News!

The More than 2,000 votes were cast in the inaugural World Ag Expo Top-10 Attendees’ Choice Award and with 570 votes and an average of 4 stars per vote, Magswitch Magnets is the winner.

Read more at www.agnewscenter.com

Also at www.agrimarketing.com

The annual World Ag Expo in Tulare ended its three-day run Thursday, with show officials saying it was a success despite rain Tuesday and muddy grounds Wednesday.

"The hardcore people come out to the show, no matter what," said Lee Coito, the 2010 Expo vice-chair. "It was a good show."

About 1,500 exhibitors attended, with some reporting less interest from buyers than in previous years.

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Magswitch^® by Forney was named a Top-10 New Product of 2010 at the World Ag Expo.

Watch an interview and see just some of the capabilities of Magswitch^® by Forney at the World Ag Expo.

Watch the interview (WMV video)

TULARE, Calif. — The results are in for the highly anticipated 2010 Top-10 New Products competition, the winners of which will be showcased Feb. 9-11 during the 43rd annual World Ag Expo in Tulare, Calif.

"These products showed the most potential to advance ag production and have the most potential to power global agriculture," said 2010 Chairman Bernie Cargle.

A panel of agribusiness professionals from across the nation including farmers, ranchers and industry professionals selected the Top-10 New Products and 10 Honorable Mention Products from more than 70 entries. The Top-10 New Products will be showcased inside the New Product Pavilion on Expo Lane and R Street and will be toured on Feb. 8 during World Ag Expo’s Media Day. An estimated 100,000 attendees are expected to attend World Ag Expo, which is the largest annual exposition of its kind.

Attendees can find out more about the Top-10 New Products and the 10 Honorable Mention Products before the expo at worldagexpo.com. The 2010 Top-10 New Products are:

AutoFarm OnTrac2 GPS, Novariant - AutoFarm, Fremont, CA 510-933-4849
The OnTrac2 GPS Assisted Steering System works with two-wheel and four-wheel drive tractors, combines, sprayers and spreaders. With unit in place farming operations are performed with greater accuracy, covering more ground faster and more efficiently.

Cooling Station, Heat Relief Solutions, Napa, CA 707-224-4060
Self-contained mobile heat-relief facility helps prevent heat illness among farm workers. The 16-foot, all-steel tandem axle trailer is highway legal and can carry a total of 300 gallons of potable water. Features include an aluminum shade canopy; a commercial two-stage oscillating fogging fan plus an optional satellite fan that can be used with a water misting pump up to 200 feet from the trailer; and two 10-gallon food-grade drinking water tanks with dispensers for large cups.

Forklift 180-degree Bin Inverter, Schieler Harvester, Terra Bella, CA 559-784-1162
This fork lift attachment for dumping bins of fruit, nuts or other bulk items, does what no conventional hydraulic bin dumper can – it allows the bin to turn over a full 180 degrees to completely empty the bin of its contents. The attachment saves growers time and money.

Gripple T-Clip, Gripple, Inc., Aurora, IL 800-654-0609
An innovative wire-gripping device, called the Gripple T-Clip offers a revolutionary way to start or terminate a fence. It replaces the time and trouble of knotting or stapling wires at the end post with a fast, simple twist and push action.

Hoof Supervisor System, Feed Supervisor Software, Dresser, WI 715-755-3575
Hoof Supervisor, a new computerized chute-side data recording system, enables hoof trimmers to collect report and analyze results of their work more efficiently.

Magswitch^® Magnets, Forney Industries, Fort Collins, CO 970-494-6841
Magswitch^® Magnets offer farmers and ranchers a faster, more precise and easier-to-use alternative to clamp, hold, position or lift ferrous steel for fabrication, welding, wood working projects and general repair projects.

LWR Manure Treatment System, Livestock Water Recycling, Calgary, Alberta 403-297-0925
An innovative alternative to a lagoon is designed to protect profits and the environment by converting dairy and swine waste into clean potable water, dry solids and a nutrient-rich liquid fertilizer.

One Shot Tree Recognition System, Nelson Mfg. Co., Inc. , Yuba City, CA 530-673-0919
The One Shot limits spray applications to trees offering an inexpensive yet dependable and effective way to minimize chemical costs and drift when spraying orchards.

44 Super Magnum Sand Pump, McLanahan Corporation, Hollidaysburg, PA 814-695-9807
The new 44 Super Magnum Sand Pump is the only pump on the market specifically designed for handling sand and manure. It fills a void in the agricultural market where there is a need for a vertical, rubber-lined, high-wear pump.

Stinger Automatic Load Securing System, Stinger, Inc., Haven, KS 620-465-2683
Trying to throw straps against high winds, fussing with tie-down ropes and crawling on top of the load when securing a trailer full of large square straw bales are a thing of the past with the new Automatic Load Securing System. The hydraulically operated system features two straps suspended between a stationary bulkhead at the front of the trailer and a sliding bulkhead at the rear. To secure the load, press a switch, activating hydraulic cylinders carefully securing the load.

World Ag Expo occupies more than 2.6 million square feet of exhibit space, hosts more than 1,600 exhibitors and draws an estimated 100,000 attendees over its three-day exposition. All attendees are encouraged to preregister and save $2 per ticket at worldagexpo.com.

Forney Industries reduced sales calls by more than two hours by implementing a real-time catalog and inventory control system.
Integrated Solutions

Written by: Brian Albright

Mobile computing technology has helped revolutionize the way salespeople operate in the field. Being able to access product information and upload customer orders remotely has made these road warriors more efficient than ever before. But with mobile technology evolving so rapidly, a mobile sales automation tool can quickly become obsolete. These mobile applications should be revisited and updated on a regular basis, or else you'll find your mobile sales team falling behind the competition.

That's what happened to Fort Collins, CO-based Forney Industries, a leading distributor of metalworking and welding products, abrasives and cutting wheels, pneumatic tools, and other equipment. The company deployed a mobile computing solution more than a decade ago to help its 92 sales reps and regional managers as they traveled across the country visiting more than 11,500 retail and warehouse customers. Unfortunately, the system was showing its age.

The company sells its products to hardware, automotive, farm and ranch, and other retail outlets like Ace Hardware, NAPA, and True Value. Under its previous system, sales representatives would visit the store carrying a 40-page inventory folder. Orders were taken down by hand during sales calls that could last several hours and then entered into a portable data terminal each evening before being uploaded to Forney's central computer system via a dial-up connection. "They would do their sales route during the day, then have to put in another 2 to 3 hours punching in orders at night," says Kim Probst, senior executive assistant at Forney and program manager for the mobile sales solution.

It could take as long as 48 hours for orders to make it to Forney's warehouses in Fort Collins and Horseheads, NY. Rekeying mistakes in the field often led to the wrong item or the wrong quantity being delivered to the customers, which delayed payments and created headaches for the customer service team. The portable data terminals were also starting to fail, and the original manufacturer no longer supported the units.

ADOPT A NEW APPROACH TO MOBILITY Forney needed a real-time solution that would eliminate the paper-based ordering system, reduce errors, and improve sales efficiency. The company turned to inCode, an Alpharetta, GA-based consulting firm, for help. inCode designed a system built around Intermec Technologies' Windows-based CN3 ruggedized mobile computer and AT&T's Edge and 3G wireless networks. inCode also designed a real-time catalog and inventory control system using Dexterra's Concert mobile application development platform.

Forney began training its sales team on the new system in September 2007, starting with six representatives who were brought in to test the initial application. The rest of the mobile units were rolled out by region, and the system went live in November 2007. "Training was the biggest hurdle," Probst says. "We had to make sure the training program was a very open and positive experience. Some of the sales folks have been here 20 years or more, and many of them were nervous about the new system."

When a salesperson arrives at a customer location, they can now access the entire product catalog on the mobile unit. Using the built-in bar code scanner in the CN3, reps can scan products already on the shelves and build the customer order based on existing inventory. They can also add new items to an order at the store or delete a product that is no longer carried by that retailer. The application alerts sales reps if they've forgotten to scan a particular item typically carried by that customer.

Sales calls have been cut from 3 hours to just 20 minutes, allowing Forney personnel to visit as many as 10 stores a day (up from a maximum of six stores in the past). Orders are transmitted to the warehouse instantaneously, and a copy of the order is emailed to the customer at the same time, which helps prevent errors in the ordering process."The biggest improvement is that the system eliminates a huge number of errors," Probst says. "The old system allowed the reps to enter duplicate numbers. Human errors still occur, but this has saved us a lot of time in processing orders at the office." Since they no longer have to transmit orders at night, the sales reps have cut their work time from 10 to 12 hours down to 8, resulting in more time to prospect for new customers.

This improvement in efficiency has been better for the salespeople (who can spend more time with their families) and for customers. "The customers like it," Probst says. "We can provide reports on their order history, and the rep can email a copy of the order the customer just placed while they're in the store. We've gotten a good response on that, because the customer can look at the order while the sales rep is still there."

Forney and inCode have made just a few minor changes to the application since it was initially deployed. Probst says the company is now exploring some of the other capabilities of the Windows-based mobile computer, such as leveraging the unit's email and Microsoft Office functions. "We know the capability is there, so why not use it?" Probst says. "The unit can do a lot more than just produce an order."

Forney Industries, Inc., Fort Collins, Colorado hired Elaine Floyd to lead its reorganized Customer Service team. "We're very pleased about the addition of Elaine Floyd as our Customer Service Manager. Her experience is just what we need to help us on our journey toward 'World Class Customer Service'. We're anxious to start that journey," says Dave Paton, Forney's CFO.

Floyd's initial priority at Forney will be to upgrade and improve it service systems and process. This will include customer service representative training, acquiring technology to enhance customer management and creation of a service experience program. Ms. Floyd was previously with Exabyte Corporation managing customer service. She is a qualified ISO 9001 auditor and has extensive service quality experience.

Forney Industries is a full service distributor of metal working products, with over 4,500 consumer products sold and shipped to 11,000 retailers across the United States.

Mayra Martinez joined Forney Industries in June as a cost accountant. She will be creating new product line financials at Forney Industries, focused on product costing and product margins. Forney CFO, Dave Paton said, "The addition of Mayra Martinez to our accounting team adds a whole new level of talent and experience to Forney Industries. It's exciting to think of the possibilities that surround Mayra's hiring. We're looking forward to the improvements she will implement."

Ms. Martinez has been in cost accounting in the manufacturing and banking industries for over twenty eight years. Martinez joined Hewlett Packard in Puerto Rico, and later moved to Fort Collins. She subsequently worked at Celestica, Inc. and Sirenza Microdevices, Inc. in Broomfield.

Forney Industries is a full service distributor of metal working products, with over 4,500 consumer products sold and shipped to 11,000 retailers across the United States.

David Paton joined Forney Industries in October, 2007 to assume leadership of the financial team. Dave is now the Chief Financial Officer for Forney Industries. He leads a Corporate Services team that includes finance, human resources, customer service and information technology. His focus is on upgrading the systems and services offered by these service groups to Forney's external and internal customers.

Paton was the CFO of Samsill Corporation in Texas for six years prior to coming to Forney. As part of his duties, he was an executive facilitator in a Malcolm Baldrige continuous improvement environment and brings that methodology to Forney. Patone grew up in Colorado, and graduated from Colorado State University in 1978 with a BS/BA degree and became a CPA. He was a corporate financial auditor for years prior to moving into industry executive management. He is a past chair of CPA's in Business and Industry Committee of the Colorado Society of CPA's.

Kyle Pettine was promoted to Chief Operating Officer. He's been with Forney Industries since 2006 leading the Operations and Materials teams for Forney. Pettine brings a wealth of lean methodology implementation experience. He led extensive changes to Forney's warehouse operations in Fort Collins, New York and Georgia. He has also directed significant improvements in Forney's international supply chain.

Pettine was previously with Fiberlok, Inc. and Advanced Energy Industries in Fort Collins in executive roles. He is a native Coloradoan with an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado and a MBA from Arizona State University. He previously served in the U.S. Navy as a nuclear propulsion officer on the U.S.S South Carolina.