AgriculturAL Equipment Manufacturing

Pete Nelson, President of AgLaunch from Tennessee, was the guest speaker of the session. For 25+ years, Pete has been involved with farming and working with companies who develop new ideas to benefit farmers and supply chains. He shared an overview of AgLaunch and how they have successfully built an agricultural community focused around innovative technologies to help farmers solve challenges. 

AgLaunch groups together agricultural innovators within a network of farmers. The network helps innovators with new technologies, software, or robotics that can fundamentally change agriculture, and scales them with farmers who take stock in the new innovation. However, with every new technology, the innovators need manufacturers and technical companies to manufacture and produce the technologies. This is where ag equipment manufacturers can work together with entities like AgLaunch to grow innovation throughout the industry!

In an effort to continue growing this community, Pete is interested in connecting with Kansas farmers, innovators, and manufacturers with new ideas to create economic opportunities throughout the state. To learn more about AgLaunch and view their portfolio, please visit www.aglaunch.com. If you have questions, please contact us at info@greatplainstmc.org. 

"...it's not about making Tennessee the Ag Tech Capital to compete. It's about moving forward and getting farmers what they really need. It requires all of us working together."  

"Pete is so important to this group. They figured out what those needs and challenges are, and discovered a collaboration to bring those ideas to life."

Following the presentation, a panel of industry leaders shared their insights on the ag equipment manufacturing sector and how we can collaboratively move the sector forward. Panelists include (from left to right in picture): 

• Jeff Tucker, K-State TDI
• Daniel Rauchholz, Farmada
• Mike Bergmeier, ShieldAg
• Pete Nelson, AgLaunch
• Russell Plaschka, KDA, Moderator 

Top Discussions: 

How can small agricultural manufacturers innovate without the fear of losing the idea to large OEMs? 

• Small manufacturers can't live in fear. Building a partnership with an OEM can help small companies access a network of several dealers. 
• Keep OEMs out until product is fully developed so that it's protected.
• It takes years for OEMs to make changes to new product. Small manufacturers can see the weaknesses and can design products around these issues to provide value and/or compliment the OEM. 
• Having a niche product is key to success. This allows for adequate room for small companies to grow. 

What should companies be aware of if they are interested in collaborating together?

• Many companies don't share the same mindset about risk. There won't be a successful collaboration if they clash. 
• Non-disclosure agreements not only save the companies from each other, but also outside companies that they may interact with.
• Reputation...hardest thing to earn and quickest thing to lose.
• You can't just replicate a successful partnership. You have to create an environment to make it happen. It will take time! 

As seen in the picture above, the toolbar products have components from Farmada, SureFire Ag and ShieldAg. The orange toolbar itself is from Farmada. The anhydrous cooler, injection and electronic parts on the toolbar are supplied by SureFire Ag. ShieldAg builds and supplies the black colored row unit parts on the bottom of the toolbar. Each company shares designs and drawing files to ensure that all of the parts fit perfectly to minimize fitting problems.  

This toolbar package from Kansas manufacturers is a great agricultural product for farmers in Kansas and the world. The "Trifecta" is an awesome example of how collaborative partnerships can create successful products and reach international markets.    

"As long as you can continue to do the basics and take it over seas, it's a great thing! You don't have to reinvent the wheel!" - Mike Bergmeier, ShieldAg    

For more information about the companies, please visit their websites at:  

• ShieldAg Equipment - www.shieldag.com 
• SureFire Ag - www.surefireag.com 
• Farmada - www.farmada.net

How can this type of collaboration help companies that may not be ready to go overseas to international markets?   

• You don't have to go overseas to have a successful Trifecta like this.  It is all about how you can collaborate and work together with partners and other companies within the same industry. Discover your needs and what is most important to your business.  

What were some of the growing pains/hurdles that the Trifecta had to overcome?  

• There weren't many growing pains/hurdles. It was more focused on upfront agreements that the Trifecta had to determine in the beginning. They had to understand and identify what barriers they might face before they got there. By utilizing other KS companies and resources, they were able to avoid many hurdles.  

How did the Trifecta discover each other? How do you start those conversations? 

•  Trade shows, events, and conferences are great opportunities to meet other companies and start these conversations. It is important to build trust and personal connections to build these collaboration. Meet in person rather than  a zoom call if possible.

Chris Kuehl shared information to the attendees regarding the general supply chain issues that are happening with all industries. The biggest issues causing supply chain challenges is that producers were not prepared for the overwhelming high demands for parts and materials. An obvious reason for this is not only the pandemic with the restrictions and protocols, but also labor and transportation shortages, clogged ports, and the growth of online retailers. Producers cannot catch up with the demand, which has caused major delays in products to the US. These issues caused many trickle-down affects that greatly impacted US manufacturers.   

Chris recommends that companies look to solve their supply chain challenges through short- and long-term solutions. Short Term: It is important for companies to network!! There are companies in Kansas or surrounding states that can do the same processes as companies overseas. Long term: Companies should work on building their labor supply and pipeline by becoming connected with regional tech schools to solve the labor shortages and fill the skills gap. 

Clint Johns provided details about why steel prices have gone up, what will happen next, and what manufacturers can do to overcome the steel supply challenges. Similar to the general supply chain, there were drastic supply and inventory cuts due to COVID-19 as well as labor and logistic barriers, causing suppliers to be delayed in restoring their capacity. The demand for steel did not drop nearly as much as it was anticipated, which created a supply and demand imbalance.   

With the many impacts mentioned above, steel has become extremely volatile. From January 2020 to June 2021, Hot Rolled Coil (HRC - milling process of rolling steel at high temperatures) went from $580/ton -$1730/ton, which is about $600 more than the World Export Market of HRC. The Ferrous Complex, which consists of HRC, Iron Ore, Busheling Scrap and Turkish Scrap futures, are considered hot commodities and have experienced the largest percentage increase. In fact, HRC has rise as much as Bitcoin! It is important to remember that some of these issues mentioned aboce were not predicted to happen. The high prices will slowly begin to fade, as it is predicted that steel prices will reverse between Quarter 4 2021 - Quarter 2 2022.