Väderstad has now turned 55 and I have been employed by the company since I was 17 years of age. I have, as a result, witnessed and been involved in the development of agricultural technology for several decades. All those years bring both insights as well as perspective.
Technological leaps that make changes
New technology sometimes emerges with small, stealthy and barely noticeable steps. Sometimes it happens in sudden leaps that transform life almost overnight. Väderstad has, in addition to many small steps, so far contributed 5 such significant technology leaps with the introduction of the HV-packer, NZ-harrow, Rapid, Carrier and Tempo. It has doubled agricultural capacity in every sense of the word by simplifying operations, doubling the driving speed or by carrying several different jobs in a single pass. This doubling of capacity has also resulted in a far better end result, compared to what could be achieved in the past. It is win-win situation for both the farmer as well as Väderstad.
Redraws the board
Väderstad has thereby elevated the level of technology and created a new kind of standard. Seed drilling with Rapid quickly became the standard against which other seeding techniques would be measured. Each of these machines are also what is commonly referred to as a "game changer". They redrew the board and stirred up the industry when they were introduced. They could carry out work in one go that could not have been done previously. Or they could suddenly do the same work as before, but twice as fast. This is how innovation is progressing.
Focus on innovation
Improving and making things better is a motivator to us at Väderstad. We also like to be first. This requires industrious development work, but it is equally important that Väderstad is an environment where innovation is the focus. With these innovations, we can offer agriculture tomorrow's solutions at a time of rapid change. We place great importance on new ideas, development work, tests and trials. Development work sometimes hits a dead end. When that happens, we take a step back and recharge our batteries. Even bad experiences are good experiences for those who want to learn and bring something new and better to agriculture.
The problem becomes the solution
We receive valuable feedback and ideas from farmers in all markets where we operate. That is something we are grateful for. We are very keen to maintain these communication channels. When you formulate a problem, we begin the process toward a technical solution. Sometimes things can be solved quickly and sometimes they takes a little longer. For the precision planter Tempo it took 15 years, but the end-result was definitely worth it. We are very proud of the results of our largest ever development project. Tempo – like Rapid, Carrier and all of our other machines – brings benefits to our customers and that is the most important thing for Väderstad!
