In this bonus interview, Vermeer Manufacturing leaders share the incredible story of how they worked on a 30-day timeline to recover their full manufacturing capabilities after a devastating tornado hit their facility in Pella, Iowa.

In this interview, Mike Lessiter, Editor/Publisher of Farm Equipment, takes the rare opportunity to interview four ag executives — spanning two generations — from Vermeer Manufacturing. Sitting around the founder’s family table in Pella, Iowa, the group shares the story of how the invention of the round baler lead to their present-day international operation.

Vermeer Corp. plans to expand its Iowa production site less than two months after a tornado tore through its factories, destroying two plants.

The east half of the company's Pella, Iowa campus, which includes 7 manufacturing buildings, sustained extensive damage. At least 3 buildings were damaged.

Vermeer Corp. discovered that if it were going to continue the legacy of its founder, it would need to step outside of its traditional approach to research and development. Gary Vermeer is credited with inventing the first round hay baler in the early 1970s before anyone suggested that agriculture needed a new approach to baling hay.

Ray Hagie and Robert Vermeer were inducted into the 2016 AEM Hall of Fame, which recognizes outstanding individuals in the off-road equipment industry, and their legacy of innovation, service and leadership.

Vermeer Corp. recently announced that Nathan Guess has been named managing director of Forage Solutions and Mark Core has been named executive vice president of Forage and Lifecycle Solutions.