This is an article about us published in a recent edition of the Ag Trader in 2012
Opportunity for high quality and low price
By Nick Tucker
Although the payout for the coming season is looking good at this stage, there’s no doubt that recent years have provided a few harsh lessons on keeping a close eye on budgets and costs under control.
One area that’s quick to come under the spotlight when incomes drop is machinery, but there’s a balance to be found between cost-cutting and maintaining a farm infrastructure that’s still functional and efficient. However, with the economy’s recovery from recession still far from over, many dairy producers could be forgiven for sacrificing quality for a lower price, or holding onto that worn-out piece of equipment for another year or two.
Fortunately, for those needing a new feed-out wagon or tip trailer, there’s a company offering farmers nationwide the opportunity to buy top quality equipment at a genuine knock-down price.
Based in the Waikato town of Matamata, Uni Engineering has cut out the middle-man and been supplying high quality trailers and feed-out wagons direct to the farmer for the last seven years. The result is a product price that’s typically 20-25 percent lower, but without having to sacrifice anything in terms of material or build quality.
“Our slogan is ‘quality made affordable’, but I’ll never sacrifice quality for the sake of price,” Uni Engineering’s owner, Harold Eggink, explains. “Everything is made here in the Waikato, so we have complete control over quality, and because we’re dealing direct with our customers, we know exactly what they want.
“Our biggest challenge has always been convincing people that our machinery is just as good, if not better, than the competition, despite the lower price. That’s why it’s so important for farmers to understand how we achieve the prices we do, and it’s not by cutting corners.”
Since making the decision to sell direct, Eggink hasn’t looked back, delivering his machinery to customers as far afield as Kaitaia and Invercargill. Hydraulic tip trailers range from 3 tonne to 14 tonne in capacity (table 1), with four different feed-out wagons available, from the smallest 10-12 cubic metre capacity unit to the range-topping 18-21 cubic metre model.
Standard features on all feed-out wagons include isolated tandem axles, high quality components throughout and a chassis made from fully galvanised steel, welded not bolted, then undercoated and painted. Everything is made to last, and made to withstand typical use on a Kiwi farm.
“There’s no point making a 10 tonne trailer that falls apart or breaks the moment it’s overloaded -that’s just no use to the average New Zealand farmer,” states Eggink. “I’m not recommending customers exceed the rated loading, but I was a farmer myself and I know what happens.
“So we build everything to withstand the treatment it’s likely to get on a real farm under real farming conditions, and that means it’s got to take the knocks and keep working year after year.”
According to Eggink, in some cases Uni Engineering’s machinery is 25 percent cheaper than equivalent quality items made by other manufacturers. It’s a massive saving, but one that he’s more than happy to pass on to the customer.
“I’d rather make sure my customers get a great deal, can afford to buy machinery from me, and don’t have to compromise on quality. They’re happy, I’m happy and they keep coming back, so we must be doing something right.”
Typical of Uni Engineering’s customers are Craig and Emma Burnell, who, along with other family members, milk 400 mixed breed cows near Levin. Burnell Holdings bought a tip trailer from Uni Engineering around seven years ago, and went back to Eggink to purchase a feed-out wagon in 2007.
“That trailer’s done a lot of work, been borrowed time and again, even by contractors, and it’s still going well,” Craig Burnell states. “So when we were looking for a feed-out wagon – and I knew that Harold made them – I gave him a call.
“They had a ten cubic metre wagon available from a customer who’d decided he wanted a bigger one, so we bought it.”
With 160ha, plus a 70ha run-off block 10km away shared with his brother, the wagon gets plenty of work on differing terrains, from muddy paddocks and tracks to sand country run-off and lots of roadwork in between.
“The wagon’s still in good condition, and we’re only looking to replace it now because we’re changing a few things around on the farm. We feed maize in the spring, grass silage during the summer and a mix of silage and hay in the winter,” he adds.
But it’s Uni Engineering’s customer support, as much as the quality of the machinery, that has impressed Burnell.
“Harold’s been brilliant, he’s just really good to deal with. When you phone, you pretty much always get to speak to the boss, and there isn’t anything he wouldn’t do to help sort you out.”
The robustness of Uni Engineering’s products is also winning favour within the earth moving industry. Having just bought their first trailer from Eggink around five months ago, Pukekohe-based Cuthbert Earthmovers has already ordered a second to be ready in time for the start of their main season in October.
According to Nigel Cuthbert, Eggink went out of his way to make sure they got the trailer they needed. In addition to lining the wooden deck with 3mm steel plate, the chassis was also strengthened to make sure it withstood the extra strains of constant heavy earth moving.
“We do a lot of work on farms, such as dams, raceways and any type of earthmoving, and we needed a heavy duty eight tonne tip trailer for where trucks won’t work or can’t access,” he explains. “We looked at what was available, and the Uni Engineering trailer really stood out, with a good heavy duty chassis design.
“The trailer’s built really well, the wide profile tyres are great and we’ve not had to worry about a single thing – we just stuck it on the back of the tractor and away we went. They listened to what we needed, beefed it up at no extra cost, and we’ve already got a second one on order.”
One area that’s quick to come under the spotlight when incomes drop is machinery, but there’s a balance to be found between cost-cutting and maintaining a farm infrastructure that’s still functional and efficient. However, with the economy’s recovery from recession still far from over, many dairy producers could be forgiven for sacrificing quality for a lower price, or holding onto that worn-out piece of equipment for another year or two.
Fortunately, for those needing a new feed-out wagon or tip trailer, there’s a company offering farmers nationwide the opportunity to buy top quality equipment at a genuine knock-down price.
Based in the Waikato town of Matamata, Uni Engineering has cut out the middle-man and been supplying high quality trailers and feed-out wagons direct to the farmer for the last seven years. The result is a product price that’s typically 20-25 percent lower, but without having to sacrifice anything in terms of material or build quality.
“Our slogan is ‘quality made affordable’, but I’ll never sacrifice quality for the sake of price,” Uni Engineering’s owner, Harold Eggink, explains. “Everything is made here in the Waikato, so we have complete control over quality, and because we’re dealing direct with our customers, we know exactly what they want.
“Our biggest challenge has always been convincing people that our machinery is just as good, if not better, than the competition, despite the lower price. That’s why it’s so important for farmers to understand how we achieve the prices we do, and it’s not by cutting corners.”
Since making the decision to sell direct, Eggink hasn’t looked back, delivering his machinery to customers as far afield as Kaitaia and Invercargill. Hydraulic tip trailers range from 3 tonne to 14 tonne in capacity (table 1), with four different feed-out wagons available, from the smallest 10-12 cubic metre capacity unit to the range-topping 18-21 cubic metre model.
Standard features on all feed-out wagons include isolated tandem axles, high quality components throughout and a chassis made from fully galvanised steel, welded not bolted, then undercoated and painted. Everything is made to last, and made to withstand typical use on a Kiwi farm.
“There’s no point making a 10 tonne trailer that falls apart or breaks the moment it’s overloaded -that’s just no use to the average New Zealand farmer,” states Eggink. “I’m not recommending customers exceed the rated loading, but I was a farmer myself and I know what happens.
“So we build everything to withstand the treatment it’s likely to get on a real farm under real farming conditions, and that means it’s got to take the knocks and keep working year after year.”
According to Eggink, in some cases Uni Engineering’s machinery is 25 percent cheaper than equivalent quality items made by other manufacturers. It’s a massive saving, but one that he’s more than happy to pass on to the customer.
“I’d rather make sure my customers get a great deal, can afford to buy machinery from me, and don’t have to compromise on quality. They’re happy, I’m happy and they keep coming back, so we must be doing something right.”
Typical of Uni Engineering’s customers are Craig and Emma Burnell, who, along with other family members, milk 400 mixed breed cows near Levin. Burnell Holdings bought a tip trailer from Uni Engineering around seven years ago, and went back to Eggink to purchase a feed-out wagon in 2007.
“That trailer’s done a lot of work, been borrowed time and again, even by contractors, and it’s still going well,” Craig Burnell states. “So when we were looking for a feed-out wagon – and I knew that Harold made them – I gave him a call.
“They had a ten cubic metre wagon available from a customer who’d decided he wanted a bigger one, so we bought it.”
With 160ha, plus a 70ha run-off block 10km away shared with his brother, the wagon gets plenty of work on differing terrains, from muddy paddocks and tracks to sand country run-off and lots of roadwork in between.
“The wagon’s still in good condition, and we’re only looking to replace it now because we’re changing a few things around on the farm. We feed maize in the spring, grass silage during the summer and a mix of silage and hay in the winter,” he adds.
But it’s Uni Engineering’s customer support, as much as the quality of the machinery, that has impressed Burnell.
“Harold’s been brilliant, he’s just really good to deal with. When you phone, you pretty much always get to speak to the boss, and there isn’t anything he wouldn’t do to help sort you out.”
The robustness of Uni Engineering’s products is also winning favour within the earth moving industry. Having just bought their first trailer from Eggink around five months ago, Pukekohe-based Cuthbert Earthmovers has already ordered a second to be ready in time for the start of their main season in October.
According to Nigel Cuthbert, Eggink went out of his way to make sure they got the trailer they needed. In addition to lining the wooden deck with 3mm steel plate, the chassis was also strengthened to make sure it withstood the extra strains of constant heavy earth moving.
“We do a lot of work on farms, such as dams, raceways and any type of earthmoving, and we needed a heavy duty eight tonne tip trailer for where trucks won’t work or can’t access,” he explains. “We looked at what was available, and the Uni Engineering trailer really stood out, with a good heavy duty chassis design.
“The trailer’s built really well, the wide profile tyres are great and we’ve not had to worry about a single thing – we just stuck it on the back of the tractor and away we went. They listened to what we needed, beefed it up at no extra cost, and we’ve already got a second one on order.”
