Deere & Company (usually known by its brand name John Deere) (nyse: DE) is an American corporation based in Moline, Illinois, and the leading manufacturer of agricultural machinery in the world. It currently stands at 98th rank in Fortune 500 ranking. Deere and Company agricultural products, usually sold under the John Deere name, include tractors, combine harvesters, balers, planters/seeders, ATVs and forestry equipment. The company is also a leading supplier of construction equipment, as well as equipment used in lawn, grounds and turf care, such as ride-on lawn mowers, string trimmers, chainsaws, snowthrowers and for a short period, snowmobiles.

John Deere products are known for their distinctive green and yellow color scheme. The company's slogan is "Nothing runs like a Deere" and has a picture of a deer as a logo, with wordplay pun on "nothing runs like a deer."

Additionally, John Deere manufactures engines used in heavy equipment and provides financial services and other related activities that support the core businesses.

Deere & Company Today

As of 2006, the Deere & Company employs approximately 47,000 people in 27 countries worldwide, including the United States, Australia, Turkey, Canada, United Kingdom, China, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, India, Poland, and Mexico, among many others. Inside the United States, the company's primary locations are its administrative center in Moline, Illinois, as well as various locations in the Midwest and southeastern United States. Most manufacturing sites are in Iowa or Illinois, as well as locations in Europe. Carl Westby is known as the person that coined the phrase "Nothing runs like a Deere."

Major North American factories include:

• Waterloo Works (foundry, engines, large agricultural tractors, drive trains, service parts, product engineering center) Waterloo, Iowa
• Harvester Works(large combine harvesters) East Moline, IL
• Cylinder Division (hydraulic cylinders) Moline, Illinois
• Seeding Group (planting equipment) Moline, Illinois and Valley City, North Dakota
• Davenport Works (wheel loaders, motor graders, articulated dump trucks, forestry equipment) Davenport, Iowa
• Dubuque Works (backhoes, crawlers, skid-steer loaders, forestry equipment) Dubuque, Iowa
• Des Moines Works (tillage equipment, cotton harvesters, sprayers) Ankeny, Iowa
• Ottumwa Works (hay and forage equipment) Ottumwa, Iowa
• John Deere (cane harvesting equipment, scrapers) Louisiana
• Horicon Works (lawn & garden and turf care) Horicon, Wisconsin
• Augusta Works (small commercial and agricultural tractors) Augusta, Georgia
• Welland Works (agricultural and commercial front loaders, rotary cutters, Gators) Welland, Ontario. However, this plant is scheduled to close in 2009, with production moving to its existing factories in Horicon, Wisconsin and Mexico. Source