In this special 60th Anniversary issue of SideRoads, John Medemblik and the directors of Walinga Inc., share how the company started in 1954, how the feed industry has changed and where the industry is headed.
Cornelius Walinga and John Medemblik started Commercial Body and Coach in Fergus, Ontario, and began handcrafting wooden truck bodies for the feed industry. That small business grew from a two-man shop to Walinga Inc., a thriving company that employs 270 people in five locations in Canada and the United States.
Feed truck innovation, personalization
Feed truck innovation, personalization
Remaining true to its roots, Walinga doesn’t offer one-size-fits-all trailers or products and created a niche in the feed industry by personalizing trucks based on what the customer needs.
“We have ongoing requests for innovation from our customers to help solve a particular set of issues, and we’re open to that,” says John Medemblik, CEO and president of Walinga Inc. “We’re constantly constructing a different type of unit. It's more expensive, because we have three to four times the engineering expense, but we build the product so it lasts.”
Future of feed truck technology
Walinga continues to focus on biosecurity, electronics, maintenance and innovating new products as the feed industry evolves. On the feed equipment side, Walinga is actively looking at how to clean equipment effectively and efficiently through design and prevent contamination.
As feed industry regulations continue to become tighter, Walinga is focused on reducing its customers’ costs of operation, lowering maintenance budgets and making a safer and more productive feed truck body.
“The feed industry is very astute, and for the most part has stayed ahead of government regulations and is exceeding them,” says Terry Medemblik, marketing director at Walinga Inc. “We have a direct effect on the health of society, and the industry is making sure we are doing the right thing. The biggest change coming for the feed industry is we will have to monitor, maintain, regulate and ensure that the feed we produce and transport is clean and safe.”
SideRoads is an exclusive digital publication from Walinga, an industry leader in feed transportation equipment. Feed professionals use SideRoads to strengthen their industry knowledge with valuable information including: Insights on transportation efficiencies not found anywhere else, in-depth stories on how industry peers are innovating for success, money-saving ideas and real-world perspectives on current industry challenges.
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