We’ve all seen the news…supply chains are a mess and not getting any better and the ag industry has certainly not been exempted.  Everything from herbicide to half-million-dollar tractors are in short supply these days due to labor challenges, shipping delays, and raw material shortages.  Pump & Meter Solutions marketing department spoke to Patrick Molter, President and CEO of Dura Products, which is one of our biggest suppliers to find out what his company has been doing to continue to stock equipment and bring new products to market in the challenging supply chain environment. 

Pump & Meter Solutions:  Thanks for speaking with me today.  We’ve been impressed with how Dura Products has been able to continue its commitment to have equipment in stock and ready to ship the same day orders are placed.  How have you been able to do that given all the supply chain problems we have seen in 2021?

Patrick:  The biggest reason is that we saw this coming early and tried to prepare however we could.  Instead of relying on our suppliers to be able to procure materials to provide the parts we need to continue to manufacture our equipment, we started looking at what components and parts were in short supply and went ahead and bought a year or more supply of those parts wherever we could find them.  Sure enough, when our suppliers couldn’t get the components they needed and told us they couldn’t build our parts, we were able to ship parts to them so we could keep producing. 

We also had to make a couple of “behind the scenes” changes to equipment due to parts that we simply couldn’t get.  We made sure to do it in a way that wouldn’t affect quality or functionality, but it took some re-design and some sleepless nights to get it done.

Of course, we can’t completely predict demand, so if our sales guys really hit it out of the park this year, don’t hold us to the same day shipping!  But, I never want to be one of those companies that doesn’t have product and just tells people who rely on us that there’s nothing we can do.  We’ll keep trying even if it seems impossible. 

Pump & Meter Solutions:    You’ve also managed to bring a new 3” High-Flow Meter to market for the 2022 season.  How did you manage that with things like micro-processors and other electronic components being in short supply? 

Patrick:  Essentially the same way we managed to continue to produce our current equipment.  We saw this coming and started buying up components early.  We even had to do a re-design after having completed and proven our first prototype because of a couple of components that suddenly became unavailable.  Being flexible was key as well as never throwing my hands up in the air and saying, “Well this will just have to wait.”  We are still in our initial round of production, but we are optimistic that we’ll have 3” meters to ship in January of 2022.

Pump & Meter Solutions:  In addition to supply chain shortages, we’ve also seen prices going up.  Is there anything else innovative you have done to keep prices down for folks who need Dura’s equipment?

Patrick:  We’ve tried to avoid price increases any way we can.  We can’t do much to control the cost of a lot of what goes into our equipment, but there are other ways we have kept costs down.  We have gone from a paper warranty registration card to having a QR code on the packaging of our pumps and meters that lets end-users register their equipment online.  It may not seem like much, but it costs less to put that QR code on the box than it does to print a physical card.  We are also using QR code technology to let the purchaser view assembly guides and user manuals online rather than printing and inserting a paper copy.  That keeps our costs down and theirs, but it also means they don’t have to store or file a paper copy, so we think it’s beneficial in that way too.

We’ve also made some changes to packaging and labeling helps keep costs down. 

All that said, we have had to increase pricing, we have just done our best to minimize it. 

Thanks to Patrick Molter for taking the time to talk to us.  You can learn more about all the Dura Products equipment we carry by visiting www.pumpandmeter.com or give us a call at 317-877-7867.