Last week we announced that Competition Engineering is now serving agricultural equipment manufacturers. The first question we usually hear is a fair one: why would an automotive tooling shop get into ag?

The short answer: the problems ag manufacturers face are problems we've been solving for decades.

Automotive taught us to question every part

In automotive, there's no room for a part that costs too much, weighs too much or takes too many steps to build. Every component gets looked at again and again. Can it be stamped instead of machined? Can three pieces become one? Can the tool be designed so the part comes out right the first time?

That habit of asking is there a better way to make it? is what we're bringing to ag.

Ag equipment has room to improve

Ag equipment is built tough, but many of its parts are made the way they've always been made. We see the same patterns again and again:

• Welded assemblies built from several pieces that could be one formed part
• Machined or fabricated parts that never had the volume to justify tooling
• Aftermarket parts that were never re-evaluated after the original design
• Lower annual volumes that make traditional high-volume stamping hard to justify

Each of those is an opportunity to lower cost, reduce part count and improve quality.

What carries over from automotive

• Tooling design expertise: we design and build our own production tooling, so we know how to make a part stampable from the start.
• Low-volume stamping: our prototype and low-volume experience makes stamping practical where high-volume tooling doesn't fit.
• Assembly consolidation: we've spent years combining components to cut cost and improve quality.
• Process discipline: tight tolerances, CMM inspection and three shifts running seven days a week.

What we're not claiming

We're not pretending to be ag experts on day one. Farmers and ag engineers know their machines better than anyone. What we bring is a different set of eyes on the parts inside those machines, and the engineering and tooling to act on what we find.

Bring us your part

Have a welded assembly, a low-volume part or an aftermarket component you've always wondered about? Send us a print or a sample. Let's explore what's possible.

Email: [email protected] · Call: (616) 677-3343 · Web: competitionengineering.net

Next week: what we learned at farm show season.