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Equipment Choices
MirTech Harvest Center welcomed everyone to the “Red Tour Event”.
Pictured left to right… Sales Manager – David Shearer; General Manager – Tom Livingston;
President – Robert Krattli; Senior Sales Associate – Larry Williams.
Photo by John LaRose, Jr.
MirTech Moves Into Ag Equipment Industry In Delta
BETTY VALLE GEGG-NAEGER
MidAmerica Farmer Grower
SIKESTON, MO.
A Colorado native who is owner and founder of MirTech, Robert Krattli, and Tom Livingston, General Manager of the new facility, hosted a customer event at their dealership of agricultural equipment at MirTech Harvest Center, 101 County Line Road, here recently. The Red Tour event is the first of three in the Mississippi Delta, the other locations being the MirTech Harvest Center at 3402 Willow Road, Jonesboro Ark., and at Cross B Arena, 2219 HWY 63 N, Stuttgart Ark.
“We are setting up what will be a very successful dealership of agricultural equipment in the Delta,” Krattli said.
“With the opportunity we have here, we are very excited today, and we look forward to show our products to our customers,” Livingston added.
The lead product of MirTech is CLAAS, the well-known German manufacturer of high-tech agricultural equipment, leading off with their LEXION combine and full line of agricultural tractors.
“Along with that we represent Manitou Telehandlers and we have a number of those models here for demo and for driving, as well as the attachments that come with them,” Livingston added.
“We intend to be a full line dealer of agricultural equipment,” Krattli said. “This company got started in late summer of last year. We are still in the learning to walk stage, but we are confident in this territory and excited about the range of agricultural products which are produced in this region and some of the really fine farming companies and farming families that we’ve met so far.”
CLAAS of America President and GM Sales Manager Eric Raby, noted the territory encompassing the Missouri Bootheel and Northeastern Arkansas is one of the most productive rice farming areas in the world.
“Our CLAAS LEXION combines are particularly well suited for challenging rice crops, and we are excited to build our support of farmers in the region with an experienced dealer organization,” he said.
The LEXION model combine, assembled in Omaha, Nebraska, is designed to handle many of the challenges presented by rice crops. These high-capacity harvesters offer a TERRA TRAC undercarriage, hardened components and a superior “hybrid” threshing and separation system that work particularly well in wet and challenging rice harvesting conditions.
“We are excited with the prospect of bringing MirTech on board, not only to grow our combine business but also as a long-line CLAAS dealer, which directly ties to our distribution strategy,” said Raby. “In addition to our combines, MirTech will carry our new XERION tractor line, JAGUAR forage harvesters and our balers and hay tools, providing growers in the area with an even broader selection of equipment than they previously received.”
Livingston touted the experience the two have in the agricultural equipment industry.
“We have a number of salesmen that have been in this industry a long time, who, along with Robert and myself are very eager to show these products and get everybody involved with them,” he said.
Krattli noted that Livingston also is very experienced because he was a manager at a CLAAS dealership on the other side of the river for many years. “Also, I represent a group which has been a CLAAS dealer for almost 20 years in another part of the world over in the eastern part of Europe. We come with a lot of experience, both good and bad over the years, and I think we can shed all the bad and apply the good.”
Livingston stressed that the two are making agricultural business 100 percent of their focus.
“Our business is agriculture, our experience is in that business and our future is in that business,” he said. “We’re excited to be here and to share that and be part of the community here.”
Having teamed up with experienced employees with a stocked warehouse of parts and trained technicians, all with a focus on the agriculture business, the two feel there’s a great future here for MirTech. With facilities in Sikeston, Mo., Jonesboro and Stuttgart, Ark., Krattli invites everyone from the Missouri Bootheel to the Louisiana border to come visit soon.
MirTech can be contacted through its 24-hour hotline, 844-690-8130 which connects with both the Sikeston and Jonesboro facilities, or by accessing the company website at www.mirtechusa.com or you can find them on Facebook and YouTube.
“On our website you can find all our contact information, our facilities, phone number, products that will be represented, a little bit about our history, a little bit about our future, and everything we have to offer here throughout the Delta,” Krattli said.
As a CLAAS dealer in several parts of the world, the two are very well acquainted with harvest season needs, and their responsibility to be alert and ready to help the farmer any time of the day or night when they are in the field.
“The farmers need to know we’re standing behind them. That’s our credo, that’s the way we built our company,” Krattli said.
“Exactly,” added Livingston, “and we’ve had those experiences already that we’ve talked about. One thing to know is we don’t work 8 to 5, and neither do our customers. MirTech Harvest Center is here ready to support you during those seasons.”
With so many competitors out there advertising and promoting all kinds of agricultural equipment with various options, you may ask why you should take a look at the CLAAS or the Manitou lines of equipment as opposed to one of the competitors.
“One thing we tell people and we’re very proud of is that we are a leader in technology and quality in our products. When you look at any of our products, you know you’re getting a high-quality piece of equipment that’s designed specifically for this type of agricultural environment. Equipment that is going to produce and last, and be a piece of machinery that you are going to use for a long time to come,” Livingston said.
Krattli added: “Talk to any of the farmers in this or any other part of North America who have tried the CLAAS LEXION combine. They’ll all tell you the same story. Of course, I’m a salesman for the company, I’m a representative of the company and you can expect me to say ‘we’re the best.’ But don’t believe just me, talk to the people that have used and are using the CLAAS LEXION combine. It is representative of the finest German engineering, and it’s assembled in Omaha, Neb. We are employing a lot of Americans to build this combine.”
“Not only the CLAAS LEXION, but every product we represent here at MirTech Harvest Center, whether it be MacDon headers, or Manitou telehandlers, Gehl skid steers, on down the line, every piece of equipment that we have is one of the best on the market today and that’s why it’s part of the MirTech team,” Livingston noted.
“Speaking of Manitou, this company invented the concept of the Telehandler in France, and it’s the first in the world to produce telehandlers,” said Krattli. “They’ve always maintained the technical advantage, so in a way, they’re like CLAAS, they have the highest level of technology and they assemble machines here in the United States.”
“Besides the quality of these products, MirTech stands behind them with the most highly educated service team ready to back you up 24/7.” Krattli said. “We have an efficient parts system with a large inventory, to get farmers up and running quickly if needed. We at MirTech are here to support you after the sale.”
Krattli and Livingston, with their extensive agricultural background experience stressed, “Our business is agriculture, our experience is in that business and our future is in that business. We’re excited to be here and to share that and be part of the community here.” ∆
BETTY VALLE GEGG-NAEGER: Senior Staff Writer, MidAmerica Farmer Grower
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