BRODHEAD - Kuhn North America has announced a second layoff this year, this time of 40 full-time employees.
On March 6, the company laid off 60 workers.
According to a company news release Friday, Kuhn North America has been forced to further reduce its sales and production plans for the remainder of 2009 and 2010, in response to farmers tightening their budgets and putting equipment purchases on hold, and to farm dealers not providing manufacturers with new orders.
Notice has been provided to 40 full-time employees, who will be "indefinitely laid off later this month."
Kuhn reported "other temporary adjustments have been implemented to help the company go through this difficult period for its business and the economy in general."
Kuhn North America has headquarters in Brodhead, and operates sales/distribution centers located in states of New York, Tennessee, Washington, Colorado, Nebraska and the providence of Quebec. The company is North America's largest manufacturer of TMR mixers and manure spreaders, and a leading provider of hay, forage and crop packaging tools.
Sloan Implement Company is one distributor of Kuhn equipment, as well as other brands, with stores in Cuba City, Monfort, Mt. Horeb, Bloomington and Monroe.
Monroe store manager Ryan O'Flanagan said the amount of equipment sales at their stores "depends on the location."
"Monroe is up, but our other stores are down a bit,' he said.
The difference in stores, O'Flanagan said, is because the Monroe location, selling dairy and traditional grain equipment, has a broader mix in its customer base.
With grain prices doing well, "there was some carryover from early in the year to keep those guys going," O'Flanagan said.
Dairy equipment sales, however, are lagging.
"Any time those individuals can patch to make things work or repair, they're doing it," he added.
Parts sales are just slightly down, he said.
Kuhn North America, Inc. reduced its manufacturing labor this spring, to align its staffing levels with machine orders and field inventory levels on hand at the at time. The company also initiated cost controls and reduction measures, reduced capital investment planned for 2009, scheduled manufacturing furloughs, reduced raw material and component purchases, and reduced inventory levels.
Unfortunately, the situation has not improved. During the entire 2009 calendar year, Kuhn's news release said, farm equipment manufacturers have experienced a disappointing trend of declining farm commodity prices, lower-than-anticipated farm incomes and problems related to a general lack of credit available to dealerships and farm customers.
In 2007 and 2008, the company saw growth in the farm economy.
Kuhn North America, Inc. was honored with one of Green County Development Corporation's 2008 Outstanding Business of the Year Awards on March 5.
Kuhn North America, Inc. had just completed its third expansion in five years, at a cost of $3.8 million, adding 66,000 square feet to the existing 141,000 square feet of manufacturing space, a new lobby/visitor center and renovated offices. Plans for the new space included new product manufacturing, part warehousing, and prototype and test facilities.
At that time, product output had more than doubled in the past five years, and the expansion led to an increase of approximately 50 to 100 employees.
The next day, March 6, Kuhn North America announced it was laying off 60 workers, effective immediately,
President and Chief Economic Officer Thierry Krier had cited difficult economic times and a reduced production schedule as reasons for less manufacturing capacity and fewer employees.
He said farm equipment managers began to see a decline in retail sales in late 2008, resulting from a decline in farm commodity prices and lower-than-anticipated farm incomes, which deteriorated rapidly after January 2009.
Kuhn North America became the company's official name in 2008 after the Kuhn Group purchased Knight Manufacturing in 2002, propelling Kuhn into the top spot in North America and the world for TMR mixers and manure spreaders.
The company employees about 500 people in North America.
On March 6, the company laid off 60 workers.
According to a company news release Friday, Kuhn North America has been forced to further reduce its sales and production plans for the remainder of 2009 and 2010, in response to farmers tightening their budgets and putting equipment purchases on hold, and to farm dealers not providing manufacturers with new orders.
Notice has been provided to 40 full-time employees, who will be "indefinitely laid off later this month."
Kuhn reported "other temporary adjustments have been implemented to help the company go through this difficult period for its business and the economy in general."
Kuhn North America has headquarters in Brodhead, and operates sales/distribution centers located in states of New York, Tennessee, Washington, Colorado, Nebraska and the providence of Quebec. The company is North America's largest manufacturer of TMR mixers and manure spreaders, and a leading provider of hay, forage and crop packaging tools.
Sloan Implement Company is one distributor of Kuhn equipment, as well as other brands, with stores in Cuba City, Monfort, Mt. Horeb, Bloomington and Monroe.
Monroe store manager Ryan O'Flanagan said the amount of equipment sales at their stores "depends on the location."
"Monroe is up, but our other stores are down a bit,' he said.
The difference in stores, O'Flanagan said, is because the Monroe location, selling dairy and traditional grain equipment, has a broader mix in its customer base.
With grain prices doing well, "there was some carryover from early in the year to keep those guys going," O'Flanagan said.
Dairy equipment sales, however, are lagging.
"Any time those individuals can patch to make things work or repair, they're doing it," he added.
Parts sales are just slightly down, he said.
Kuhn North America, Inc. reduced its manufacturing labor this spring, to align its staffing levels with machine orders and field inventory levels on hand at the at time. The company also initiated cost controls and reduction measures, reduced capital investment planned for 2009, scheduled manufacturing furloughs, reduced raw material and component purchases, and reduced inventory levels.
Unfortunately, the situation has not improved. During the entire 2009 calendar year, Kuhn's news release said, farm equipment manufacturers have experienced a disappointing trend of declining farm commodity prices, lower-than-anticipated farm incomes and problems related to a general lack of credit available to dealerships and farm customers.
In 2007 and 2008, the company saw growth in the farm economy.
Kuhn North America, Inc. was honored with one of Green County Development Corporation's 2008 Outstanding Business of the Year Awards on March 5.
Kuhn North America, Inc. had just completed its third expansion in five years, at a cost of $3.8 million, adding 66,000 square feet to the existing 141,000 square feet of manufacturing space, a new lobby/visitor center and renovated offices. Plans for the new space included new product manufacturing, part warehousing, and prototype and test facilities.
At that time, product output had more than doubled in the past five years, and the expansion led to an increase of approximately 50 to 100 employees.
The next day, March 6, Kuhn North America announced it was laying off 60 workers, effective immediately,
President and Chief Economic Officer Thierry Krier had cited difficult economic times and a reduced production schedule as reasons for less manufacturing capacity and fewer employees.
He said farm equipment managers began to see a decline in retail sales in late 2008, resulting from a decline in farm commodity prices and lower-than-anticipated farm incomes, which deteriorated rapidly after January 2009.
Kuhn North America became the company's official name in 2008 after the Kuhn Group purchased Knight Manufacturing in 2002, propelling Kuhn into the top spot in North America and the world for TMR mixers and manure spreaders.
The company employees about 500 people in North America.