Balers are deeply rooted in CLAAS’s DNA. 95 years ago, the family-run company began production of its first commercial baler, the PRESS-BU-BI. CLAAS had already filed its first patent 10 years earlier – the famous knotter hook, which was initially used on straw binders and later on straw balers. To date, CLAAS has built and marketed more than 400,000 balers worldwide.
Whilst CLAAS balers were initially developed and manufactured exclusively at the CLAAS headquarters in Harsewinkel for decades, a dedicated factory was established in France at Metz-Woippy, Lorraine (now the Grand-Est region) from 1958 onwards. It was the first CLAAS production plant outside Germany and the first factory founded by Helmut Claas. From 1961, the first CLAAS balers rolled off the production line in Woippy, and from 1994, development was also relocated from Harsewinkel to Metz.
Five generations of VARIANT and the new CEREX: three decades of evolution and innovation in variable-diameter round balers.
Following the ROLLANT fixed-chamber round baler in 1978 and the revolutionary ROLLATEX net binding system in 1983, CLAAS developed its first round baler with a variable bale chamber – the VARIANT 100 series – which was launched in 1996. Prior to this, this segment had been served for a few years by the VARIANT 16, an OEM product.
A key innovation of the new VARIANT DNA was the active bale start and drive via the rotor, which ensures a reliable bale start even under difficult operating conditions and thus achieves high bale densities. A hydraulic soft-core function allowed for post-drying of crops such as hay, when required. Furthermore, the VARIANT 100 featured the widest pick-up on the market at 2.10 m.
Over the course of three decades, the VARIANT shaped the industry with innovations such as automatic tying start, the hydraulically lowerable PRO cutting floor, the 360-degree rotor, XW net tying with edge coverage, SMART DENSITY and the MULTIFLOW HD pick-up. Since 2025, the completely newly developed CEREX 700 has complemented the range – offering even higher throughput and even greater bale density whilst optimising power requirements.
“Balers are one of the strongest foundations of our company,” emphasises Dr Martin von Hoyningen-Huene, CTO of the CLAAS Group. “Today, we can look back with pride on 30,000 variable-diameter round balers built, the majority of which are VARIANT models. Our current range, comprising the CEREX 700 and VARIANT 500, is built on this extensive experience – the strongest range of variable-diameter round balers we have ever had at CLAAS.”
