“We need to talk.”
Those are cringe-worthy words, yet sometimes you really do need to talk. Not all “talks” are negative, though. For example, Transland called its first-ever Dealer Meeting to share important things happening in the ag aviation industry. “Talks” ranged from a patented weldless boom to the 802 FAST System to the next generation Satloc GPS. Did you say a new GPS from Satloc? That’s right. Transland dealers received the first scoop, and soon the pilots and growers will hear more about the Satloc Falcon GPS.
So, why call a meeting? Transland knows that pilots earn money when their Transland equipped airplanes are properly applying crop protection products, seed, or fertilizers to their customers’ crops. Additionally, pilots and growers want precision applications to maximize profits. Transland said, “We need to talk” because giving the right information about classic and new Transland family product lines enables pilots and growers to 1) maximize profits, 2) reduce frustration, and 3) spend more quality time with the people who matter most in their lives.
During a tour of the facilities, the dealers looked at Transland’s new 802 FAST Ag to Fire Gate Box. Any standard Transland hydraulic gate box can be used with the FAST System. Patrick Mertens of Aero Seat shared a few things about his first-hand experience with this system. “The capability of the 802 FAST system is unique to the industry. With other gates, in my estimation, it takes one to two weeks (with the help of a maintenance facility) to switch between an ag gate and a fire gate. The 802 FAST System gives owners a competitive advantage because the gates can be switched within a matter of hours without the help of a maintenance facility.”
Another stop along the facility tour centered around the new patent-pending process of Transland’s stainless steel booms and center booms. Per customer requests, Transland redesigned its stainless steel booms to significantly reduce the cracking around the welded nipples. These weldless booms come standard in the new Boom Shut-Off Kits.
As a leader in the industry, Transland introduced its 50% and 60% boom shut-off kits in 2021. These boom shut-off kits help operators stay on label with the chemicals. Also, the kits offer low-profile valves with QD fittings, making them easy to change if needed.
Rising Input Costs
“We hear you” when it comes to rising input costs and the need to help our growers and applicators thrive with quality dispersal equipment. That’s another reason Transland reached out to its dealers to talk about products that can help the farmers and pilots. Moreover, Transland’s President, Roberto Rodriguez, and the owner/CEO, James Frank, understand the importance of listening to the dealers. These leaders know the dealers hear on a daily basis what the needs are of the applicators and growers.
James shared, “We want and need feedback from our dealers. We want to know how we can serve our dealers better and how we can serve their pilots and farmers better.” Roberto and James listened to the dealers during the first-ever Transland Dealer Meeting. They will continue the company’s long history of improvements and innovations to keep moving forward with the industry. Additionally, the plan is to make future acquisitions that are beneficial to the ag aviation industry.
Competitive Edge
“An organization’s ability to learn, and translate that learning into action rapidly is the ultimate competitive edge,” stated Jack Welch, the late CEO of GE who led it to be a multi-national company. Part of the Dealer Meeting consisted of training and educating the dealers on different products because it translates to a competitive advantage for the dealers’ pilots. Transland knows that downtime for pilots is costly. So the company is investing more time and money to train its dealers and produce more installation guides and user manuals to help our family of growers and applicators excel in precision application and farming.
“So there were rumors….”
Yes, they are true. “Satloc is still going strong. Over the past three years, Satloc has developed a new GPS system and upgraded system products,” stated Roberto Rodriguez. At the Dealer Meeting, Satloc announced the launch of three new products. BUT WAIT! The dealers learned more about the Satloc Cloud that was launched in May 2020. This web-based system manages aircraft tracking and wireless data transfer using cutting-edge technology. Some highlights include 1) not tied to one PC because it can be used wirelessly on different devices like a tablet or Smartphone, 2) automatic aircraft tracking, 3) no more thumb drives, 4) ground personnel can upload job files (job, shape, pmap) to the Cloud, so the pilot is free to focus on other things, 5) current and all closed logs are automatically updated on the Cloud, without pilot interaction, and 6) connects with 3rd party applications.
The first product to launch in the upcoming future is the L8 lightbar. Possessing the ability to tilt with the pilot’s field of view, the L8 installation design is one-of-a-kind in ag aviation. Designed with future GPS systems in mind, the L8 is also compatible with the Bantam, G4, and LSIV.
The dealers also heard about the IntelliFlow 3 as the second new product to launch in the upcoming months. It is part of the IntelliFlow product line, the only dry & wet dispersal system in the industry. The dealers saw the new compact, rugged design of the all-inclusive controller box. As a result of the new design, the entire system takes up less space. In addition, the controller box can rack mount or horizontal mount and has fewer external connections. All these new design adjustments make it easier to install and results in fewer maintenance issues.
Satloc Falcon GPS Guidance System
What was the “talk” about Satloc’s next-generation GPS? Here are a few bits of information to wet your whistle. Similar to its namesake, the Satloc Falcon brings many benefits to the applicator and grower. Falcons are fast. REALLY fast. Falcons are straightforward. Falcons endure miles of rough flying. Falcons never drop their prey. The Falcon’s vision is unrivaled by its competitors. Falcons represent a long legacy of tradition. UNPARALLELED is the word by many industry leaders when describing Satloc GPS systems. No other GPS matches the intelligence of Satloc Falcon —it does not disappoint.
