CLAAS KGaA mbH is an agricultural machinery manufacturer based in Germany. The company was founded in 1913 by August Claas and its product range includes tractors, combines, balers, lawn mowers, rakes, hay dryers, forage harvester trailers, wheel loaders, telehandlers and other harvesting equipment, as well as state-of-the-art agricultural information technology.
The company's headquarters is located in Harsewinkel, North Rhine-Westphalia.
CLAAS is a family company and one of the market and technology leaders in harvesting technology. It is the European market leader in combine harvesters and is considered the world market leader in self-propelled forage harvesters.
The company's beginnings date back to 1887, when Franz Claas founded a company for the production of milk centrifuges in Clarholz. From about 1900, he also produced other agricultural machinery there, such as hay binders and cutters for mowers.
The official founding of the company took place in 1913, when August Claas, son of Franz Claas, reported to the responsible office in Herzebrock that he was producing wicker fasteners with two locksmiths and one unskilled worker. In 1914, their brother Franz jun. and Bernhard Claas also joined the company. The company later continued under the name "Gebr. Claas". The fourth brother, Theo, officially joined the company as a partner in 1940.
