IHC

Back in 1902 the agricultural companies Deering and McCormick combined together with three further agricultural machine producers to the International Harvester Company (IHC). Over the years the company became the first Global Player of the agricultural sector.
In 1908 the first IHC-tractor was built in Chicago. In the same year the German affiliated company International Harvester Company m.b.H was founded in Neuss. One year later the factory opened its gates and in 1937 the first tractors was produced here. After the Second World War the workshops were mostly destroyed. But 1946 the first tractor after the end of the war left the factory. In 1950 the construction of own diesel engines started. Five years later IHC stood on 11th place in the German sales statistics.
In 1965 the European factories combined to a production bond. Besides Neuss to this bond belonged the 1958 founded factory in Heidelberg, as well as the factories Bradford and Doncaster in England and the branches Croix and St.Dizier in France. In 1970 about 100.000 employees worked in 46 branches all around the world. At this particular time all in all about 5.000.000 tractors had been produced.
Two years later IHC made the first place at the German permission statistics and simultaneously became market leader among the tractor sellers in the EC. In 1979 and 1980 a strike happened in the American parent company for six month. The effect was the lost of the market leadership in the USA.
In 1985 the agricultural machines production was sold to Tenneco Company, which fused International Harvester (IH) with its affiliated company Chase to Chase IH. In 1995 the last tractor was produced in Neuss and the factory was closed completely one year later. All in all about 600.000 tractors had been produced here. The brand International Harvester is still existing as part of the concern CNH Global, but it´s not market anymore.