Dr. Josef Mayer will take the position of Vice President and Managing Director for Research and Development, heading up the entire development division for Fendt. He will succeed Walter Wagner, who will retire at the end of March after more than 36 years at Fendt.
In his new role, Dr. Josef Mayer will head the entire research and development division as well as purchasing for Fendt tractors and forage harvesters, and will work closely with the international engineering departments in the AGCO Corporation. Together with his team, he will focus on the further development of the Fendt tractor and forage harvester program, including the topics of data handling and autonomy.
Dr. Mayer joined Fendt in November 2014 as team leader for the “Drive Technology Testing” division. During this time, the Fendt VarioDrive powertrain was developed for the Fendt 1000 Vario, which at the time was the newly developed standard tractor to exceed the 500 hp power barrier for the first time. Dr. Mayer has been head of the Vehicle Testing and Prototyping department since April 2018. This includes the production of prototype components, the testing of prototype vehicles on test benches, and the field testing of tractors and software. In 2023, he took over the management of Fendt transmission development and the Drivetrain module in the AGCO Group. In addition to the further development of the Vario transmission, his responsibilities also included the cross-brand, global definition of strategies for transmissions, front axles and PTO shafts at the corporate level.
Josef Mayer studied mechanical engineering at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), specializing in drive technology and systematic product development. He then completed his doctorate at TUM.
“Josef Mayer brings to this responsible position both excellent technical knowledge and the leadership experience to manage a team of nearly 750 engineers. He has a deep understanding of agricultural engineering, which will help to continue developing innovative solutions that support farmers around the world in their work,” says Christoph Gröblinghoff, Vice President & Chairman of the Fendt Management Board EME. ”In addition, Josef Mayer has agricultural expertise and understands the needs of customers, having grown up on a family farm in the Donau-Ries region.”
