Worthington Ag Parts - President's Blog

Win Some - Lose Some

Worthington Ag Parts - You can expect more from us!

Well it's 2:33 PM and I've just sat down at my desk after the power went out and a Tornado Warning for our county was issued.  The storm just passed south of here about five miles.  Nothing touched the ground but the warning was issued based on Doppler radar.  Hail 2 1/2 inches in diameter busted out windows in cars just two miles from our corporate office but nothing hit here!  It makes for an interesting afternoon!!!  On a side note for those of you that know Greg Clemens, YES he was outside with an umbrella while the tornado sirens were going off!!!

In my blog yesterday I mentioned the equipment bid placed by the Worthington Ag Parts team earlier this week at the site of the Greensburg, KS tornado.  I received news last evening that we did not win either of the three lots of equipment but we were right in the running.  While the first feeling to hit me was disappointment, it didn't last long because I know we left no stone unturned in the process.  If the information I have received is correct the equipment went to local bidders located in the state of Kansas.  If you are watching the price of fuel these days you know that was a big piece for anyone bidding and having to truck it out of state!

If you can take one thing away from this it is, Worthington Ag Parts has the knowledge, team, passion and financial backing to not only maintain, but to grow our strong position in the Ag parts and equipment market!  We will continue to aggressively pursue acquisitions to grow our market and provide the best customer service in the industry.  We are not only parts providers but we are SOLUTIONS PROVIDERS to our customers.

Happy Birthday...

Jason Atkins - Director Of Operations Neil's Parts, Australia - He is based in Toowoomba, Queensland, on a side note he's excited because Queensland just won the state of origin.  It's a rugby thing in Australia!  Happy Birthday Jason I wish you many more!  You can email birthday wishes to Jason by clicking here!

Happy Anniversary....

Derrick A. Rohe - Parts Specialist - Audubon, Iowa.  Derrick has been with the company two years today!  Call Derrick for all your parts needs at 1 800-831-5730!  Thanks for being on the team Derrick and please try and keep your invoices straight for Libby!   We all know it's big trouble if you don't!

That's all for today - Keep Smiling!

Cheers,

Mike Winter

Worthington Ag Parts

Team

Tractor Parts, Combine Parts, and Implement parts providers to the Agricultural Community for over 43 years!

Unknown author - "When a team of dedicated individuals makes a commitment to act as one... The sky's the limit!"

A "team" comprises a group of people linked in a common purpose.  The important thing to remember is a group itself does not necessarily constitute a team.  Teams normally have members with complementary skills and generate synergy through a coordinated effort.  We have a great team at Worthington Ag Parts!  Let me share with you an example of our team! 

I'm sure all of you have heard about the epic tornado that decimated the town of Greensburg, Kansas.  One of the businesses hit the hardest was the John Deere dealership and all of its equipment.  There were millions of dollars of equipment wrecked from the storm.  The last time I checked we are in the business of buying equipment designated for salvage and rebuilding thus a business opportunity for us arose!

The primary insurance carrier for the equipment contacted us and also other major players in the U.S. asking if we would be interested in bidding the equipment during the week of May 7th.  Larry and Matt in Worthington were already circling the wagons because most of the equipment is late model inventory!  On May 12th an email was sent stating all bids were due by Monday, May 21st at 3 PM.  The email was read for the first time on the following Monday morning - that's when our "team" took over.  There was a lot of work to get done with a short amount of time to do it in.

Carl, Larry, Nick and Randy headed to Kansas on Tuesday morning, digital cameras in hand and bid purchase order forms in check.  Greg coordinated the forms with Patty at the Sioux Falls warehouse, the binders were assembled and the appraisal team was off.  Karen booked their rooms only 52 miles from Greensburg, which is remarkable considering the amount FEMA employees in the area and short notice.

The appraisal process started early on Wednesday morning.  The team, after a 13 hour day of appraising, faxed all the bid sheets and transferred the hundreds of photos to the corporate office at 9 PM that evening.  That's where the second half of the team took over.  Greg, Rashid, Steve and myself coordinated web site design, PDF compilation of photo's and bid detail until the "wee" hours of the morning. 

As of 9 AM the next morning, every piece of equipment, 91 items could be viewed on a private web page including four photos and major item detail of all good accessories left on the equipment.  An example of the private web page is shown to the left.  The appraisal crew finished up late morning on Thursday and headed for the corporate office.  Click here to see an example of one unit and the level of detail assembled on it.

At 8 AM Friday morning the crew was at the corporate office reviewing all of the equipment, minus Carl and Nick.  They were home briefing potential customers for the equipment at their locations.  All of our preferred "rebuild" customers were contacted and allowed to view the equipment in detail for bidding purposes on the preferred web site.  As the information changed, so did the website thanks to Greg.

A very comprehensive bid was placed on Monday by the deadline, only possible because of the work of our entire team.  If we don't win the bid it won't be because of the lack of due diligence done by our team, along with coordination from our re-builders. 

Thanks guys, you make me proud to call myself your teammate!

Happy Anniversary!

May 13th - Mike Sykes, Manager Iowa Falls, Iowa - He has been with he company for 22 years.  Thank you for your contribution to the team!

May 17th - Danny Weeks, Internet Parts Sales Specialist, Goldsboro, North Carolina - He has been with the company three years on this tour of duty!  The photo shows Danny training his son, next generation parts man!  Thank you for your contribution to the team!

May 22nd - Jamey Bearden, St. Johns, Michigan - Parts Specialist.  Jamey has been with the company seven years today.  Let's just say that he always has some interesting perspectives to share with you and brighten your day.  He can also take care of all your parts needs!  Thank you for your contribution to the team!

Happy Birthday!

May 20th - Tony Russell, Sikeston, Missouri - Assistant Manager.  Happy belated birthday sir!  Thank you for your contribution to the team!  Click here to wish Tony birthday wishes!  I wish you many more!

Cheers,

Mike Winter

President - Worthington Ag parts

Warranty Increase

Tractor Parts, Combine Parts and Implement Parts providers to the agricultural world. 

Worthington Ag Parts has been providing quality replacement parts for tractors, combines and implements for over 43 years!  Throughout this time we have provided a warranty for every part!  Used parts carry a 30 day warranty but if there was a problem with the part we replaced it many times past the 30 days.  After-market new parts have a 90 day warranty and our re-manufactured John Deere radial piston hydraulic pumps  produced at our own pump shop carry a 180 day warranty! 

The core value of Worthington Ag Parts is to provide a quality product to the customer at a fair price with service that exceeds the competition!  Bottom line is we stand behind our product.  In light of this, I'm pleased to announced we have gone to a One Year Limited Parts Warranty!  This applies to all parts in our product line - used, after-market new and re-manufactured!  If there is a warranty issue, we will replace or repair the defective parts within one year of the sales date after inspection.  Call one of our stores today at 1 888-845-8456 to learn more about our new "One Year Limited Parts Warranty".  You can read our "Limited Parts Warranty" on our web site - click here!

Returning parts for a reason besides a warranty issue - no problem we also have a 30 day "no" questions asked return policy.  You can return the part you purchased from us provided it's in the same condition within the first 30 days of purchase for no reason!  We will refund your money in the first 30 days! 

Happy Anniversary!

Al Klein - Store Manager Evansville, Wisconsin!  As of today May 11th, Al has been with Worthington Ag Parts for 15 years!  Al started in the yard in Audubon, IA relocated to the Worthington, MN store and worked his way up to the Manager of our Evansville store, shown in the photo! 

Thanks Al and Happy Anniversary!  Sit back and enjoy a "dip" for your loyalty to Worthington Ag Parts!

That's all for today - Keep Smiling!

Cheers,

Mike Winter

Product Line Additions - Never Ending

  Worthington Ag Parts sells used, after-market new and re-manufactured, tractor parts, combine parts and implement parts for all makes and models.  Parts are added to our product offering daily.  They range from after market new parts, re-manufactured parts or cataloged used parts.  Once the part is added to our inventory system, within 3 to 30 seconds it is available on our web site and at our counterman's finger tips at any of our stores around the world! 

It's Worthington's goal to offer the broadest Ag replacement parts in the industry.  We've added since the first of January 647 after market new parts to our offering of 24,445 parts and 2,307 cataloged used parts to our offering of 26,236.  All of these parts are available in our on-line catalog!

Here is an example of a few recently added items:

WN-1980169C - WN = Worthington New (After Market).

Hydro-stat Shaft, fits an International Combine, Model Number 1660, 1666, 1670, 1680, 1688, 2166, 2188, 2366, 2388!  Retail Price: $199.00.

WN-1989222C2 - WN = Worthington New (After Market). 

Stalk Roller Bearing - fits an International Corn Head, Model Number 1043, 1044, 1054, 1063, 1064, 1083.  Retail Price: $28.50.

WN-AIHCC60 - WN = Worthington New (After Market).  Unloader Elbow, - fits an International Combine Model Number 1660, 2144, 2166, 2188, 2344, 2366, 2377, 2388.  This is a heavy duty replacement with one inch thick ring, solid welded seam and includes hardware.  Retail Price: $520.00.

Happy Birthday!

Larry Frodermann, Director Of Operations, Worthington Ag Parts.  Larry has been with the company since December 1981.  In Larry's 26 years he's pretty much done it all from chasing down parts to running the largest store.  He now overseas five of our stores and is very instrumental in all of the strategic decisions made on behalf of the entire company!  Those of you that know Larry would agree, he's solid in Faith and Family!  On a personal note, I welcome Larry's experienced opinion on many topics.  It's really fun to agree to disagree with Mr. Larry (We all call him that out of respect!) 

To show you what kind of guy Larry is, in the photo he is taking a picture for his nephew of where the little boys flat "Stanley" has been to help him on the young man's social studies project!  He knew if he asked Uncle Larry that he could count on him for help!  We had to be sure and get photos of flat "Stanley" where we went on our last business trip to help Larry's little nephew!!!  It was actually a nice break from business.  Please join me in wishing Mr. Larry a Happy Birthday!  I wish you many more my friend.  To email Larry click here!

That's all for today!  Keep Smiling!

Cheers,

Mike Winter

Mother Nature's Power

Worthington Ag Parts - Tractor Parts, Combine Parts and Implement Parts providers to the agricultural world.

I spent the weekend on a business trip with two of my team members.  It was a good trip and as always the company was great.  On the flight home Sunday we got bounced around a bit and it was easy to tell from the unstable air that Mother Nature had been in a foul mood somewhere.

Oh how devastating she can be!  Your heart has to go out to the people of Greensburg, Kansas.  The catastrophic loss of the entire town by Friday's F5 tornado.    The tornado was over a mile wide and had winds of an estimated 250 MPH!  One minute sitting on the porch enjoying the evening and the next you are in the basement praying for your life.  Please keep the survivors and those who tragically lost their lives in your thoughts and prayers. 

It's a constant reminder of how the weather can have such a significant impact on our lives from canceling your golf game to burning up or drowning out the fall crop.  Australia is experiencing their worst drought in recorded history but one significant rain fall across the eastern side and the farmers are planting wheat.  Before the rain they were considering not planting at all.  Now they are optimistic that all be right with their growing season!  The same gamble for the farmer is no different from one side of the world to the other, plant the crops and let nature take it from there.  The final result rests in Mother Nature's hands - from bumper crop to no crop at all.  Let's pray Mother Nature is in a good mood for the next six months for everyone's good fortune.

Happy Birthday!

Please join me in wishing the following Worthington Ag Parts employees happy birthday!

Matt Berry - Sikeston, MO  May 3rd - Counter and General

Ryann Davis - Sikeston, MO May 5th - Office

Shelly Bird - Worthington, MN - May 5th - Office

Lyna Hoch - St. Johns, MI  May 7th - Office  It appears the crew in St. Johns was already celebrating Lyna's birthday when this photo was taken!

That's all for today!

Cheers,

Mike Winter

Export Division Visit

Worthington Ag Parts - Tractor Parts, Combine Parts and Implement Parts providers to the agricultural world.

One of the rules of writing a blog is you don't apologize for not "blogging" for awhile.  Things have been busy both personally and professionally thus the reason for nothing the last week!  I also like to write when I have business news to share.  In the future I may start adding personal opinion blogs but who cares? 

Last week I visited the Worthington Ag Parts' Export Division in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.  The location opened in September 2006.  This location has shipped containers of parts to 13 different countries around the World.  If you are looking for combine parts, tractor parts and implement parts we have the capabilities to ship them to you anywhere in the world!

Meet the staff:

Carl Vande Weerd - Export Division Manager.  Carl has been with Worthington Ag Parts since June 1st, 2004.  Carl joined the Worthington team after 30 plus years with Vande Weerd Combine Salvage in Rock Valley, IA as the owner operator.  He's a genius with combine and header parts!  Carl does his job the "Worthington Way" - the customer is always first and foremost! 

Colin Taylor - International Sales Manager.  Colin joined the Worthington Ag Parts team after 19 years with our sister company in Australia - Neil's Parts!  He's very familiar with the logistics of shipping tractor, combine and implement parts around the world as he coordinated shipments between Worthington Ag Parts and Neil's Parts of Australia.

Patty Dekker - Office Manager.  Patty is a graduate of Morningside College with a degree in Business Administration - Finance Emphasis with an Accounting Minor.  She grew up on a farm outside Worthington, MN.  She definitely knows the difference between a tractor and a combine.  She can drive them too! 

Gary Bosch - Warehouse Foreman. Gary joined Worthington Ag Parts in December of 2006.  He is a former dairy farmer in the Sioux Falls area.  I'm pretty sure Gary knows the difference between a tractor and combine too!  After looking at the warehouse last week, I'm sure his farm is neat and organized because the facility looked great!  Welcome to the team Gary!

Happy Birthday!

Carl Vande Weerd - Export Division, Sioux Falls, SD.  Today is Carl's birthday!  Please join me in wishing him many more!

Happy Anniversary!

Nick Moeller - Watertown, South Dakota - Manager.  Nick has been with the company for 21 years on April 28th! 

Gary Wylde - Rebuild Shop - Sikeston, MO.  Gary has been with the company for 12 years today, May 1st!  Gary joined the rebuild hydraulic pump shop after tearing down tractors at the Sikeston store!  He knows his way around a tractor! 

Did you know...

Worthington Ag Parts has a "sister" company called Worthington Aviation - a leading distributor of aviation parts, jet repair and jet sales!  You can check out their website with a "click here"!

Cheers,

Mike Winter