Patrick Wetzel, Precision Ag Specialist

Patrick Wetzel proves hard work and dedication always pay off. Patrick has been with the cooperative for four years, three of which have been spent as a Precision Ag Technician at the Innovation Center.

Patrick explains what the Innovation Center can offer that competitors can’t, “We have an on-call, 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week team. No matter when a call comes in, we’ll be there as soon as we can. Some companies don’t offer that; they’ll be there the next day or a couple days later. We know our growers don’t have time to wait. The techs here always have their phones on and are always willing to help.”

Patrick’s dedication helped him gain the trust of a new customer – a family friend who didn’t know just what Patrick could accomplish. Patrick explains, “He called in one day and we really hit it off. I went out there to help him get up and going. Since then, whenever he’s had a problem come up, he calls me. We’ve spent a lot of time making improvements to his operation.”

The Innovation Center team is known for pushing the limits with its growers’ equipment to help them be more efficient, such as finding solutions for unsupported platforms. At the Innovation Center, a commonly heard phrase is, “we make the impossible possible.”

Patrick experienced just that when he worked on a RoGator Sprayer with a new install of SteerCommand, Ag Leader’s automated steering system. Patrick explains, “From the get-go, the RoGator Sprayer was not steering correctly. We had Agco Butler engineers out multiple times to work with me on the issue. We changed wheel angle sensors and even switched out the whole system, but we were getting nowhere. After 2 weeks of working on it, we finally adjusted some settings that we were told we ‘never have to touch’ – and that’s when we got it to work.”

While the result may seem surprising to some, the team of experts at the Innovation Center hear this every day. Patrick says, “When they told me that they’ve never seen anybody adjust it, I was surprised that we had to. But it’s nothing we haven’t seen before at the Innovation Center.”

After completing the upgrade, the grower was very pleased. Being able to use the auto steer allowed him to work longer, including at night when it’s so dark you have trouble seeing the rows well enough to continue spraying.

With the SteerCommand upgrade, though, that’s not an issue. The grower was able to get more acres covered in a day, and at the end of the season he found he spent less time spraying overall. Patrick says, “He texted me after we fixed the sprayer saying it was working perfectly. He actually sent us a video of the RoGator spraying corn up and down the rows; it was awesome to see his enthusiasm over what we were able to fix for him!”

The Innovation Center team will always go the extra mile for its customers, whether it’s by pushing equipment limits or being available 24/7 when help is needed most. Give the team a call today to see how we can help improve your equipment and your bottom line.