Great Plains Mfg. Plains Pride | Winter 2017

PLAINS PRIDEWinter2017

A Newsletter Published for the Employees of Great Plains Manufacturing

Inside This Issue:

APPLEQUIST HONORED AS
NO-TILL LEGEND

page 5

LEAN IN ACTION

page 6

LOOKING BACK AT THE
2016 CHRISTMAS PARTY

page 8

LAND PRIDE PREPS FOR
KUBOTA ORANGE DAYS

page 11

AG DIVISION RELEASES
NEW COMMERCIAL

page 14

UKRAINE CELEBRATES
GRAND OPENING | page 16

Great Plains Ukraine Director Andriy
Vorobyov addresses the audience
following a ribbon-cutting at the new
Great PlainWsinfatecril2it0y17in| UPLkAraINinSe.PRIDE | 1

PRESIDENT’S LETTER

Welcome to 2017! We are off to a strong to customer issues quickly and fully. Both divisions have evolved
start, with an improving order level in the their sales programs and are receiving positive feedback from our
GP Ag Division and a continuing strong dealers, allowing us to fuel growth. Emphasis continues on ample
order level in the Land Pride Division. We training opportunities for our dealers and taking our story direct to
have a well-defined set of goals we are end user customers.
working to achieve this year. Our goals
are for Great Plains Manufacturing, but Human Resource Function: Our HR team is leading our organiza-
align well with the Kubota organization. tion to document individual employee’s skills, grow our ability to
We share the following broad goals: provide training, and coordinating with Kubota to utilize training
offerings they have.
Product Development: Develop products
that speak to our customers’ hearts. Each Throughout the company we must remember that it is safety first.
division has an established product de- There has been an increase in the number of incidents in 2017.
velopment plan, not just for 2017, but for While most remain minor, our goal continues to be ZERO incidents.
many years forward. Our people have worked hard to listen to the Take all precautions to work safely.
voice of the customer and incorporate their needs into our product
planning. This is a flexible plan, and if customer needs change, we We are pleased that our manufacturing facilities are seeing a high-
will adapt our plan. er level of production as our backlog has grown. While we work to
increase staffing, there is a significant amount of overtime being
Manufacturing Excellence: Quality, cost, and delivery (QCD) are worked. Thank you for responding to the increased customer de-
the ongoing focus for all manufacturing facilities. Using a “plan, mand with such commitment.
do, check, act” (PDCA) philosophy to drive improvements is core
to all Kubota facilities, and we are growing in our ability to do the
same. Competition is fierce. Operational excellence is key to both
providing a competitive product and expanding our ability to pro-
duce more product with the existing infrastructure.

Customer First Sales and Service Focus: We must ensure that our Linda Salem
sales policies align with our dealer’s needs and that we respond Great Plains Manufacturing President

KUBOTA MOVES TO TEXAS

By Leslie Louden, Assistant Director, Kubota Human Resources

On December 19th, our first relocation group, consisting of about
130 corporate employees previously housed in the KCC and Central
Office buildings in Fort Worth, Texas, moved into the new Grape-
vine corporate office. Although temperatures in Grapevine and
Dallas were below 40 degrees at times (almost freezing!), move-in
day was very exciting and productive.

Employees toured the corporate office, which contains the main isting trees that were native to the site were retained during con-
building as well as the R&D building, and were introduced to the struction. The effluent from the buildings is collected and treated
following features: 35 conference rooms; cafeteria with kitch- with Kubota’s proprietary technology “membrane” (the sum of
en; five coffee stations; fitness room; wellness room; garden with these systems provide a “net zero” system for water use).
stream; and membrane and rain irrigation system.
Additionally, all of the materials used in the project were selected
Employees also learned about the building’s sustainability features based upon recycling content, with over 75% made from recycled
and specific ways the building was designed to qualify for the LEED material. The construction of the project contained less than 10%
Gold Certification, as well as reflect our ‘For Earth, For Life’ values. of materials going to a sanitary waste facility—90% of all other ma-
terials were recycled.
The corporate office has a “net zero” system for water use, which
is based on the following features. The building design collects all Kubota team members from Torrance and Southeast relocated on
rainwater and uses it for irrigation as well as supplemental forti- January 9th, and KCC employees moved in on January 23rd. PP
fication of the river between the R&D and office buildings. All ex-

2 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

CORPORATE NEWS

Great Plains Manufacturing donated a record 3,318 toys to Saint Francis Community Services during this year’s Toys From The Heart campaign.

TOYS FROM THE HEART CAMPAIGN FIRST GP TOY RUN A BIG SUCCESS

The 2016 Toys From The Heart campaign marked the best year The Great Plains Toy Run was held October 29, 2016, to benefit Toys
Great Plains has had to date! This year, Great Plains Manufacturing From The Heart. Participants purchased score sheets and collected
employees donated over $34,000 in cash and toy donations. As playing cards at each stop on the route, which included the Ells-
a result, a total of 3,318 toys valued at over $51,000 were donated worth, Abilene, and Assaria plants. Score sheets were then turned
to the children of Saint Francis Community Services. Funds were in at the corporate office in Salina. Josh Reich, S1 Welding Manag-
raised through an employee golf tournament, toy run, soup lunch, er, won the $250 best poker hand and a “Stars and Stripes” welding
chili cook-off, apparel sales, raffle ticket sales, payroll deductions, helmet. He donated his $250 to Toys From The Heart. The event
and cash donations. Thank you to everyone for helping make this raised a total of $1,102.00 and a table full of toys. Thanks to every-
Christmas special for so many children! PP one who volunteered and participated in the Toy Run! PP

STIRRING UP THE COMPETITION

In November, Salina employees organized the “Great Plains Chili
Cook-Off” to raise money for Toys From The Heart. To stir up friend-
ly competition, three of the cooks represented K-State and three

represented KU. During lunch,
employees tasted each chili, then
voted by donating $5.00 for a bowl
of their favorite chili. The chili
that received the most donations
was declared the winner.

Congratulations to Chris Mar- Randy Brown, driver for Great Plains Trucking, checks in at the Abilene
shall, corporate receptionist (pic- plant during the 2016 Great Plains Toy Run in October.
tured, left), who won the competi-
tion representing the K-State fans.
Many thanks to competitors John
Quinley, Land Pride president,
Chris Soto, Land Pride whole-
goods coordinator, Don Wendt,
director of supply chain, Dwight
Conley, Great Plains multimedia
specialist, and David Disberger, vice president of engineering, as
well as everyone who participated in this fun event! PP

Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 3

CORPORATE NEWS

RECOGNIZING
OUR OWN

4th Quarter Promotions

10/3/16 A 5'x6' Kubota Baler rolls off the S5 assembly line. Great Plains is completing assembly on 129 units this year.
Mitch Bell,
Assembly Technician BUILDING BALERS AT S5

10/5/16 Great Plains and Kubota are collaborating on the
Kassy Lapaille, final assembly of 5'x6' Balers. Built in Italy, these
Spray Painter units are too big to fit in containers when fully
assembled, so the main pieces are built overseas,
10/31/16 then shipped to Salina. Parts needed to complete
Jennifer Simoneau, the units, including doors, options, and update
Accounting Clerk II kits, are shipped in a separate container, and in-
stallation is completed in Salina. Balers are then
11/7/16 trucked from Salina to Kubota dealers around the
Dustin Lyman, country. This year, S5 is assembling 129 units, with
Production Machinist hopes to increase that number next year. PP

12/5/16 TIPTON & SALINA PLANTS
Jeremy Anderson, EARN SAFETY AWARDS
T&D B Person
Congratulations to the Tipton and Salina plants!
12/5/16 They each received 2016 Great Plains Safety
Taylor Frank, Awards in recognition of their conscientious ef-
Parts Shipper forts in maintaining excellence in safety. In Jan-
uary, Great Plains Ag Division President Marc
12/8/16 Gallagher presented Kent Hake, Tipton plant man-
Shane Hall, ager, with Zero Accident Safety Awards for 2015
Paint Technician and 2016, to honor Tipton’s two consecutive inci-
dent-free years. Gallagher also presented Salina 1
12/14/16 plant manager Mike Eberwein with a 2016 Safety
Scott Wiggins, Award to recognize the lowest incident rate per
Spray Painter hours worked in 2016. Keep up the great work! PP

12/19/16 TOP: Tipton Plant Manager Kent Hake accepts 2015 and
Anthony Falk, 2016 Safety Awards from Ag Division President Marc
Parts Lead Gallagher. BOTTOM: Gallagher presents S1 Plant Manag-
er Mike Eberwein with a 2016 Safety Award.
12/19/16
Jennie Overstreet,
IT Operations
Support Specialist

12/20/16
Dennis Carlson,
Shipping Supervisor

4 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

CORPORATE NEWS

APPLEQUIST HONORED AS A NO-TILL LEGEND

Great Plains Founder Roy Applequist has been in the book From Maverick to Mainstream: A
named a North American No-Till Legend by the History of No-Till Farming.
editors of No-Till Farmer magazine.
“Roy was among a number of shortline manu-
The editors of No-Till Farmer recognized 25 facturers in the early 1980s who saw the need
No-Till Legends during the National No-Tillage for designing and developing equipment specif-
Conference, held January 10-13 in St. Louis, for ically for the no-till market,” said Frank Lessiter,
their contributions to the growth of no-till from the founder of No-Till Farmer and Lessiter Me-
3.2 million acres in 1972 to nearly 100 million dia.
acres this year. Honorees include 25 growers,
educators, or suppliers from 15 different states. “Among the early day no-till equipment suppli-
ers, Great Plains has played a major role in the
All of the legends have an extensive list of ac- development of the no-till market,” Lessiter said.
complishments in the reduced tillage field. Each
of the honorees will be featured later this spring Congratulations to Roy! PP

YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP CHALLENGE
HOSTED AT GREAT PLAINS CONFERENCE CENTER

To introduce local high school students to the Great Plains founder Roy Applequist addressed Photo by the Salina Journal
idea of entrepreneurship, the Salina Area Cham- students following the competition. He shared
ber of Commerce held the inaugural Youth En- his advice for what it takes to become a suc-
trepreneurship Challenge at Great Plains Manu- cessful entrepreneur.
facturing on December 1, 2016.
Applequist’s tips included working hard and
A total of 89 students on 62 teams competed resting on weekends, learning from experi-
in the event. Each student prepared a written enced industry experts, and becoming knowl-
executive summary, presented a business ele- edgeable about all aspects of the business.
vator pitch, and gave a five-minute formal pre-
sentation. Projects were judged by local entre- “The bottom line is: if you delight your custom-
preneurs, partners, and teachers. Winners won ers with outstanding products or services, you
cash prizes and advanced to the state contest. will have a good chance of success,” he said. PP

Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 5

LEAN IN ACTION | CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT AROUND THE COMPANY

KAIZANIMALS KUBOTA 5-GEN TRAINING

These employees have Great Plains has been invited to participate of America, Kubota Industrial Equipment,
demonstrated commitment in Kubota’s 5-Gen training, which will be and Kverneland Group.
to continuous improvement held in Gainesville, Georgia, each quarter.
through participation Upon returning to Kansas, Koenig and
in multiple lean events Salina plant manager Mike Eberwein and Eberwein have been able to use 5-Gen tools
during 2016 and 2017: Lean Team manager Joe Koenig were the to drive productivity improvements at
first Great Plains employees to attend the Great Plains facilities.
30 Events: eight-day training session in November.
Abilene plant manager Dana Dulohery and
Shawn Kvasnicka, S1 Assembly They participated in classroom lectures, as Abilene assembly manager John Markby
well as hands-on training, alongside ten are attending the February session. PP
24 Events: other people from Kubota Manufacturing

Stephanie Kidd, S1 Assembly OFFICE LEAN

22 Events: A group of corporate office employees recently participated in lean training in Salina.
Unlike previous groups, this session took a more hands-on approach. Four cross-func-
Camron Bacon, S1 Assembly tional teams were formed, and each chose a project to improve a process in the office.
Matt Griffiths, S1 Assembly They were introduced to problem-solving techniques to help them identify and eliminate
Justin Matson, S1 Assembly waste. Training concluded with each team presenting their learning experience and im-
Blaine Radke, S1 Machine Shop provement results to management. PP
Thomas Withrow, S1 Assembly
LEAN TEAM WELCOMES
13 Events: FIRST QUARTER INTERNS

Justin Lindquist, S1 Assembly Two new lean interns have been selected for the
first quarter of 2017. Steve Hook, quality assurance
11 Events: lead in Ellsworth, and Jeremy Howze, outside ship-
per in Kipp, started the training in January.
Linda Krause, S1 Assembly
Each intern is looking forward to learning new sys-
10 Events: tems to take back to their facilities.

Pat Duddy, S1 Assembly “The lean internship looks like a great opportunity
David Swetson, S1 Assembly to learn and become more involved in the various
lean initiatives that are progressing,” said Hook. “I
9 Events: hope to bring the knowledge I gain back to the Ells-
worth plant and aid in any facet that I can.”
Steve Cochran, Lean Team
Adam Daleiden, S5 Assembly “I have a passion to support all colleagues in build-
ing a working environment that will be smoother
8 Events: and less demanding on both their physical and
mental health,” Howze said.
Brad Henne, S2 Assembly
Scott Johnston, S1 Assembly Two new lean interns are selected each quarter. If
Fred Kidd, S1 Assembly you’re interested in participating, be sure to watch
Tim Newman, S1 Assembly for future postings and apply! PP

7 Events: TOP: Steve Hook, Ellsworth quality assurance lead
BOTTOM: Jeremy Howze, Kipp outside shipper
Patric Begnoche, Abilene Welding

6 Events:

Matt Cross, S1 Assembly
Curtis Mar, S1 Assembly Forklift
Christopher Merry, S1 Assembly
Loren Miller, S1 Assembly
Jeremy Polk, S1 Assembly
Nathaniel Polly, S1 Assembly

6 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

ELLSWORTH SUCCESS STORIES | LEAN IN ACTION

Shawn Davis, material handler Reuven David, fabrication operator

ELLSWORTH SHIPPING ELLSWORTH FABRICATION

In the winter, the main roll-up door in E1 Assembly has to remain In the E1 fab shop, operator Reuven David noticed quite a bit of re-
closed to help keep the shop warmer. Forklifts, however, still need work was being done on press brake parts. The parts were going to
to go in and out to move parts and whole goods. The door opens the robots in welding and needed to be consistent each time they
slowly, so it was often left open while a material handler went out- were made. A part that was only 0.5° off would be unusable. To help
side. This caused the shop to drop in temperature, not only mak- solve the problem, David requested a set of “go” and “no-go” gaug-
ing it uncomfortable, but also slowing down the curing process on es for the problematic parts. The press brake operator uses these
painted parts. To eliminate this problem, material handler Shawn gauges to quickly identify if a part is good or bad. If the part fits in
Davis suggested getting a door that operated faster. A quick open- the gauge, it’s good, and if it does not fit, it’s bad. Since their imple-
ing fabric outer door with a motion sensor was installed, and now mentation, the gauges have prevented many parts from needing to
the door remains closed for longer periods of time. The shop now be reworked and saved much operator time. PP
remains warmer and painted parts cure much more quickly. PP

Casey Morgan, electrician Kim Schneider, quality assurance inspector

ELLSWORTH WELDING ELLSWORTH ASSEMBLY

Electrician Casey Morgan noticed that the staging area for weld- To identify parts and bundles in E1 shipping, wired Tyvek tags are
ing was cluttered and unorganized. Dozens of pallets with D-level used to label items. Unfortunately, the tags can become weathered
parts were congested into the same area, which made pulling jobs and unreadable after they have been outside for a few months. To
very time consuming. Several pallets had to be moved to get to solve the problem, quality assurance inspector Kim Schneider sug-
needed parts, and then put back. To help organize the area, Morgan gested using self-laminating tags. The new tags last much longer
installed a pallet rack to keep the pallets of parts in. All of the pal- and greatly assist in identifying items that need to be shipped. PP
lets are now stored off the floor, and material handlers can get to
the needed parts quickly and easily. So much space was saved that
the jig fixture repair bay was able to be relocated into the area. PP

Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 7

LOOKING BACK: CHRISTMAS ON THE FARM

Great Plains Celebrates

CHRISTMAS ON THE FARM

Roy Applequist presents a bag of The Great Plains Christmas Party, “Christ- farm. YouTube sensa-
prizes to Randy Jones, engineering mas on the Farm,” was held Saturday, De- tions the Peterson Farm
systems administrator. cember 3, 2016, at Salina’s Bicentennial Cen- Bros from Assaria, Kansas,
ter. Festivities kicked off in Heritage Hall at provided entertainment.
5 p.m., where guests enjoyed hors dʼoeuvres, They told stories about
live music, and a photo booth. On display life on their farm and
were an antique John Deere tractor, Apple- performed a few of their hit parody songs.
quist family farm truck, and modern-day Several prizes were given away, and each
Kubota equipment. Guests then moved to winner took home a toy and a stuffed ani-
the arena for dinner, where the evening’s mal. Thanks to all who attended for making
program centered on traditional life on the it a fun evening! PP

Students from St. John’s Military School Great Plains Trucking President Brett Weis
serve dinner to Great Plains employees. recognizes driver Rick Conner with a One
Million Mile Achievement Award.

Vice President of Engineering David The Peterson Farm Bros, (pictured from left to right) Kendal, Nathan, and Greg, sing along
Disberger leads the evening prayer. with one of their farming parody videos during the evening’s program.

8 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

Congratulations

GRAND PRIZE WINNERS!

WELLNESS TRIP: CARIBBEAN CRUISE

Guests enjoyed visiting over hors d’oeuvres during the pre-party social. Many also took advantage
of free portraits at the barn door photo booth.

CHELSEY WILSON

ABILENE SHIPPING

UNITED WAY PRIZE: DISNEY WORLD

Advertising Manager Jayme Baker mans the
photo booth during the pre-party.

The Peterson family sings Christmas carols JOHN WEIGLE
during the pre-party. Pictured left to right are
Greg, Kendal, David, Laura, and Nathan. ABILENE FABRICATION

GRAND PRIZE: JAMAICA VACATION

Guests mingle among various pieces of equipment on display in Heritage Hall at the Salina TONY LAGO
Bicentennial Center.
ELLSWORTH MAINTENANCE

Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 9

FACILITY UPDATES

Abilene’s paint line was upgraded to a new, 16-gun I-Control system in October. The new system has greatly enhanced paint quality and coverage.

PAINT UPGRADES IN ABILENE NEW MAKE-UP AIR UNIT IN KIPP

In October, Abilene’s powder paint line was upgraded. A new 16- In December, the final phase to the air balancing project was
gun I-Control system was installed to replace the old 20-gun Ac- completed at Kipp. An additional 20,000 CFM, 1,760,000 BTU,
cu-Spray System. The new system reads parts and tracks hori- make-up air unit was added to the north end of the facility to be
zontally as well as moving vertically. This allows for fewer guns used in conjunction with the paint booth. When the paint booth
in the booth and allows for more coverage over a broad range of is running, the unit adds additional incoming air to the facility
applications. to take care of the negative air problem. An added bonus: it’s
heated air for the winter and creates good air flow in the plant
The new system also features modular light curtains that scan for the summer. Everyone involved should pat themselves on
parts to determine height, depth and/or length, allowing multi- the back for making this project a success! PP
ple zones for the triggering of the spray guns. The Abilene paint-
ers have enjoyed the upgrades and have noticed improvements
in paint quality. With I-Control, painters have the ability to make
adjustments on the fly to ensure each piece gets the proper paint
coverage.

Abilene also replaced their old powder pumps with a new 90° pow-
der pump. This allows them to deliver more powder with less air
for increased application efficiency and lower compressed air con-
sumption. The new system has reduced rework for paint issues. PP

10 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

LAND PRIDE NEWS

Kubota Orange Days dealer training in Gainesville, Georgia Kubota Orange Days dealer training in Bryan, Texas

KUBOTA ORANGE DAYS TRAINING

This spring, Kubota dealers across the United States will take part
in Kubota Orange Days sales events! Before a dealer can host an
event, they have to attend a two and a half day product training
event at one of 14 locations around the US.

Dealers are being trained on the competitive differences between
Kubota tractors and the competition. The training consists of both
classroom time and hands-on demonstrations that put the dealers
in the seats of tractors to get firsthand experience needed to sell
Kubota against the others.

Over the next 10 weeks, Land Pride will be sending representatives Kubota Orange Days dealer training in Tulsa, Oklahoma
to each of the sites to assist with dealer training. Our reps will be
discussing the best way to display Land Pride equipment for an Or-
ange Days event, available marketing tools, and the importance of
promoting packages. Land Pride has also prepared hands-on pre-
sentations around nine different Land Pride products. Feedback
from the first four events indicate that dealers are hungry to learn
from both Kubota and Land Pride! PP

The Premier Magazine For America’s Municipalities January 2017 ULTIMATE ROADSIDE MOWING PAIR

BUDGET & FINANCE To help meet 2017 sales goals, Land Pride RC5615 Series 2 Rotary Cutter and a Kubota
will make a big push to sell 15-foot Rotary M6-141. The pair were then featured on the
INSIDE: Cutters to government agencies and road- cover of “The Municipal,” as well as high-
side mowing contractors. For several years, lighted in a feature article, kicking off 2017
Land Pride: Pros of Land Pride has been successful in selling efforts to expand our reach into the road-
cooperative purchasing these to government agencies, but most side mowing market as a package deal!
have not been sold with a Kubota tractor. Throughout the year, special programs will
Leveling the bidding To encourage that relationship, Land Pride focus on ways to get more cutters in more
playing field recently completed a photo shoot with an markets across the U.S. PP

Financial impact of the
‘dark store’ strategy

PRSRT STD Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 11
U.S. POSTAGE

PAID
Bolingbrook, IL
Permit No. 1939

SOCIAL BUZZ //CHECK OUT WHAT OUR CUSTOMERS
ARE SAYING ABOUT OUR PRODUCTS!

From Tyson L., Central Virginia: “We love our daddy’s Great Plains No-Till Drill. It is well built, reli- Cole F. on Instagram: “Love running this big thing.
able, and accurate season after season. As our daddy says, ‘We are planting seeds for the future!’” #turbomax #greatplains #tillage”

Jeremy T., Missouri: “We were not pleased with our Ted H. on Instagram: “View from the grain Ashley W. on Instagram: “A rainbow for my birth-
John Deere, so we decided on a 2N-3010. I must say, wagon, loading wheat into the no-till. Great day! #farmlife #farmher #rainbow #johndeere
this is one of the best decisions I have made.” Plains are great drills! #greatplains” #landpride”

David B., Central Virginia: “I am a dairy farmer with my wife and family. We milk 110 dairy cows Gerald R., North Carolina: “I absolutely love this
twice a day and I raise all the crops for the farm. We have three Great Plains implements that I use drill. I’ve had other brands, and this one is so
daily. I love the quality of Great Plains. It is easy to work with and always dependable.” much better. Never buying another brand drill.”

12 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

Chiron R. on Instagram: “New Toy. #bx1870 From Ted T., Washington: “I purchased a box blade a few years ago. Because it was so well-made,
#landpride” when I needed a rotary tiller, Land Pride was the one I would buy. I am re-doing the grass in my yard
and this rotary tiller does the job very well. I am pleased with the quality products that you make.”

James B., Southwest Minnesota: “I love the job Tim on Instagram: “Spent the day with this Patrick E., Southern Indiana: “Machine has nice,
that my Great Plains Turbo-Chisel does.” great piece of equipment. Just can’t beat them. even residue flow.”
#greatplainsag #1006NT #georgia #ag”

Drew S. on Instagram: “Finally got my seeder From Thomas R., Northeast Alabama: “I was looking for a seeder that would work in sod as well as
bought! Looks like we are seeding some grass this prepared ground. This seeder does a great job in every situation.”
spring/fall! #landpride”

Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 13

AG DIVISION NEWS

2016 SALES
AWARD WINNERS

Congratulations to the following
Great Plains Ag territory man-
agers for their outstanding sales
performance in 2016:

Most Growth Over Prior Year
By Total Dollars Sold

David Hadskey BRANDING VIDEO DEBUT
Territory 065
The Ag Division is excited to premiere a new branding video, produced in-house by
Highest Total Warranty the Great Plains Ag Marketing Department. The commercial promotes Great Plains
Registrations products by telling the company’s story of who we are and what drives us to succeed.
Some employees are also featured! Go to our YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/
greatplainsmfg) to check it out! PP

John Sites Russ Olson
Territory 045 Territory 129

2016 Top Performer Awards

John Sites Tracy Deckert KACD GOLD LEVEL AWARD
Territory 045 Territory 108
In November, Kansas territory manager John Koenigsman (pictured above, third from
the left) accepted a 2016 Gold Level Support award on behalf of Great Plains in appreci-
ation for the company’s long term support of the Kansas Association of Conservation
Districts. PP

14 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017

AG DIVISION NEWS

The new 10-foot Turbo-Max was hitched on to the new Kubota M7 tractor during Kubota M7 Demo Day events held across the country last fall.

TURBO-MAX® FEATURED DURING
M7 DEMO DAYS

The new 10-foot Turbo-Max was featured around the country
as Kubota introduced the new M7 Series tractor during Kubo-
ta M7 Demo Day field events. From October through December,
Turbo-Max was run through several areas of the United States,
including multiple soil types, conditions, and crops. Customers
seemed to like the Turbo-Max’s ability to manage residue in
traditional Midwestern fields. In areas with sandier soils, cus-
tomers felt Turbo-Max could fit into their operation as a primary
tillage tool. PP

NEW TERRITORY
MANAGER

Great Plains is pleased to announce that
Joe Rempel is the new territory manag-
er for Territory 226GP in Canada. He will
cover Manitoba and Eastern Saskatch-
ewan. With five years of experience in
farm machinery retail sales and ser-
vice, he was previously a salesman for
Rocky Mountain Equipment, a Case IH
dealer in Winkler, Manitoba. Please join
us in welcoming Joe to Great Plains! PP

Winter 2017 | PLAINS PRIDE | 15

INTERNATIONAL NEWS COVER
STORY

GRAND OPENING IN UKRAINE

On January 18, 2017, Great Plains Manufacturing celebrated the
grand opening of a new Ukrainian facility, located in Roslavychi
village near Kiev. Ceremonies were enjoyed by business partners,
distributors, farmers, representatives of agricultural holdings, and
local and regional authorities and media.

The event included an official ribbon-cutting ceremony, speech-
es from honored guests and Great Plains management, entertain-
ment, a banquet, and a facility tour. With a total floor space of 14,000
square feet, the building comprises office space, a parts warehouse,
and a seed lab for testing. A large exhibition hall, conference rooms,
machinery storage area, and an on-site demonstration field also
make the facility perfect for dealer training and seminars. PP

16 | PLAINS PRIDE | Winter 2017 LAMMA 2017

Great Plains had a new location at Lamma 2017, which was held
January 18 and 19. Slightly smaller than the previous stand, the
new space is located inside, which is very important at a January
show in England! Lamma is one of the United Kingdom’s biggest
annual farm machinery shows. PP

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