56 | ‘Huge growth’ on back of tech outlay Investment and equipment and technology has proved rewarding for Methven based R&R Spreading. Karen Phelps 197Wills Street, Ashburton Ph: 03 308 6737 Proud to support R & R Spreading GLASGOW ENGINEERING AND DESIGN Proud t o suppor t R&R Spreading Innova t i on i n Fer t i l i ser Transpor t www.ged.nz R & R Spreading is experiencing huge growth as the company’s investment in technology gives customers the utmost confidence that their spreading is meeting compliance regulations and their investment in their fertiliser is maximised, says company owner Ben Smith. “The biggest growth has been from the dairy sector as they must meet tightening regulations. Our investment in technology and equipment and our ability to capture data and deliver that information to our clients has resulted in huge growth,” he says. Proof of placement of fertiliser has become a major part of R & R Spreading’s everyday operation and its fleet of spreaders are fitted GPS tracking systems, which document their daily movement and the exact location and timing of when fertiliser is applied. It enables custom formulated fertiliser to be applied to specific areas of a farm, which have varying soil types and nutrient needs. To enable the most accurate placement and variable rate spreading capability Topcon spreading controllers are used, and the most accurate proof of placement for all spreading data is captured by Precision Tracking units fitted to all trucks. Investment has also been made in equipment such as a boundary spreader, which allows one side of the spreader to release a slower application than the other side. This ensures fertiliser is spread exactly where it should be near property boundaries so farmers can get the most value. “The confidence our customers have that their fertiliser is being spread correctly means they know they are getting maximum bang for their buck,” says Ben. R & R Spreading’s dedication to excellence is backed by membership in the New Zealand Groundspread Fertiliser Association (NZGFA). During the off-season staff attend driver-training courses facilitated by the NZGFA. While NZGFA membership requires a percentage of the company’s vehicles and drivers to pass audits, R & R Spreading ensures 100% of its staff and drivers pass. It is also Spreadmark Certified, a fertiliser spreading accreditation scheme that registers fertiliser-spreading companies with certified spreading machinery, trained operators and audited quality management systems. R & R Spreading services in excess of 300 farms and has been able to meet this demand by constantly investing in its staff and its fleet. It offers RURAL SERVICES » R&R Spreading a wide range of plant including 12 spreading trucks. A more recent offering is the hiring of equipment to farmers during the company’s busy period. The plant hire fleet now includes a Kubota 2.5 tonne and 5 tonne excavator and also a 6 tonne tip truck. In off season the equipment is used to offer additional services, utilising the experience of the R & R Spreading team. We’ve got multiple attachments for digging pole and post holes and also landscaping jobs such as tree planting. Our diggers are perfect for jobs like clearing ditches, calf sheds, rectifying flood damage, landscaping, retaining walls, site clearance and other general earthmoving works,” says Ben. Another service added more recently is pivot irrigator rut filling. “With the never ending maintenance needed on trucks from the damage caused by pivot ruts and the growing demand of farmers needing someone to fill their ruts for them, we have invested in our own tractor and rut filler, which we utilise during the quiet winter months with one of our drivers.” Ben and his wife Lucy are in partnership in R & R Spreading with Ben’s parent’s Ron and Ally Smith. They bought into the Methven based company, which was established in 1999, in 2016. Originally a full rural transport business it was in about 2012 it was decided to concentrate solely on fertiliser spreading. Ben says this is important. “We are probably one of the only businesses around that specialise in fertiliser application. Because we focus on this it means we can offer real expertise to our clients and we’re extremely busy. We have had year on year growth for some time now and we’re certainly not seeing any sign of that stopping.”
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