Buhler to expand workforce at plants

Staff could double in Fargo, West St. Paul

Winnipeg Free Press
Wed Feb 9 2005
By Martin Cash

DESPITE the seemingly endless challenges in the agricultural sector, Buhler Industries Ltd. is looking to expand its operations on a couple of fronts. 
The Winnipeg-based farm-equipment and parts manufacturer wants to double the workforces at its production plants in West St. Paul and Fargo, N.D. In both cases, the pace of growth will be dictated to a large degree by the availability of skilled workers, the company said yesterday. 

Three years ago, Buhler bought a plant in Fargo, previously owned by Deere & Co., that had about 15 employees. Since then, it has added about 25 more workers, and company president Craig Engel said yesterday the plan is to eventually double the size of the workforce. 

"The trick is to find good, quality people," Engel said in a telephone interview. 

"About 62 per cent of our sales are now in the U.S. and so it only makes sense to increase manufacturing there. That plant has proven it can decrease costs and increase quality, and that's what you want to hear in the manufacturing business." Fargo is one of 10 production sites that Buhler owns and operates. In 1999, the company acquired a building in West St. Paul when it bought a company called Progressive Manufacturing. Over the past two years, it has added an additional 30,000 square feet to the building, and has invested about $5 million in high-precision machining equipment that's used to make high-tolerance metal parts. 

At first, the investment was made to bring more of the work in-house on the Buhler Versatile tractor manufacturing enterprise. 

"We wanted to in-source more of the work to control quality and delivery," Engel said. 

But now, almost two years later, Engel said the plant is looking to find third-party work to utilize the equipment even more. 

"At first we were pretty selfish and were only looking after our own needs. But now we can offer the services to others," he added. 

Depending on how much up-take there is among manufactures of large metal parts, such as axle housings, drive-line components and high-tolerance gear-and-bearing placements, Engel expects the West St. Paul plant will also double its workforce over time. About 50 of the company's total workforce of about 850 now work at the West St. Paul site. "It will also depend on the availability of experienced machinists," Engel said. 

Buhler employees build a wide range of farm equipment, including grain augers, tractor-powered snow blowers and mowers, Versatile tractors and wheel loaders. 

-- With files from AP