From humble beginnings to one of the province’s manufacturing powerhouses
Saskatchewan’s manufacturing sector is vital to the province’s continued growth and prosperity. The sector is thriving, setting a record last year with $11.6 billion in exports, and companies like Dutch Industries are a key reason for this growth. Starting as a small one-person blacksmith shop in Regina’s north industrial park more than 70 years ago, the company has grown to 110 employees working in an 85,000 square foot facility spread across 25 acres in Pilot Butte.
“Saskatchewan is the heartbeat of agriculture within the grain belt,” said Jason Steinley, Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “I don’t know if there’s a better place to situate yourself than Saskatchewan.”
Its location enables Dutch Industries to quickly reach markets in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg, has easy access to railway lines and the Trans-Canada Highway, and is only two days away from ports on the western coast of Canada. This proximity to shipping corridors is crucial to the company in reaching its national and international markets.
The origins of Dutch Industries can be traced to 1930s Holland, where Pieter Cruson was a traditional blacksmith working primarily with farmers and local businesses. After the Second World War, however, the business climate became more challenging. Looking for other opportunities, Cruson travelled to Canada – “the land of opportunity” – in 1950, and a year later moved his family to Saskatchewan where they started setting down roots.
Fast-forward to the 90s, and Dutch Industries was now housed in an expansive 40,000 square foot facility. That is when they started focusing on specialized manufacturing work for other agricultural machinery manufacturers, and fabricating larger custom-designed items, such as modular-style trailers. They also diversified into powder coating, serving customers through one of the largest manufacturing facilities in the province.
The agriculture industry also continued to evolve with the introduction of no-till farming, which opened up new opportunities. Constructing specialized knives for no-till farmers looking for low disturbance seeding openers for air seeders, led to the creation and rapid growth of the company’s Dutch Opener’s side of the business.
“If farmers bought a machine from one of the larger implement manufacturers, such as John Deere or Case, and it came with a standard opener with limited capabilities, not every farmer wanted to farm with that style of opener,” said Steinley. “Maybe they wanted to place their seed and fertilizer in separate furrows or do something more than what the OEM offered. Dutch Openers came in and designed an opener to offer them exactly that.”
The company has always been committed to meeting the specific needs of the Saskatchewan farmer. Currently, they manufacture around 900 parts that go into 3,200 different assemblies that farmers can pick for their air seeders, allowing them to customize the right opener for their seeding operations.
Starting out as a traditional blacksmith shop, Dutch Industries had hundreds of customers approaching them to manufacture various custom components. This led to the custom manufacturing side of the company, allowing them to streamline their operations even further by building components in high volumes for other manufacturers. Some of these companies have now been working with Dutch Industries for more than 50 years and have grown to include businesses in the United States, Australia and Europe.
Over the years, Dutch Industries has remained responsive to the changing needs of its customers, while also identifying new markets. After a 5-year manufacturing agreement to build and market manure spreaders for a UK-based company in North America, Dutch Industries introduced its own line of manure spreaders, the Dutch BioSpreader. This spreader was designed specifically for the Canadian and North American markets by making it lower, wider, and more stable than the design built for narrow UK roads.
Understanding customer needs is integral to Dutch Industries’ success. By working directly with its farmer base through its “On the Farm for You” program, their Territory Managers visit farms with samples of what they believe are a good fit for individual producers. This personal approach allows individual farmers to use the system which best fits their equipment and the unique needs on their farm.
Dutch Industries is the epitome of grass-roots Saskatchewan innovation. Their design engineers, who are also farmers, spend plenty of time with producers, learning about and understanding the needs of farmers to grow the market in Saskatchewan and beyond.
The company works with its customers right from concept and design, through to production and shipment. Apart from agriculture, it also has experience in a range of other industries, including oil and gas, heavy machinery, construction, and structural steel. In essence, Dutch Industries has become a manufacturer for other manufacturers.
The Saskatchewan government has helped Dutch Industries grow its market share overseas, most notably in Germany, France and Australia. “They’ve assisted us in setting up meetings and helped us do boots-on-the-ground research, which has helped us to understand the markets we’re trying to access, the different styles of farming, and the best way of getting our product to their farmers,” said Steinley.
Over nearly three-quarters of a century, Dutch Industries has grown into a company supplying both local and international markets in 11 countries, but it remains true to its Saskatchewan roots.
“It’s been an excellent place to do business, and we can reach a lot of different markets really quickly,” said Steinley. “We’re one of the manufacturers that started in Saskatchewan and really built a business here. There’s a reason people like to do business in Saskatchewan, and I think a lot of it is our ability to be innovative and find solutions. There are a lot of good people here that drive innovation and are getting noticed on the global market.”
The success of manufacturing businesses like Dutch Industries ensures that the province can continue to build strong and vibrant communities in which local entrepreneurs are able to flourish.
For more information visit: InvestSK.ca.
Contact:
Media Relations
Trade and Export Development
Regina
Phone: 306-526-6302
Email: media.ted@gov.sk.ca