Farmweld's story begins when Teutopolis, IL, native Frank Brummer started in business as a welder in 1979. During his early years in business, Brummer repaired many different brands of feeders for local farmers and had noticed plenty of design features he would change. At the encouragement of his farmer clients, who were weary of the poorly-designed feeder models then available, Brummer began working on his ideas and was soon building "Farmweld" feeders.

One of the early inventions was the Flip-n-Feed® feeder, a unique tip-out feeder designed for deck-style nurseries. This feeder greatly reduced the labor associated with cleaning nurseries.

With little selling experience but an earnest desire to reach farmers with his inventions, Brummer hit the road. He crisscrossed the Midwest in a pick-up truck loaded with feeder samples. "I called on every farmer, dealer and builder who had shown interest," recalls Brummer, who grew up on a hog farm. He also took his products to state and national trade shows and started attending industry gatherings to learn all he could about the changing swine industry.

But perhaps Brummer's most important move was listening very carefully to what farmers had to say. He learned a lot about their operations, their goals and what they needed from equipment. He also studied the animals closely and read the latest in animal behavior research from major agricultural universities.

By the early 1990s, swine producers throughout the United States had taken notice of Farmweld products for their durability and high performance. Beyond feeders, Farmweld's product line had expanded to flooring, gating, gestation and farrowing equipment and drinkers. Robotic welding and 24-hour manufacturing were incorporated in 1994.

When the late 1990s brought the US swine industry serious economic challenges, Farmweld remained strong due to its commitment to quality products and the company's ability to handle all types of facility projects, small or large. "Because we are automated, we can readily equip a 5,200-head new sow unit," says Brummer. "But we just as easily take care of the many details with smaller projects because our people deliver personal attention to each job."

FAST™ (Farmweld Automatic Sorting Technology) is the latest example of Farmweld's committment to bringing pork producers technologies to reduce labor and improve income.