In this episode of On the Record, brought to you by Associated Equipment Distributors, Art’s Way Mfg. benefited from increased demand for its ag segment products, reporting Q1 sales up 27.3%. We also cover major business moves as Yetter finalizes the Martin-Till acquisition, catching up with Steve Martin and Derek Allensworth on what customers and dealers can expect going forward. In the Technology Corner, a precision specialist comes to the rescue on the first day of planting season. Plus, we look at the CEMA Business Barometer, which shows the outlook for European ag manufacturers remains largely negative as the general business climate index continues to decline, especially in the arable equipment segment.

    Associated Equipment Distributors

This episode of On the Record is brought to you by Associated Equipment Distributors — the leading association in North America for the equipment distribution industry.  

Get ready for a powerful start to the year with AED’s packed lineup of Q1 and Q2 events designed to connect, educate, and energize industry professionals. From high-impact conferences and hands-on training sessions to exclusive member gatherings and strategic leadership programs, AED is bringing together top experts and forward-thinking dealers to share insights that drive growth. Whether you’re looking to sharpen your team’s skills, stay ahead of emerging trends, or expand your network, our first-half-of-the-year events deliver unmatched opportunities to elevate your business and strengthen your competitive edge. Visit www.aednet.org/ for more information.


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Art’s Way Reports Increased Demand, Q1 Sales Up 27%

Art’s Way Mfg., benefited from an increased demand for its ag segment products during the first quarter compared to the same period of 2025.

Art’s Way President & CEO Marc McConnell said in a statement, “Livestock prices remained elevated through the first quarter of fiscal 2026 and are driving most of the demand for our agricultural products, as a large portion of our customer base raises livestock and row crops.”

For the ag segment, Art’s Way’s Q1 sales were $3,754,000, up 27.3% over the same period last year. 

Art’s Way’s fall early order program concluded with a 62% increase in orders on our non-beet equipment. Sugar beet equipment orders were down 63%.

“Overall order book from the early order program was up 11%, which leads us to believe the agricultural market is entering a recovery despite continued increasing input costs.”

Art’s Way’s grinder mixer sales were up $909,000 year-over-year and represent the most product line for the first quarter of fiscal 2026. The manufacturer continues to carry a strong grinder mixer backlog into the second quarter of fiscal 2026 and foresees steady shipments in the second quarter of fiscal 2026.

Dealers on the Move

This week’s Dealer on the Move is Butler Machinery. The AGCO dealer announced plans to build a new, state-of-the art facility in Mapleton, N.D., designed to better serve customers throughout the Fargo area and surrounding region. 

#Plant26: Johnson Tractor Precision Farming Specialist Saves the Day

Planting season is here, and with it comes “busy season” for precision specialists. In today’s Technology Corner segment, we pay a visit to Patrick Johnson, who was planting into a strip-tilled field for the first time in Clinton, Wis. Patrick ran into some trouble with his planter, but luckily his precision specialist was just a call away, ready to save the day. 

Noah Newman: Patrick sees a problem, so he gets out of the cab to investigate and appears to have everything figured out.

Patrick Johnson: We had a little fault saying that we were out of range on one row. It looks like we're good now.

But after further review, something's still off. It's time to call in Jason Pennycook, precision specialist with the family dealership, Johnson Tractor. 

Patrick Johnson: And then it's given me a planter stop. And before and  now when I was going, it gave me an error on just that row. It said population out of range. And I went back and checked it and it was clear and everything looked like it was hooked up, but I'm a bit at a loss. 

Jason Pennycook: Okay. Let's go back to diagnostics.

Patrick Johnson: But I'm not getting the planner to engage. 

Through FaceTime, Jason's able to see everything on Patrick's monitor and talk him through the problem.

Jason Pennycook: Yeah, the planner system is on because it says stops.

Patrick Johnson: Okay. Yeah, it was blinking at the same rate as all the rest of them.

Jason Pennycook: Okay. Give me one second. I'm going to call you right back. I got tech support calling me.

Patrick Johnson: Sounds good. Yep. 

There appears to be something wrong with a sensor on one of the rows. Patrick suspects a bad connection. As he waits for Jason to call him back, another technician from Johnson Tractor helps him jiggle the row unit around and get the planner up and running. Back in the cab, Patrick scarfs down a sandwich as he wraps up his conversation with Jason. 

Patrick Johnson: It was calling for a massive amount of seed. It would always go to the max. Oh, okay. Yeah. And don't touch too much because I was the one who imported the prescriptions.

Crisis averted. Just another day at the office as planning season rolls on at the Johnson's farm, Pennycook to the rescue.

Yetter Finalizes Martin Acquisition 

A couple months ago we broke the news of Yetter’s plans to acquire Martin-Till. That acquisition became official last week. Our editorial team traveled to Elgton, Ky., for an exclusive interview with leaders from both companies to talk about what the move means for dealers and customers. 

Tom Patterson: “We will remain at Martin Till products along with the Yetter products. So I see it's an advantage for both dealerships. Both dealers, a lot of our dealers, probably I was just talking a minute ago to another individual, and I think that probably 50% of the dealers out there already are Martin Till and Yetter dealers, so they shouldn't see much change at all.”

Derek Allensworth: “This is early in its early stages, so we have a lot to learn between the two companies. The ultimate goal is, at the end of the day, to provide the best product to our customers. So if there's items that Yetter can utilize through our purchasing or through our engineering sources or different things like that, we'll help utilize that through the Martin Till brand. And same thing through Martin Till. If they have some resources that would help us, it's going to work both ways.”

We also discussed the inner workings of the acquisition with Martin president, Steve Martin. Catch that must-see interview on Farm-Equipment.com. 

European Ag Manufacturers’ Outlook Remains Largely Negative

The general business climate index for the agricultural machinery industry in Europe has continued to decline after entering negative territory for the first time since its upturn a year ago, according to CEMA’s April 2026 Business Barometer.

European Ag Manufacturers’ Outlook Remains Largely Negative2.jpg

In April 2026, the index decreased from -2 points to -6 points (on a scale of -100 to +100). Following the downward adjustment of sales expectations for the coming 6 months, current business now appears to be affected as well. 

The association reports expectations on future orders have fallen to their lowest level in months. One-third of European manufacturers expect less orders in the next 6 months, and only 20% anticipate an increase, according to the report. 

The strongest deterioration is seen in the arable equipment segment, which now shows the worst business climate among all segments. 

By contrast, the business climate for livestock equipment has improved significantly again and ranks far above average in the segment comparison.

AEI’s First-Ever Executive Summit 

Earlier this week, Kim Schmidt and Mike Lessiter previewed Ag Equipment Intelligence’s 2026 Executive Summit. The new, invite-only event will be held in Chicago, May 19-20, and will bring together leaders from across the equipment landscape, including manufacturers, dealers, distributors, analysts and more. Here’s Mike Lessiter with more details…

“While these are different groups, the common thread is that all are tasked with understanding where the demand and supply for farm machinery is going and whose job it is to monitor, interpret trends, shape their company's business strategies. We like to think that the people who are making the effort to fly into Chicago for that short amount of time are going to be eager to learn and contribute to others' experience as well as actively participating in the program.”

“It is a qualified attendance only. As registrations come in, we are carefully reviewing them and vetting them for several reasons. One, we want to make sure that this premium event is going to deliver on their needs. And if their needs and job isn't right for this, we're telling them. And also for your benefit, we want to know that everyone in the room, and it is limited CD, we want to know that everyone in the room is capable of contributing to your experience, and that's why we're doing this the way we're doing it.”

To learn more about the event, visit farm-equipment.com/aei-executive-summit.

DataPoint: Potential for Lower Equipment Prices 

This week’s DataPoint is brought to you by the Dealership Minds Summit, coming to Springfield, Illinois Aug 4-5. To view the program and to register, visit DealershipMindsSummit.com.

DataPoint- Potential for Lower Equipment Prices.jpg

An April 6 poll from the editors of No-Till Farmer asked producers: The Trump administration is working with manufacturers to reduce prices on farm equipment purchases. Do you think this is likely to happen this year? Overwhelmingly, no-tillers said no, with 78% saying they don’t see it happening this year. Just 8% said they thought it could happen this year, with another 13% saying they were unsure. 

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