Meet Andy.
Andy Laidlaw is a grain farmer from Ararat, a former gold mining town in regional Victoria, nestled within the foothills of the famous Grampians Ranges.
Andy, along with his Dad Geoff, run a mixed farming operation focused on broad acre crop farming growing mostly red wheat and canola for domestic consumption and exportation.
The Laidlaws had limited on farm storage and Andy says having to rely on truck drivers to get their product to site became a bit of a nightmare.
“We realised having more storage would give us the opportunity to earn more by marketing our product, and streamline the logistics of getting the grain off the headers at harvest time,” said Andy.
The Laidlaws heard about Allied Grain Systems through word of mouth and took a closer look at Allied’s products at another farm. When Andy began comparing to other brands, it was a no brainer.
Allied Grain Systems’ silo sealing system has been independently recognised as one of the best performing in Australia built to exceed the current Australian Standard AS2628.
“The finished product is what impressed me the most. It’s a good quality product.”
Andy purchased two 42’-12’ flat bottom, sealed silos back in 2021, along with an X Series 10 inch Auger.
A third silo was also installed early 2023.
Andy says the upfront cost of the investment will easily be repaid overtime.
“As far as investment goes, it was an easy decision for us once we broke down what it was costing us to cart the grain away to site, plus storage fees.”
Andy has nothing but great things to say about Allied’s professional construction team.
“The builders and concrete crew were fantastic! We had the same builders construct all three silos. They really took great pride in what they did and made sure it was a good job. That’s what I really liked.”
The Laidlaws are still reaping the benefits of AGS storage.
“It’s given us so much control over our product and our cash flow. It streamlined our operations and improved staff efficiency. Now one person can drive two trucks by taking an empty one back and picking up a new one.”
We asked Andy to rate Allied Grain Systems in three key categories. What did he think?
