Pivotal Issues Blog

By: Jim Patrico My two goals at each NFMS (this was my 18th) are to take the pulse of the farm equipment industry and to learn about new product rollouts. About the former, I can report that nearly every exhibitor I interviewed initially was excited about the prospects for the products they brought to the […]

By: Russ Quinn The equipment manufacturing industry supported 1.3 million jobs and contributed $159 billion to the Gross Domestic Production (GDP) of the U.S. in 2016, according to new report released by The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM). The report was unveiled March 9 at the CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2017, the industry’s trade show in Las Vegas. […]

By: Jim Patrico Working near a portable grain dryer all day can leave you with a buzzing in the ears. And if the dryer is near your house (or your neighbors’), it can be difficult getting to sleep at harvest time. GSI’s solution to the noise pollution is a new Quiet Dryer, which produces 50% […]

By: Jim Patrico A lot of major new product introductions mean machinery manufacturers are optimistic. They think farmers are in a buying mood, funds are available and innovations will be well received. Not so much at the 2016 NFMS. That’s not to say there were not plenty of new products offerings. March ushered in a […]

By: Tyler Harris Nitrogen and water are two of the biggest line-item investments associated with corn production. As growers in Nebraska and Iowa strive to optimize efficiency and profitability for their investment in fertilizer and water, Central Valley Ag is bringing together a group of producers to help drive adoption of technology and management at […]

By: Dave Mowitz </ br> Late-model planters are a great bellwether of the financial times. Three years ago, after commodity prices had plunged, large planters were selling for record-low prices. At a Sullivan Auctioneer sale in November 2014 in western Illinois, a fully loaded 1-year-old Deere 1790 (16/31 split rows) with less than 2,600 acres […]

By: Ray Bohacz Most, if not all, large diesel engines found in trucks and farm equipment employ a dual thermostat system. For the large part, the dual thermostat has replaced grille shutters from old days. Though a very effective system, unlike the grille shutters, you need to understand why dual thermostats are used and how […]

By: It sounds like a giant bumblebee, the 2-foot-square drone whirring to life. Its four props lift it off the ground outside Bruce Bowsher’s house and once it’s about 4 feet in the air, they lift up to give a camera an unobstructed 360-degree view. Bowsher controls his from an iPad attached to a remote […]

By: B. Lynn Gordon Whether you are an employer aiming to motivate your employees or a chairperson of a committee for an organization in either of these leadership roles you will be more likely to reach your outcomes when you give your employees and volunteers a reason to care. As you refine your abilities to […]

By: Chris Bennett As Randy Dowdy walked along muddy turnrows under pounding January rains, he knew part of the topsoil from the farm that birthed the highest soybean yields in world history was gone. Staring across the wreckage of scoured fields, his record-breaking 171.7 bu. soybeans and 521 bu. corn from fall harvest faded far […]