They say as a farmer you spend more time checking your equipment manual than the Farmer’s Almanac.
But here’s the thing…
Agriculture’s attitude towards equipment maintenance and repair is evolving. The throwaway culture of days gone by is slowly being replaced by smarter leaner – and much more sustainable approaches – to making sure equipment lasts.
Sound familiar?
Let’s dive into why sustainable equipment practices make good financial sense – and how Unverferth equipment components are helping farmers do just that.
Table of Contents
- Why Now Is the Time For Equipment Sustainability
- How Sustainable Equipment Practices Impact the Bottom Line
- How Do Unverferth Equipment Components Fit Into Sustainable Agriculture?
- The Right to Repair Is Here to Stay
- Putting it all Together: Best Practices for Sustainable Equipment Operations
Why Now Is the Time For Equipment Sustainability
As most farmers are aware, agriculture is under increasing pressure.
Whether it’s growing input costs eating into margins or market uncertainty creating unwanted risk, modern agriculture has to run leaner than ever just to keep up.
A recent investigation shows farm equipment repair costs rose 41% since 2020 alone according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With expenses inflating like that, equipment purchase and repair decisions are forcing farm operators to take a harder look at how they manage equipment assets.
Cutting costs where you can is not optional.
Throw in growing interest around sustainable farming practices – and it becomes clear that equipment sustainability is more than just a trend. Maintaining soil health, conserving resources and doing more with less requires sustainable thinking in every area of the business – and repairable equipment is a big part of that picture.
Each time a piece of broken equipment is repaired rather than replaced; it saves the farmer money and keeps hundreds of pounds of manufacturing waste out of the supply chain. Not only that, but sustainable equipment practices like repairing instead of replacing reduce the carbon impact of manufacturing new machines and maximize the return on one of farmers’ largest investments.
Sustainable equipment practices = wins across the board.
How Sustainable Equipment Practices Impact the Bottom Line
If sustainable equipment practices were only about doing good for the environment it would be easy to stop there. But there’s a hard business case for repairing over replacing too.
Consider the purchase of new Unverferth equipment as a prime example. When a wear component fails on a tillage implement or seed drill, farmers can save big dollars by repairing the tool rather than buying new. Farmers can now buy Unverferth parts directly from a fully stocked online supplier that stocks Unverferth equipment components ready to ship directly, saving them a trip to the dealer.
Long story short, repairing equipment isn’t just a great idea. With the right suppliers in place it’s actually becoming more practical than ever.
Think about what that means:
- Repairing costs less – pretty much across the board – than buying new. Whether its labor or components, farmers can save money by repairing versus replacing.
- Getting parts fast reduces downtime. Having ready access to Unverferth equipment components means farmers spend less time waiting on parts and more time fixing
- Keeping metal out of the landfill is good for sustainable agriculture goals
- Farmers who squeeze more productive years out of their equipment improve their return on investment
But perhaps more importantly; sustainable equipment habits lead to better operations practices year-round.
By repairing and maintaining equipment, farmers also set themselves up to operate more efficiently throughout the year. Regular maintenance and servicing prevents premature failures during critical seasons and allows farmers to get the most out of their machinery when it counts.
That kind of operational discipline is difficult to measure, but it pays off.
How Do Unverferth Equipment Components Fit Into Sustainable Agriculture?
Which brings us to Unverferth equipment components.
Unverferth Manufacturing has built a reputation for over half a century for creating some of the toughest tillage, seeding and grain handling equipment on the planet. Everything built is made to withstand years of hard use. Unverferth equipment components aren’t excluded from that statement.
Because Unverferth tools are repairable, sourcing quality components when something does need replacing helps farmers keep their equipment in the field — and out of the scrap yard.
When used as part of a broader sustainable strategy, Unverferth equipment components give farmers the freedom to repurpose equipment for years to come. Repair quickly and efficiently so downtime is minimized and replace only when there is no other economical choice.
It’s a simple formula that works every time.
The Right to Repair Is Here to Stay
Before we wrap up, there’s one more piece of the puzzle to consider…
The right-to-repair movement is gaining momentum in agriculture.
Late last year, right-to-repair legislation was introduced or considered by law makers in 33 states and Puerto Rico. These bills all have one key goal; preventing manufacturers from locking farmers and independent farm shops out of equipment repairs using proprietary software, diagnosis tools, or other tactics.
Most recently, the EPA explicitly stated farmers have the lawful right to repair their own equipment.
The writing is on the wall.
Farmers want to repair their own equipment. Lawmakers are responding by backing that stance with legislation, and providing regulatory guidance where needed. The sustainable equipment trend isn’t going anywhere because:
- Sustainable equipment habits save money
- They empower farmers to do more with less
- Taking care of equipment requires reliable access to quality parts
When farmers have access to quality parts – repairing wins.
(Unverferth components of course.)
Putting it all Together: Best Practices for Sustainable Equipment Operations
Before you go, here are the top tips for building sustainable equipment operations:
- Audit your equipment. Know which pieces of equipment you want to hold onto – and which may never justify the repair bill.
- Prioritize maintenance. Once you know what equipment you want to keep, regular servicing will help prevent the big repair bills from happening in the first place.
- Source quality components. Maintain relationships with reliable suppliers of quality equipment components – like Unverferth parts – so you aren’t scrambling for parts when you’re busy taking care of business.
- Keep good records. Over time you’ll begin to see where your weak points are and what equipment brings the best return on your repair investments.
- Get comfy with the right to repair. Use independent shops when it makes sense, and take control of your own maintenance and repair decisions.
The farms of the future will be the operations that treat their equipment like the valuable assets they are.
The Bottom Line on Sustainable Equipment
Sustainable equipment means different things to different people.
But at the end of the day, most would agree that repairing instead of replacing saves farmers money and keeps waste out of landfills. Ensuring the farm has access to quality Unverferth equipment components means repairs can be done right – the first time. And standing up for the right to repair equipment will ensure that farming can continue to do what farming does best; farm.
What’s your sustainable equipment story?
