In 2023, CNH Industrial purchased Hemisphere GNSS, one of the primary providers of 2D and 3D solutions for contractors working in industries like agriculture, construction, and marine. But what do the implications of that purchase mean for customers?
According to Miles Wareâdirector of marketing & global customer care at Hemisphere GNSSâit means improved software and greater accessibility for Hemisphereâs existing user base. That begins with new technology debuting at the most recent Equip Expo.
âWe launched a 2D excavator solution,â Ware told Equipment Worldâs Bryan Furnace. âIt's 100% based on all Hemisphere technologyâour positioning and sensor technology, our application softwareâand this is the first step to where we're bringing our audience a solution that they've been looking for and requesting.â
This solution was made possible by working with the CNH team.
âWe actually spent quite a bit of time talking to a lot of the Case and New Holland users to understand âWhat are you looking for?ââ Ware says. âAnd we actually made some adjustments to the software application feature-wise. ⌠In essence, it actually even improved the product that we sell as our regular aftermarket solution.â
Ware also tells Furnace that existing users who donât use CNH will not be shut out in any way from the Hemisphere suite of software and solutions. Hemisphere remains committed to their existing customers and to their original business mission.
âThe ideal customer for us and our vision has always been ⌠that new-to-the-technology-space customerâthat customer who is very cost conscious, especially now because of competition for bidding the jobs and winning the opportunities. Thatâs still our target audience,â Ware says. â⌠Combine that with the customer base and the audience that we have through [CNH], and it's a really good fit. So, we're really excited about that, because we believe that is truly the portion of the customer segment that can substantially benefit from making the investment into the technology, and they can see that return very rapidly.â
For more info on all these updates, you can check out Furnaceâs full interview with Ware in the video above.
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Transcript
00:00:00:15 - 00:00:23:22
Bryan Furnace
Hi everybody. Welcome back. Today we are here to talk to hemisphere, if you're not familiar. Hemisphere is one of the providers of 2D and 3D solutions for contractors. And they were recently acquired by C and H. Here to talk with us today is Myles to tell us a bit about what that means for hemisphere and C. And as we move into the future.
00:00:24:00 - 00:00:27:17
Bryan Furnace
For Myles I appreciate your time. Thank you for coming and speaking with us today.
00:00:27:19 - 00:00:32:14
Miles Ware
No thank you Brian, it's really, it's a pleasure to have the opportunity to, talk with you again.
00:00:32:16 - 00:00:44:07
Bryan Furnace
Yeah, absolutely. So for a lot of people out there, hemisphere might not be a name that they just know right off, right off the bat. You want to give us just a quick overview of what hemisphere does and what they offer okay.
00:00:44:07 - 00:01:15:12
Miles Ware
Yeah. Hemisphere. We are a Gnss positioning technology company. We've been building NZ's precision NZ's, technology, things like, survey rovers and, machine control products. We've been building this technology for more than 30 years. We, have our positioning technology integrated into a lot of really large brands. So over the years where they take our technology embedded into their solutions, whether these are construction vehicles, marine vehicles, land based vehicles, we support solutions for, like autonomous and semi-autonomous technology as well.
00:01:15:12 - 00:01:36:07
Miles Ware
And we've been longstanding in agriculture and marine. But most recently, you know, we've moved into the, construction segment, you know, with our, positioning technology, bundling it up with software, application software and try to solve some problems and provide some opportunities for a bigger segment of, you know, a construction audience that's coming into using, you know, machine control and, you know, precision, guidance technology.
00:01:36:13 - 00:01:37:10
Miles Ware
Yeah.
00:01:37:12 - 00:01:45:22
Bryan Furnace
So being recently acquired by CNA, you know, a lot of times there's a lot of shake up. There's a lot of mix up. What does that mean for the future of hemisphere?
00:01:46:00 - 00:02:11:11
Miles Ware
Actually it means a lot. It's been really positive CNA their acquisition of hemisphere was largely driven by their desire to control their destiny. When it comes to precision technology, both in, construction and in agriculture. So they are highly committed to owning and developing and growing the technology stack, to solve the problems, that orders and provide the solution that, you know, the customers who purchase their iron, want need.
00:02:11:11 - 00:02:34:03
Miles Ware
So from, integration and kind of bringing, you know, all of the, pieces together, it's been really positive. It's been very smooth. We've gone through a learning period of, you know, us learning how things operate and how things go in CNA and Casey and what they need. And we've been educating the Casey and CNA teams on the technology and how it can be, you know, used, adapted, leveraged to build solution.
00:02:34:03 - 00:02:55:19
Miles Ware
So but so far it's been it's been very positive and we've gotten a lot of positive feedback. And a lot of our audience is very excited, you know, to see, you know, the growth that hemisphere has already had so far. But see us now, you know, integrated into a larger entity. And it kind of like, you know, sitting, waiting, excited to see like, okay, wow, what's going to be the next chapter, what's going to come, what's coming down the pipeline next.
00:02:55:21 - 00:02:56:14
Miles Ware
Yeah.
00:02:56:16 - 00:03:22:00
Bryan Furnace
So kind of addressing maybe some of the knee jerk reactions to something like this. Two, two questions really for you as the first, as a non CNA customer, if I've got another piece of equipment, is that going to limit my ability to get Ahold of, hemisphere products. And then also if I'm an existing hemisphere customer in this acquisition, is that going to impact anything that I have going on with hemisphere currently?
00:03:22:01 - 00:03:41:16
Miles Ware
So for your first question, no, it will not impact your ability to have access hemisphere. We still continue, like I say, our initial mission of selling and building machine control and construction solutions for aftermarket to solve problems and provide solutions for like excavators and dozers and so forth. That mission continues on with the same target audience, the same objectives, those customers.
00:03:41:18 - 00:03:57:23
Miles Ware
None of those avenues of doors are shut. And as far as the impact to our ecosystem, our existing ecosystem, yeah, our channel partners, our dealers, all of our industry dealers are still active promoting and selling our, solutions. And we're actually growing that network now that we're integrated as part of Casey, you know.
00:03:58:01 - 00:04:10:04
Bryan Furnace
So now, flipping over to the other side of that, what does this integration look like on the sea in each side? What is the actual implementation of this coming together, going to look like for a front end user?
00:04:10:09 - 00:04:35:03
Miles Ware
So recently at Equip Expo, we launched a 2D excavator solution to the Casey and the New Holland. Because the New Holland brand is part of our family. Yeah, we launched that 2D excavator solution. It's 100% based on all hemisphere technology. So our positioning and sensor technology, our application software, and this is the first step to where we're bringing our audience, you know, technology in a solution that they've been looking for that they've been requesting.
00:04:35:03 - 00:04:55:12
Miles Ware
So it's a a first step, 2D solution that, you know, they have a lot of pretty versatile. They have a lot of, applications, especially focusing on those, mid-size and small, machine and, and contractors to where we can bring that added efficiency of giving them, you know, machine guidance on projects to where machine hits the ground.
00:04:55:18 - 00:05:13:06
Miles Ware
They set up their projects, whether it be just a simple 2D project, they can cut that basement, they can do that work. And then the beauty of it is, is that the solution that we launched at Equip Expo, we actually spent quite a bit of time talking to, a lot of the, Casey New Holland users to understand.
00:05:13:06 - 00:05:33:02
Miles Ware
Hey, what are you looking for? What do you like? What do you don't like? What do you need? What don't you need? And we actually made some adjustments to the software application feature wise. Some of the actual, menu flows and, and how you use it to really make it, you know, make it really, really attractive, to that audience.
00:05:33:02 - 00:05:49:12
Miles Ware
And in essence, it actually even improved the product that we sell as our regular aftermarket solution. So it really gave them that first chance where it was an opportunity where they're a technology owner. So, hey, here's what we would love to see from the technology. We bring the engineers and all the folks, the developers in the room. We make it happen.
00:05:49:12 - 00:06:05:18
Miles Ware
We come out the room. Hey, that solution that you requested, here it is. And the reception was really positive. So we're excited about where we're headed there. And, and we'll continue to do that. And, you know, take that approach, as we move forward with, more machine platforms and more solutions.
00:06:05:23 - 00:06:26:11
Bryan Furnace
That Segways me really well into my next question. So the landscape of the machine control space, using the 3D and 2D technology has changed dramatically. I would say within even the last like five years. We're starting to get a lot more of the smaller contractors that are getting access to this sort of stuff. And, and they're starting to get their feet wet pretty well.
00:06:26:13 - 00:06:39:08
Bryan Furnace
So my question to you is, I know the ideal customer is everyone in the market. But when you think about the ideal customer for hemisphere in that ecosystem, what is hemispheres really ideal customer.
00:06:39:14 - 00:06:57:06
Miles Ware
So the ideal customer for us and our vision has always been exactly what you touched on that new to the technology space customer, that customer that is very cost conscious, especially now because of competition for, you know, bidding the jobs and winning the opportunities. And, you know, the demand.
00:06:57:08 - 00:06:57:14
Bryan Furnace
For.
00:06:57:15 - 00:07:19:12
Miles Ware
Me is a race to the bottom. And but that audience, you know, that's still our target audience. And now that we've got the ability, chemistry, we've always had the ability to kind of package up and build these solutions to where we can make that entry point very accessible. Combine that with the customer base and the audience that we have through Casey in New Holland.
00:07:19:18 - 00:07:39:09
Miles Ware
It's a really good fit. So we're really excited about that because we believe that is truly the portion of the customer segment that can substantially benefit from making the investment into the the technology, and they can see that return very rapidly. So, I like like I said before, our mission and our mandate and our focus is still the same.
00:07:39:11 - 00:07:44:09
Miles Ware
And it's just we're now we're just with our new ownership. We're just attacking it in a much wider length. Yeah.
00:07:44:11 - 00:08:14:21
Bryan Furnace
And that's one of the first things that came to mind when I heard about acquiring you guys was what a great pairing that was, because, you know, I sold case equipment for for about two and a half years, and it was pretty clear to me that that case serves the whole market. But there's this real, you know, cult following of the case brand that are these owner operators, the smaller contractors, and largely those are the ones that have been ignored by a lot of the other solution providers of this 3D and 2D technology.
00:08:14:21 - 00:08:37:21
Bryan Furnace
And so for you guys to come along with this, you know, it's easy to understand, it's easy to attain, and you're coupling with the company that's providing the equipment to these small owner operators. That just seems like a really good that seems like a good marriage. So I guess my final question for you is, what are some of the features of the HemisFair ecosystem that kind of make this a little easier to get into?
00:08:37:22 - 00:08:41:20
Bryan Furnace
What are some of the things that these contractors are going to really like about your ecosystem?
00:08:41:22 - 00:09:04:21
Miles Ware
Again, we start out at the top where we offer a very competitively priced solution, to these, these, these, this scale of, this size of customers. Our 2D solution that we introduced, it is very simple to use. Operators can get into it. You can actually even before you get to the operator, we've streamlined the calibration and installation process.
00:09:04:21 - 00:09:25:23
Miles Ware
So you don't require any specialized tools to actually deploy. It's like an example of an excavator solution. You don't require any specialized tools to deploy it. Everything you need, you already have. Or you can go right down the road to your Home Depot, your your home improvement. You Lowe's, your home improvement store. You know, we're talking about a level Plumbob tape measure.
00:09:25:23 - 00:09:28:16
Miles Ware
You know, stuff these guys already have. So you can get.
00:09:28:18 - 00:09:32:02
Bryan Furnace
A fancy laser pointer that screws into this one little device.
00:09:32:03 - 00:09:52:06
Miles Ware
Oh no. Yeah. No. And that was always our mission that we wanted to make it very easy, very approachable. You know, not not intimidating at all. So any size operation, the mechanics and the maintenance staff that they have on hand, they can easily deploy these systems and get them going. You can typically get a system installed in about four hours.
00:09:52:12 - 00:10:06:06
Miles Ware
Oh, wow. But that's, you know, a 2D system, a 3D system is a little more, you know, a few more steps. But again, you can have a system, a 3D system up and running, you know, same day as, you know, starting in the morning. It's running in late afternoon. So yeah, you know, that's a big component of it.
00:10:06:07 - 00:10:27:11
Miles Ware
And then we built the solutions where for example, like what we're doing and what the, what the 2D solution that we're offering and promoting now all the components, core components. When you buy the 2D solution for the excavator sensors, display software, you have it. Once you install that, if you later decide to say, hey, you know what, I've gotten pretty good with this 2D solution.
00:10:27:13 - 00:10:48:05
Miles Ware
I want to venture into maybe using a system that that's required for a 3D solution using digital models site surveys. We have a 3D upgrade kit where you add the positioning hardware, you plug it in, you get an unlock code for us, and now your 2D solution is a 3D solution so you don't have to tear a machine down.
00:10:48:05 - 00:10:52:22
Miles Ware
Swap out components, trade something in. That's great. So that growth path again, it's.
00:10:52:22 - 00:10:53:11
Bryan Furnace
Already built.
00:10:53:11 - 00:11:36:00
Miles Ware
In. It's already built in. So and again trying to provide that opportunity for these customers to maximize that initial investment and get them out of the box, hitting the ground running and working, going to work and reaping the benefits, you know, of leveraging the technology. So that's truly the focus and that's the mission. And like to your point, we believe and after now having, you know, direct access in a front row seat to the KC family of customers, we really believe that that customer loyalty and that following that, they have built over so many years of just providing a very quality, you know, I am products to their customer base, marrying that up with our
00:11:36:00 - 00:11:41:19
Miles Ware
approach and our solutions and our approach to delivering the technology. If it goes together very well.
00:11:41:21 - 00:11:48:01
Bryan Furnace
Well that's exciting. I really appreciate your time on this, and I am looking forward to seeing what you got to offer at the booth, the kind of expo this year.
00:11:48:04 - 00:12:14:00
Miles Ware
Yeah. We're excited. We've got some really exciting stuff. Not only for, you know, what we're doing here for like, the, the aftermarket, but it'll be some very exciting things to see as far as the future, the path forward of how a lot of these technology components actually get integrated into the ion equipment coming directly from the factory, because we know that as the customers evolve and their ion needs evolve, what the standard definition of what's in your machine from the factory has evolved quite a bit.
00:12:14:00 - 00:12:26:23
Miles Ware
So we've got some pretty cool stuff to show and show the world. Icon Expo how that this technology is going to continue to evolve and integrate into, you know, the factory solutions as well. So looking forward to talking to you guys. Yeah.
00:12:27:00 - 00:12:28:22
Bryan Furnace
Sounds good. We'll we'll see you in Vegas.
00:12:29:00 - 00:12:31:07
Miles Ware
All right. Looking forward.
00:12:31:09 - 00:12:41:03
Bryan Furnace
Well thank you again for Myles coming on the show to talk about the future and the relationship of Hemisphere and Casey. As always I hope this has been helpful. We'll catch you on the next episode.