“Fact of service,” Albert Friedrich says about his decision to partner with Anson Electric for his irrigation installation and maintenance needs. “I can call into the office, and many times the Anson guys will be out to the field that same afternoon.”

So, this past fall, when it came time to add to an existing center-pivot system, he didn’t think twice when he contacted Anson to handle the installation.

Friedrich and his wife, Dianne, are third-generation corn and soybean growers. They farm outside of Plainview, Neb. “I put my first field in irrigation in the 1980s with tow lines,” Friedrich says. “The technology has changed a lot, and I’m not getting any younger. I depend on good advice when it comes to getting the most out of my investment.”

Loyalty plan

On a recent visit to a pivot installation at the Friedrich farm, Farm Progress learned that the family is receiving more than just guidance on design and installation from the crew at Anson. “I consider these guys friends. I know all their first names,” Friedrich says.

Like many irrigation-service businesses, Anson Electric Inc. is a family-owned company that has been in business for years. Terry and Rita Anson started in 1986 in Ewing, Neb., with one service truck, manned by Terry. Hugh Benson joined the Ansons in 1988 as a serviceman and continues to help the company grow by managing new irrigation installations.

Today, the company employs eight full-time servicemen, including Anson’s son, Seth, and Benson’s son, Boyd. “Running five service rigs and high-quality service techs allows us to keep things going year-round,” Benson says. “In the summertime, we’re taking an average of 30 calls per day.”

Benson points out that conversations with a producer begin long before product sales and installation.

“On new development ground, the grower usually makes contact with us, and we set up a meeting to discuss the project,” he says. “We have a mapping program that allows us to measure the field and get a very basic drawing, showing the length of pivot and what acres the farmer will get with it.”

5 tips for pivot install prep

Benson suggests five tips for farmers like Friedrich, who are installing center-pivot irrigation:

1. Always try to be the most efficient with your water. “An average irrigated quarter of land gets about 135 irrigated acres,” Benson says. “The farmer contacts a well driller they want to use, and they come and do a test hole so we know how many gallons per minute they can pump. [In Nebraska], that data gets submitted to the local Natural Resources District as part of the grower’s application. For example, if the farmer has a pivot that will water 135 acres, and the well will pump 850 gallons per minute, we’re looking at 6.29 gallons per acre.

“The NRD will then look over the farmer’s application, checking the soil maps of the property the pivot is going on,” Benson adds. “The NRD also calculates other aspects such as if there is severe runoff or trees that need to come out. The NRD has a wide range of criteria they look at and a grading system that gives the farmer a score. Based on these criteria, the NRD adds the grower to the list of application considerations. Once approved, we get boots on the ground with our hand-held GPS and measure the field.

Keep in mind that other states may require different permitting or regulatory obligations, depending on local and state statutes.

Technicians then determine the lay of the land. “We want towers to hit high points in the field, so we have ground clearance, and we avoid what I call ‘crop scalping,’ making sure the pivot doesn’t drag in the corn,” Benson says. “We also look at field elevation, so the correct criteria for the sprinkler package gets collected.”

Once the decisions have been laid out for the length of pivot, the gallons of water the farmer wants to pump and the layout of the towers, it's time to guide the farmer to get the most out of their investment.

2. Design for the future, not the past. “We discuss the sprinklers we feel will be best,” Benson says. “Sprinklers that throw the water in the largest diameter [45-50 feet] are usually better for heavier soils. You want to avoid runoff and have more soak time. Sandier and flatter ground, you can get by with smaller diameter throws [35-40 feet].”

Friedrich says he went with sprinklers he feels will best maximize his acres with end-gun control. “Hugh suggested a second end gun on this one,” Friedrich says. “The first end gun reaches 100 feet, second end gun, 50 feet. I have Komet Precision twister sprinklers. They do better on windy days.”

“We also visit about the use of regulators,” Benson says. “A regulator controls the amount of pressure each sprinkler head sees. It also keeps the water pattern more precise on uneven ground.”

3. An extra dollar spent saves expense down the road. “On the tire side,” Benson says, “we look at soil again and factors such as, will there be severe mud tracking, or is it sandy enough that we don’t have to worry about getting stuck? Maybe the grower never wants to have a flat tire, so they go to an airless tire that gives more clearance and leaves a narrow and shallow track.”

Friedrich’s decision to go with airless tires was an easy one. “I have the 11.2-by-38 airless Mach 2. I’m too old to be messing with flats,” he admits.

“An important thing I go over are the control panels,” Benson says. “Does the grower want the basic panel that they manually go out to start in the direction wanted, along with the amount of water to put on? Or does the grower want a computer panel that they can control with a phone? Water management is the key. The costs to irrigate are high, so the advantage of being up to date on control is worth the extra dollars spent.”

4. Ask questions because you’re the one writing the check. “I now have about all I really need to build the pivot that we have designed in our conversations with the grower,” Benson says. “I go ahead and build a quote, look up financing info, and then submit to the grower.

“One last thing I try to go over is the warranty. I know all that the farmer wants, so now I can show them the warranties on what was chosen. Reinke has warranties that cover gearboxes for 10 years and motors for eight years, along with other electrical and structural warranties.”

5. Build a relationship with your dealer and let the respect of buyer and seller go both ways. “We are all stewards of the land,” Friedrich says as he looks over his shiny new Reinke pivot. “What we put into it and take out of it requires careful consideration.”

The relationship that Friedrich and the Anson Electric team have established is one built on respect and trust. “It benefits all of us. And that’s good business,” Friedrich says.

Wortmann writes from Crofton, Neb.