The benefit of a family owned manufacturing business moving into its second generation becomes evident when you witness the growth of Central West NSW machinery maker, Davimac.
Established in 1982 by David McNab, Davimac had already been manufacturing quality farm machinery for 30 years when son Shannon McNab came on board in 2001.
Under David McNab’s reign the business developed a solid reputation for quality and service, while remaining highly competitive in the marketplace.
David groomed his son Shannon, at the age of 16, into being a major asset for future development of the firm. He was trained from the ground up as a fitter and machinist.
And as part of that training, Shannon sought innovative ways to design farm machinery to work more efficiently with current farming methods. The Davimac future was on a strong footing.
Davimac’s single axle chaser bins were a big hit among customers, a product line that was perfected over 15 years.
But the single axle limited the build to a 25 tonnes capacity and buyers that wanted to upscale kept asking Davimac for a bigger haul.
Davimac met that demand in time for harvest 2012, releasing its first dual axle models with 25 and 35-tonnes capacities.
The extended range of Davimac bins was proving to be very popular.
This was due to the heavy-duty build, and quality design that the McNab’s had perfected, and importantly to buyers they managed to offer these models at the same price as the lighter-weight bins sold by several competitors.
It was in 2012 that Davimac culminated on their run-away 30 per cent sales growth in each of the past four years and appointed more distributors to sell their product range.
And by this time, talks with Agrowplow, a fellow NSW based manufacturer of seed drills had come to fruition with Davimac taking over the badge in 2013.
Davimac already had its own line of direct drills, disc planters, and pasture seeders and saw Agrowplow’s models as the perfect addition.
Shannon McNab said at the time, “Agrowplow was a good name and product and that Davimac planned to expand the reach of the product in Australia and overseas.”
“Davimac’s growth has been based on traditional solid Australian engineering and construction, instilled in models that are straightforward and reliable to operate.”
“Our approach has been to grow the buyer base and sales network, now covering five eastern states, at a manageable pace to maintain quality support for equipment and customers.”
Agrowplow already distilled into its product line a long and innovative heritage closely allied to true conservation farming concepts and rugged durability in the build.
Davimac was about to take all of that a step further.
The result of Davimac’s driving force is the development of the Agrowplow AD730 seed drill.
Agrowplow principal Shannon McNab and his team began work on the AD730 in late 2017.
The aim was to develop a seed drill with a more rugged design and increased accuracy in product metering, suitable for medium to large-scale farms.
The Agrowplow team worked closely with growers and contractors from across the country to develop the AD730 drill to meet the demands of sowing cereal crops and to establish and restoring pasture.
Shannon says, “The AD730 has already proven itself in the paddock, sowing wheat in NSW’s Central West. Early users have praised its accuracy, and durability, and are impressed with how easy it is to direct drill into hard dry soils.”
A number of configurations are available for the AD730 including 18 and 22-rows with 225mm (9-inch) spacings or 20, 24 or 28 rows at 175mm (7-inch) spacings. It combines four tool bars and a robust 100x100x9mm (4x4x.35-in) RHS welded frame.
The 2160-litre capacity of the two hoppers means you can keep sowing for longer, and the dog clutch system engages when lowered and disengages when raised, so there is one less worry when turning while in work.
The AD730 has high flotation tyres, while the 550mm (22-inch) underframe clearance and heavy-duty spring release tines provide maximum trash handling capability.
Shaft rotator indicators provide operators with visual assurance the seed metering system is functioning, and windows in the front of the seed boxes help ensure simple cleaning and calibration.
There is range of optional functions that can be added to increase the versatility of the drill.
These include a disc undercarriage, small seeds box, coulters, press wheels, spring harrows, rubber tyre rollers and trailing flexi-rollers.
With the AD730, it has built on the success of previous Agrowplow models, offering growers the benefits of 30 plus years of developing products for sustainable agriculture.
With a design that melds tradition with current planting technology and practicality, the AD730 is a seed drill that can get the job done, and at a price that offers real value.
With its range of successful locally manufactured products, Davimac has also built its name in the area of back-up service.
To achieve this, Davimac introduced a state-of-the-art ordering system to their dealer network with the emphasis on a local service point.
Shannon McNab had this to say, “We really pride ourselves on the back-up service we provide. If a customer comes back with an issue, then we’re always quick to respond and I think being fully Australian owned and made has a lot to do with that.
“We work on a three- to four-week lead time on machinery orders, which is only possible because we manufacture our products locally.”
Davimac also has a unique visual quoting system, that assists when ordering.
A dealer can easily fit out a machine on the computer, right in front of the customer, by building in options on a graphic simulation.
This ensures customers will get the perfect build for their unique operation.
For more information on the range, or to become a dealer for Davimac farm machinery, call 02 6366 8584, or see more at: www.davimac.com.au
Tracks – to reduce soil compaction
Don’t ask how they did it, but during a massive surge in manufacturing growth, Davimac added Vimcor track undercarriages to their production line in 2015 and become the first Australian manufacturer to design, build and fabricate a rubber track system for chaser bins.
With a track width of 914mm (36-inches) and a ground contact length over 3m, the Davimac track bins significantly increase flotation, and reduce ground pressure and soil compaction while carrying up to 35-tonnes of grain.
Tracks are supplied optionally at 2.56 or 3.0m centres for ready compatibility with popular tramlining and systems farming operations. Each track is mounted on four-track end wheels and supported by eight-track mid wheels.
Track tension is maintained by an inbuilt hydraulic system boasting an easy to check pressure gauge and pressure release system for maintenance.
Adding further to the range in 2017 are hub mount tracks, that can be fitted to chaser bins, cane bins and trailers, another first for local manufacturing.
And the benefits of these tracks to significantly reduce soil compaction and increase flotation, resulting in improved yields and wider harvest windows in wet conditions, has been well recognised, especially in Western Australia.
The transferrable hub mount tracks allow growers to have tracks on a chaser bin during harvest and then transfer them to an air seeder for planting.
Using basic tools usually at hand, and a forklift or front-end loader, the Vimcor tracks are easily transferred from one implement to another in about half an hour.
The tracks are readily fitted to equipment with 10 or 12 stud hubs with appropriate clearance.
They have a strong reinforced frame with a comparably high handling capability of up to 35-tonnes. Each track is mounted on two track-end wheels and supported by two track mid-wheels with width options of 610 to 914mm (24 or 36-inches).
Current owners of this track system are impressed with how well track undercarriages turn and how little soil disturbance there is. This is due to the very large 4.16sq.m track footprint 914mm (36-inch) track undercarriage that greatly reduces soil pressure.
The Vimcor Hub Mount Tracks are on display at: http://vimcor.com.au/ or call now for more information on tel: 02 6366 8584 or email sales@vimcor.com.au
