Editorial Contacts
Jim Austin - 715-323-3588
Managing Director, Targeted Content Inc.
Mike Schweiss - 507-426-8273
Owner, Schweiss Doors
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Agtegra Coop award-winning aerial spray hangar sports 70-foot drive-thru hydraulic doors from Schweiss
FAIRFAX, Minn., February 5, 2019 – Agtegra Cooperative has expanded its service area to reach rural customers in 60 communities throughout North and South Dakota. One of those communities is Harrold, S.D., home of the Harrold Municipal Airport, site of Agtegra’s new crop spraying hangar, complete with two hydraulic doors from Schweiss Doors.
The Harrold airport, with its 2,250-foot by 200-foot asphalt runway, is just one of Agtegra’s success and growth stories. The cooperative has expanded its custom air crop spraying operations to a seven-plane fleet that operates out of the Huron, Highmore, Clark, Webster and Miller areas.
The cooperative purchased its first Schweiss door in 2011, a 70-foot by 14-foot bifold with liftstraps. Recently, Agtegra contacted Schweiss to purchase two 70-foot by 14-foot one-piece hydraulic doors to attach at each end of a new 100-foot by 140-foot crop spraying steel hangar built by Leimbach Construction of Fort Pierre, S.D. Openings at both ends of the new agricultural hangar makes loading and taxiing in and out a real timesaver – the hangar allows crews to load two planes at the same time.
“We appreciate the efficiency the doors give us,” says Craig Bair, director of the Agtegra Aerial business. “Driving planes through the hangar beats turning them around and loading outside. We have one quick-fueling system with two loading hoses. Everything remains inside, away from the elements and properly secure.”
The Schweiss hydraulic doors are not centered on the endwalls. “We set them over about 8-10 feet in that big building,” Bair says. “That gave us way more loading storage room on one side. Because we have bulk chemicals in the hangar, that also allows us to drive semis in and out.”
Bair, like many pilots, is not new to Schweiss Doors products and appreciates the simplicity of the company’s hydraulic one-piece style of door because there are fewer moving parts.
“The Schweiss hydraulic doors are trouble-free, well-built and solid,” he says. “They just work extremely well. Our Schweiss doors can withstand 40 mph winds and don’t move. They are a solid choice.”
Bair also was pleased with Schweiss service. “We’ve always had good support,” he says. “We had an electrical glitch on an old door and they were always really good about getting somebody to us and telling us what to do. Tech support has been really good. Schweiss has been in the business a long time and has figured it out. I like dealing with someone with a reputation; it comes back to you in support later.”
At the busiest time of the year, the staff at Agtegra Aerial works hard on the ground and in the air to deliver timely aerial applications. As summer progresses, the pilots conduct aerial applications of fungicides, insecticides and foliar feeds. Spraying from the skies is a fast, efficient option for critical applications.
The Agtegra Aerial fleet includes two Air Tractor 502s, two Air Tractor 402s, an Air Tractor 602, an Air Tractor 802 and a Piper Brave.
“Our aerial fleet continues to be a great complement to our ground rigs,” Bair says. “We can treat by air when weather/soil conditions are unfavorable. Plus, there’s a growing usage for aerial application of plant health products like fungicides and CoRon®.”
Leimbach Construction, an authorized installer of Schweiss doors, received an honorable mention award from Chief Buildings for its work on the Agtegra hangar.
Schweiss Doors is the premier manufacturer of hydraulic and bifold liftstrap doors. Doors are custom made to any size for any type of new or existing building for architects and builders determined to do amazing things with their buildings, including the doors. Schweiss also offers a cable to liftstrap conversion package. For more information, visit www.bifold.com.
Photo Captions:
Agtegra1: Agtegra Cooperative installed two of these 70-foot by 14-foot Schweiss hydraulic doors for its aerial spraying operation in Harrold, S.D. The two doors, one on each end of the hangar, offer the capability of in-and-out refueling and loading chemicals into its fleet of Air Tractors.
Agtegra2: When open, the 14-foot tall door provides a nice shaded canopy. Previous to this the Coop also purchased a 70-foot x 14-foot bifold liftstrap door for another building.
Agtegra3: The hydraulic doors were set over about 8 to 10 feet from the center of the hangar to give them more bulk chemical loading storage room on one side.
Agtegra4: Agtegra Coop operates its aerial spraying operation out of this new 100-foot by 140-foot hangar to serve its many rural customers in South and North Dakota. The hangar is large enough to bring semis in and out to unload chemicals.
Agtegra5: The Agtegra aerial fleet includes two Air Tractor 502s, two 402s, a 602, an 802 and one Piper Brave used to service more than 60 communities.
Agtegra6: The Schweiss hydraulic one-piece door gives the hangar a nice clean look and locks up tight to protect the chemicals and equipment stored inside. Leimbach Construction Inc. of Fort Pierre, S.D., received an award from Chief Buildings for construction of the 100-foot by 140-foot Agtegra hangar. They also installed the hydraulic doors.