To the tune of Paul Kelly’s famous refrain: from little things, big things grow. As the team at Motion looks out over the country’s illustrious farmland, they warmly welcome their customers, suppliers, and partners to a fresh start and a new year of sowing the seeds of success for Australian farmers.
Following a year marked by the challenges of flooding and climate change that impacted many of the country’s tight-knit rural communities, many Australians took time off over the holidays to enjoy the fruits of their labour with friends, family, and loved ones. By ushering in the new year amongst kin, Motion, together with fellow Australians, are holding tight to the promise of new beginnings.
Mid-January to February is traditionally the time of year when Australian farmers begin dusting off their sowing and seeding equipment to gear up for planting crops for a new harvest season. For most people working in the agriculture sector, there is a shared understanding that the only thing certain is that uncertainty is inevitable. A year in farming is likely to be impacted by fluctuating temperatures, unpredictable weather patterns, and the ebb and flow of native wildlife, insects, and of course, mice.
Typically, March through to late May is ideal planting season for wheat, barley, and canola in Australia, while at the same time, the season’s first cotton, almond, and walnut harvests also fall in the first half of the year. It is during these critical months that the team at Motion set all systems to go, with engines firing on all cylinders, according to Motion’s National Business Development Manager for Agriculture, Russell Randal.
For Russell and his team at Motion’s Wagga Wagga branch, this means doing everything they can to ensure that Australian farmers have what they need to keep their equipment up and running. “We are very invested in ensuring success for our customers in the agriculture segment and we are heavily involved in the work that is done during seeding and sowing season, through to the harvest,” enthuses Russell.
“From stocking parts for critical pieces of agricultural equipment such as tractors, seeders, tillers, sprayer’s, headers and augers, to the design and implementation of food processing facilities, Motion is involved with every aspect of the farming industry.”
According to Russell, Motion’s approach to expected challenges this year has been manifold. “For one, we have increased the volume of our stock orders and ordered in bulk well in advance of the season to ensure that when the season starts our distribution centres are ready to deliver that same week,” he expounds.
“And another thing we have tried to do is localise some of our suppliers to Australian-owned and operated manufacturers, wherever possible. This eliminates the risk of grossly drawn-out lead times and supply chain issues with importing from overseas,” he furthers.
“Additionally, we have leaned heavily on our strong relationships with suppliers and partners to negotiate priority stock and exclusive distribution rights within the Australian market,” he adds, noting that one key new offering will be specialised bearings for cotton picking equipment.
When dealing with lingering global supply chain challenges left over from the pandemic, Russell says that Motion’s vast network of supply partners, coupled with their substantial authority and influence in the field, has proven to be a crucial advantage when tackling the challenges of the last few years.
Motion provides a broad spectrum of products, services, and technical expertise to serve a diverse range of applications for farming and food production. This includes the supply of all the bits and pieces involved in the general upkeep of mobile equipment and farming machinery such as bearings, couplings, sprockets, belts, motors, and engine filters; as well as oils, greases, and fuel storage distributed through Motion’s CBC, BSC and WebsterBSC businesses.
Motion’s larger family of core businesses – SpecFast, Hardy Spicer, AIP, CRAM, Sealing Solutions and Waltersheid – offer speciality engineering products and services to the agriculture sector such as parts and components for engineering projects, custom driveline systems, pressure gauges, gaskets, mechanical seals, and hoses for hydraulic pump assemblies.
For more niche products and applications, Motion’s offering also extends to the supply of safety equipment such as guards, backstops and lifting gear for conveyer lines, as well as food safe lubricants and filters for beverage producers like breweries and wineries.
“We really pride ourselves on being an industry leading industrial solutions provider and for us, it’s more than just selling products and signing off on supply orders. We like to get out to site as often as possible and learn everything we can about an industry so we can build relationships with our customers, partners, and suppliers,” says Russell.
“When it comes to solving engineering problems, we have the full spectrum of capabilities to offer solutions in the form of products and services, but we also like to leave no stone unturned. By this I mean, if there is a stone that is unturned, we will be sure to identify it and add it to our offering,” he concludes.
“We also try to keep ahead of the market and anticipate the needs of our customers. As a business, it’s our goal not only to be a one-stop-shop for industrial solutions, but to be a resource that people can rely on for in-situ support, a well-connected friend that businesses can liaise with for networking purposes, garner insider information on new products and market trends, or just have a good yarn about day-to-day life.”
