Putting Seedsmanship Into Seed Handling Equipment
In my first Insiders column, I introduced our seedsmanship approach to designing equipment for the seed industry. Our concept of “seedsmanship” starts with trust. Don’t get me wrong, we need paperwork, drawings and approvals, but so much of our business is sealed with the trust of a handshake or phone call. For me, this is the very best part of the seed industry.
On the technical side, seedsmanship involves designing seed handling equipment that does not degrade, contaminate or throw away your good seed. Being a design/build contractor and manufacturer lets us “bake it in” and eliminate a middleman. Flow angles are carefully considered as are hopper and valley angles. This gives the equipment operator easy ability to inspect and clean out to prevent any contamination. Drops are minimized both in distance and frequency. Product on product is a great way to absorb and counteract the energy created by falling seed. These features are not specifically considered when engineers design equipment to rapidly move large volumes of commodity grains. Their focus is on capacity.
Solidworks modeling is a computer program we use to simplify the process of designing and building our products as we transform our seedsmanship ideas into your products. This helps us design and manufacture all the components that go into making a properly fitted machine or conveyor. We apply the same principles to our design of the edible food products we work with. Using our practical farm experience along with our basic senses of sight, sound and touch helps guide our direction as we evaluate and test our equipment. “If it sounds like you are making meal, you probably are,” is something I say a lot. Many of our products are manufactured right outside of my office door. We design and build the seedsmanship that goes into our products in our Des Moines, Iowa, facility.
Our value proposition is that our products and solutions are better by design. They fit the realities of our market and save you money on both the products and the installation. While sales are what support our business, we also do a whole lot of advising clients on how to make their situations better. Advice, effort, energy, attitude and passion “don’t cost extra,” but they pay off for us and our customers in the long run as we strive to bring seedsmanship to our products
