Specialised milking-machine service
Takaka businessman George Whiting. Photo: Neil Wilson.
Milking machine expert George Whiting reckons he’s starting to get used to being his own boss. George and his wife Yvonne started Kahurangi Farm Services last year after The Rural Service Centre got out of the milking machine servicing industry.
“I’d been recuperating from a serious motorbike accident and it gave me the chance to do some thinking about my future,” says George. “I could see a niche in the market that I could fill. I’ve been in the industry 21 years, the last 16 at the Rural Service Centre. I built a lot of the milking machines in the Bay and I thought I could offer a specialised service. I’m putting the service back in the business. If my clients have got things that need looking at, we’ll do that without trying to sell them a new machine all the time. I don’t care if your pulsators are 30 years old, I’ll service them. Being a small operation helps to keep our costs low, too. My time starts when I’m on the farm doing the job.”
George has a Milking Machine Tester’s Practising Certificate so he is qualified to do the work, but to keep his qualification up-to-date he will be attending a refresher course at Massey University in Palmerston North.
The Whitings say that Kahurangi Farm Services feels like “the ground floor of a very interesting business opportunity.” Client feedback has certainly been very positive so far.
A Kahurangi Farm Services client, Allen Curnow, said that he was more than happy to deal with George because of the personal service he offers.
Neil Wilson
