Founded in 1976, Great Plains Manufacturing focuses on helping producers through a variety of trials, such as labor shortages, maximizing yields, and more. Plus, it was one of the first entities to dive into sustainable agriculture. Oklahoma Farm Report’s Maci Carter had the opportunity to speak with Great Plains Manufacturing’s Ag Division President James Shurts about providing farmers with sustainable solutions to agriculture.
“We are all about finding solutions for the market,” Shurts said. “It really started with seeding solutions. We created the first folding box drill in the industry. It is about creating innovations to solve customer needs.”
The company remains true to those roots even after being purchased by Kubota in 2016. “’The harvest starts here’ is our tagline, and that is what we do. Whether it be tillage, or seeding solutions, we are in the dirt with our customers and with our dealers to make sure we are listening and reacting to provide those market needs to help them be more productive and profitable.”
According to Shurts, Great Plains understands that in order for producers to be as efficient and profitable as possible, therefore the company hasn’t taken mass pricing changes in nearly three years.
Alternately, the company takes pride in the way they treat employees, too. Rather than laying people off, they find other places to engage employees and retain them. “We live in rural Kansas,” Shurts said. “Our employees are our lifeblood, and we have to make sure that they have the ability to stay with us and that it is a meaningful place for them now and in the future. We are going to retain the workforce, spend the money to invest in the business, not for if, but when this market comes back, we will be ready to serve our customers.”
So that it can continue to serve customers and employees well, Great Plains is careful about the places it invests. “We will be surgical in terms of where we support the business, but also in terms of where we support our employees,” Shurts said. “We are going to continue to invest in growth and development to make sure we have those jobs and the products and solutions for the market now and in the future.”
