Remodeling under pressure

Benedikt Baer built a new nursery in 2006 and later remodeled three 1,200-head finishers. He turned to Farmweld to supply equipment for both projects because he valued the company’s design ingenuity and high quality craftsmanship.

Benedikt Baer was under pressure when an older finishing complex near Gwinner, ND, “fell into his lap” to purchase during late summer 2008. As a contract producer, Benedikt receives batches of 16# (7.62 kg) weanlings every four or five weeks. He had a nursery full of pigs back home at Lake Park, MN, and he needed a new facility for their grow-finish phase.

But before Benedikt could move pigs into his new purchase, major remodeling had to be done. Built in the early 1990s, the Gwinner facilities were in “extreme disrepair,” recalls Benedikt. “It was a last-minute deal buying the farm, and we had to do a lot; it was in pretty tough shape,” he says.

Built and delivered in just six weeks

Benedikt turned to Farmweld to help redesign the facilities and supply new equipment. As he ripped out old feeders, gating and other equipment, Farmweld’s design team drew up floor plans for the 246’ (74.98 m) x 46’ (14.02 m) barns.

“I gave them dimensions and a drawing of where the beams, slats and poles were located, and they came up with the design,” Benedikt explains.

Each of the three 1,200-head finishing barns has a 40’ (12.10 m) span of slats across the center of the building, so Farmweld designed 32 40-head pens over the slats with a 3’ (91.44 cm) walkway around the perimeter of the barns.

Farmweld took the challenge to build and deliver the Farmweld Jumbo Feeders, water cups and gating in just six weeks. “I had a very tight time schedule—I placed the order in the middle of August, and by the end of September, I had my equipment delivered,” says Benedikt.

Nursery experience

This was not Benedikt’s first experience with Farmweld equipment. When he built a new nursery in 2006, he installed feeders, cups, gating and the Farmweld Flooring System™.

One of the features that Benedikt appreciates most is the color of the flooring panels. “It is a lot easier to see the pigs against orange flooring than white flooring, for example,” he says.

“When you first look at the pigs, you’ve got to be able to identify the outline of the body,” he says. “That way you can see whether the pig is gaunt or bloated, or has other signs of sickness.”

Baer has also taken note of Farmweld’s high quality craftsmanship and durability. “The equipment has been in a little over three years, and I haven’t had to repair or replace anything,” says Baer.

“You get what you pay for,” he continues. “If you want to save a little bit of up-front money, you can get equipment that will last you 10-12 years. I’d prefer to put better equipment in and not have to deal with it for 20 years, rather than having to start replacing and fixing it in ten years.”