Services

Speaking / Strategic Planning

I've been very fortunate over the years to work with swine producers and swine companies of all sizes. I've watched companies grow and adapt to the changes that the pig industry has had occur in the last 40. I have seen the good and the bad. I doubt if I have seen every mistake, but I have seen a lot of them.

This insight and experience provide opportunities for presentations at your company meetings. I've worked with pig farms of all sizes from small independently owned ones to the third largest pig company in the world.

In addition, one of the opportunities I have had was as a board of director of a local bank here in Greensburg starting in 1993. I got to participate as the bank grew into MainSource Financial Group (MSFG) which was a NASDAQ listed company. By 2018 it had grown from 150 million to a 1-billion-dollar capital valuation company when it merged into First Financial Bancorp (FFBC). The learning curve of sitting on a NASDAQ traded bank that grew by this much over that time has brought me much insight into areas outside of the swine industry. If your company has a need for a speaker and or a participant in strategic planning, I'm available to bring the insights from my experience.

Employee Education

One of the fun opportunities that grew from my practice was the chance to do a lot of teaching of young veterinarians. Eventually I offered this “pig school” training to people involved in all aspects of the swine industry.

Literally hundreds of non-veterinary employees of animal health companies and tech companies have attended my “Pig School” to help understand how the pig industry works. They represent sales, marketing, research and even engineers. They get a chance to learn how the industry has developed and how it flows today. For many of them with no pig background, it is a great chance to learn in a small group setting and interact and ask questions. We discuss genetics, health, nutrition, records, costs and all aspects of the swine industry. It helps develop a foundation that they may not have had in their formal education.

I enjoy interacting with people that are new to the pig industry and teaching them how the industry works and why it looks the way that it does today.

We keep our groups to less than 8 people at a time so that we have interaction among the participants. There are no dumb questions! My demonstration barn has an excellent modern classroom and gives us a chance to be among the pigs when we step out of the classroom into the nursery and finisher that is on site. There is nothing like touching and smelling the pigs to help reinforce much of what we learned in the classroom.

Our facility is conveniently located for these classes as we are just an hour’s drive from the Indianapolis or Cincinnati airport. Greensburg has excellent accommodations for the students to stay overnight.

Give me a call or drop me an email if your company might have some interest in learning more about my program and how we can fit it to your exact needs.

Demonstration Barn

The research demonstration farm here at my home farm has been in operation for 6 years. It is a real opportunity to see pigs and products in action and collect data. The facility consists of a 10 pen 250 head nursery room and a 10 pen 250 head finishing rooms with a large modern classroom.

The pigs are housed 25 to a pen on slatted flooring over deep pits. Feeders, waterers and pig density are typical of a modern facility. We can do average daily gain feed, feed efficiency, feed intake and mortality for each group as well as each pen.

The facility includes a modern classroom setting that works well to go over material that is being demonstrated on the farm and to do training sessions.

The barn and day to day chores are done by FFA members from our local high schools under my supervision. We rotate new students in every 4-6 months to give lots of student’s animal caretaker opportunities. I find that these students are outstanding at day-to-day pig care and taking care of the pigs. In the past 6 years we have had over 35 students work and gain experience. One big advantage for me and your project is their enthusiasm and passion.

The facility represents a great way to collect data and see your product in use. We also are a good location for equipment demonstrations and data collection. From animal health to equipment and everything in between, we can meet your needs.

The facility is in Greensburg, Indiana which is a short interstate one-hour drive from both the Indianapolis and Cincinnati airports. It's an easy place to come to and bring customers to see your product's in action. We welcome visitors and your customers.

If you have further interest, be sure and give me a call.