Women in Manufacturing STEP Awards Recognizes Several AGCO Employees

AGCO, Your Agriculture Company (NYSE: AGCO), a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment, announced that Erin Cuellar, Production Supervisor, Beloit; Carla Gasparin, Manager, Product Management, ATS Integration/Harvesting; Peggy Gulick, Director, Continuous Improvement, Jackson; and Kitae Kim, Global Sustainability Manager; have been selected to receive the Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Award.

Erin Cuellar, AGCO Production Supervisor, Beloit (Photo: Business Wire)

“These four women were nominated by AGCO colleagues for their accomplishments and leadership in manufacturing,” said Martin Richenhagen, Chairman, President and CEO of AGCO. “They have significantly contributed to AGCO's success and are great examples of how valuable diversity is in the workplace.”

Driving excellence through diversity is a global focus for AGCO. In 2011, the AGCO Global Women’s Network (AGWN) was established to develop, promote and advocate leadership of women as growers of profitability, collaboration and a diverse culture across AGCO. Each of these award winners are supported by their local AGWN organization.

The 2014 STEP Awards celebrate 160 women in all levels of manufacturing, from factory floor to the C-suite, who have demonstrated Science, Technology, Engineering, and Production excellence.

“These women are the faces of exciting careers in manufacturing,” said Jennifer McNelly, president, The Manufacturing Institute. “We chose to honor these women because they each made significant achievements in manufacturing through positive impact on their company and the industry as a whole.”

The STEP Awards are part of the larger STEP Ahead initiative which was founded in 2012 to promote the role of women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Production through recognition, research, and best practices for attracting, advancing, and retaining strong female talent.

A recent survey from Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute found that nearly 82 percent of American manufacturing companies have a moderate to severe shortage of available, qualified workers. Contributing to this gap is the underrepresentation of women in the industry. While women make up approximately 50 percent of the labor force, that number is only about 24 percent in the manufacturing labor force.

To celebrate and formally recognize the recipients for their accomplishments, these AGCO honorees are invited to the annual STEP Awards dinner on Feb. 6, in Washington, D.C. at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium.

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ABOUT AGCO

AGCO, Your Agriculture Company, (NYSE: AGCO), is a global leader focused on the design, manufacture and distribution of agricultural machinery. AGCO supports more productive farming through a full line of tractors, combines, hay tools, sprayers, forage equipment, tillage, implements, grain storage and protein production systems, as well as related replacement parts. AGCO products are sold through five core machinery brands, Challenger®, Fendt®, GSI®, Massey Ferguson® and Valtra® and are distributed globally through 3,150 independent dealers and distributors in more than 140 countries worldwide. Founded in 1990, AGCO is headquartered in Duluth, GA, USA. In 2012, AGCO had net sales of $10 billion. www.AGCOcorp.com

About The Manufacturing Institute

The Manufacturing Institute (the Institute) is the 501(c)(3) affiliate of the National Association of Manufacturers. As a non-partisan organization, the Institute is committed to delivering leading-edge information and services to the nation's manufacturers. The Institute is the authority on the attraction, qualification and development of world-‐class manufacturing talent. For more information, please visit www.themanufacturinginstitute.org.

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