A business engineered for longevity

Vale Industries: A Business Engineered for Longevity

By Dave Bannister Vale Industries is a diversified steel manufacturing company located east of Regina at Indian Head, Saskatchewan. The company has a strong history of providing portable and stationary materials handling. Its roots date back over 30 years of agricultural manufacturing, with the current establishment of its product mix and business model in 2014.

Vale Industries operates in two primary areas:

Agriculture

Hopper Cones and Grain Giant Field Bins

Aggregate and mining

Portable Conveyors, Feeders and Hoppers, Portable Plants, and Stationary Equipment.

Kendra Cruson is Business Support Manager at Vale, as well as an owner. She leads production planning, purchasing, marketing, and human resources. As owner, she manages finances and works with CEO Pieter Cruson on strategic planning, forecasting and budgeting. Cruson grew up on a Saskatchewan farm and feels a strong connection to the land. “My career has largely been connected to agriculture. I earned my MBA at The University of Regina, started my career in ag manufacturing and spent some time on the grain buying side. My business partner and husband, Pieter, and I have worked hard to own a steel manufacturing business for the better part of our careers, and now own Vale Industries. I love the ag industry!” Cruson considers her management role a collaborative one. “We are continuously collaborating in all aspects of the business with our senior leadership team, from the highly technical side to procurement, staffing, and sales,” she explains. “We also work closely with our foremen and shop staff to improve their departments and increase efficiency. As Mark Twain said, ‘Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection,’ and I pretty much live by this. I often encourage my team by reminding them that every little improvement counts and can have exponential impact on the person and the business. We have a small but mighty team of experts helping us to run a safe and successful business.” Vale Industries’ vision is to be a worldclass manufacturer of quality steel products. “This is the language of the LEAN manufacturing philosophy," according to Cruson. “Here is a definition I like to use: World class

manufacturing is the philosophy of being the best, the fastest, and the lowest cost producer of a product or service. It implies the constant improvement of products, process and service to remain an industry leader and provide the best choice for customers, regardless of where they are in the process.” Cruson describes their operations: “Our mix of business has varied slightly from year to year, typically around 60% agriculture and 40% mining and aggregates. This year our ag hoppers will contribute less due to poor farm conditions and increased steel prices.” She expects future demand for the hoppers to remain strong though. “Our hoppers are engineered for strength and durability,” she explains. “We paint the interior of the cone for better product flow, and we have our own trucking/pilot fleets delivering our product directly to the farm.” The other primary ag product is their field bins. “We expect our Grain Giant to expand considerably with the launch at the Agri-Trade Equipment Expo in November,” Cruson explains. “We are the only manufacturer of field bins in Canada, and we offer the largest capacity in North America. Our bin holds a whopping 6500 bushels!” In the Aggregate and Mining sector, Cruson emphasizes Vale’s key Kendra Cruson strengths: “We offer Design-EngineerBusiness Support Manager Build options for our clients that allow Vale Industries

full customization. Our reputation is for high quality and industry leading service.” 'Made in Canada' is an important aspect of the company’s offering, according to Cruson. “We love to support local as much as we can, and our customers feel the same way.” Cruson notes that it has been a challenge adapting business operations to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Internally we have closed our office to the public to limit potential exposure, while following all the provincial health regulations. The biggest impact from COVID-19 has been in material cost and delivery. First are steel prices. Our products take a lot of steel to produce. The typical hollow structural tubing used in all our hopper products has increased over 300 per cent in the last 12 months. Second are the supply chain problems in general. We are seeing lead times stretching, prices increasing, surcharges being added mid-order, and I believe the crest is still to come. We are mitigating this by increasing our prices and planning further into the

future. We have had success pulling together to improve our estimating process, improving planning and purchasing, and we are generally more in touch with our costs in all aspects of the business.” Cruson credits working strategically and collaboratively with Vale’s dealer network for much of their success. “We focused on what they need to grow their businesses, which in turn has made Vale an invaluable partner for their operations. We have big plans to expand our hopper sales across the Prairies and northern states, build up our Grain Giant dealer network and expand our export sales to the U.S. with our Aggregates and Mining products. I expect our revenue growth in five years to increase by 20 percent, with a doubling of our dealer network across North America.” The bulk of Vale’s sales are from Canada, specifically Saskatchewan. The ratio of Canadian to U.S. sales is about 70:30, with markets outside of Canada being primarily in the northern states and the Pacific Northwest. Vale employs 85 full-time and 12 seasonal employees, according to Cruson. “Skilled workers in the manufacturing industry are in high demand due to the number of successful manufacturing companies in our small trading area,” she notes. “We offer unique hours that allow for us to wrap our work week at noon on Fridays, we build our team and promote within, we do exciting projects, and we really have the small town feel. About 50 per cent of our staff live right in Indian Head, 40 per cent from surrounding communities and farms, and 10 per cent come out from Regina.” The company is recruiting for a Metal Fabricator, a Welder/Fitter, an Ag Equipment Technician, and a Heavy-Duty Mechanic. Vale Industries has been an AMC member since 1991, notes Cruson. “AMC helps keep me in touch with what is happening outside my doors. They provide beneficial information and have great events where peers can connect and share ideas.”

"AMC helps keep me in touch with what is happening outside my doors."

A LONG WAY TOGETHER

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