1977 HESSTON Windrower Conditioner Sales Brochure

Description: Original, 1977 HESSTON Pull-Type Windrowers & Mower Conditioners Color Sales Brochure - Models 1014; 1010; 1090; & 1070.Presented by Hesston Farm Equipment Corporation, Hesston, Kansas.Stapled brochure is nicely illustrated throughout & measures 8 1/2" X 11", with 18 pages, including covers.EXCELLENT CONDITION.....clean & crisp, with NO rips or tears.$5.00 please, to help with ever-increasing postal costs. A little Hesston history: Hesston Corporation began almost by accident. Lyle Yost, a Kansas farmer and early custom harvester, was frustrated by the long unloading times required by 1950s combines that used gravity flow to empty their grain bins. With the help of a local welder, he fabricated an unloading auger to mount onto the side of his combine and speed up unloading. It worked, and he was quickly flooded with requests from other combine owners who wanted to buy unloading augers. He hired a number of local farmers to fabricate augers when not busy on the farm, and Hesston Corporation was born. In a few years, all combine manufacturers would incorporate unloading augers into their designs, and Hesston sought new ways to help farmers. This theme — increasing the efficiency of farming — continued to drive the purpose of the company. It acquired the design rights to a hay windrower — the swather — from an Iowa farmer who had designed and built his own hay machine. Production was moved to Hesston, Kansas, and upscaled. The swather was a hit, revolutionizing how hay was cut and cured for thousands of farmers and ranchers. Hesston continued to focus on haying equipment for the next two decades. Hesston later branched into other market segments by acquiring smaller companies, improving their products, and streamlining production. By the mid 1970s Hesston was the ninth largest farm equipment manufacturer and the United States' leading manufacturer of haying equipment. It sold haying equipment in across the globe. However, in 1976 the agricultural market entered a long, downward trough that would continue for nearly a decade. Farmers decided to hold onto equipment longer, and dealer lots were filled with equipment that wasn't selling. Hesston avoided bankruptcy by selling a controlling interest in the company shares to Fiat Corporation of Italy. Yost and other founders retired or lost their board seats. Hesston would never again be controlled by its founders. Today, it is a subsidiary of AGCO. Hesston's story tells a similar story to other farm equipment companies (e.g., John Deere, Kinze, Vermeer). These companies were started by entrepreneurs who wanted to solve specific problems on the farm. Demand for their solutions pushed them to start companies to mass produce their fixes. In a world where venture capital often looks for problems to solve with existing solutions, it's refreshing to read about how one entrepreneur did the opposite, working hard to find solutions to farmers' problems. *PLEASE NOTE: I am happy to combine shipping when you buy more than one item! USA destinations: The 1st item ships at the listed postage cost; any other items ship for only $1.00 more each. International: The 1st item ships at the listed postage cost; any other items ship for only $5.00 more each.

Price: 10 USD

Location: Rio, Wisconsin

End Time: 2024-05-01T17:29:02.000Z

Shipping Cost: 5 USD