps us develop solutions that are relevant to North American farmers,” said Claudius Knierbein, head of engineering for CLAAS Omaha.