Harvest time: New grain system helps farm efficiency

SEYMOUR, Ind. — Harvest is underway for the Schepman family in Seymour.

Joe Schepman farms around 3,000 acres of corn, soybeans and wheat with his family.

As of Sept. 28, he had harvested around 500 acres of soybeans and 100 acres of corn. Yields look promising so far.

“These are probably the best crops I’ve ever raised,” Schepman said. “We’re very thankful for that.”

This year, the Schepmans decided to expand their grain system to handle a larger crop. It was completed just in time for harvest.

The GSI system includes a 6,000 bushel per hour grain leg, 40,000 bushel storage bin and unloading pit for wet corn.

“That is going to be a huge improvement over what we had, capacity wise,” Joe Schepman said. “We were pretty limited on how much we could get done. This year being as good as it is, it’s become a really great thing.”

The new system will unload in around 10 minutes, which is 20 minutes faster than before.

The family worked with a local GSI dealer, Schafstall Inc., to design and construct the expansion project.

“Schafstall built the first bin for us in 1973,” Schepman said. “So, we started with one bin and have built as we’ve gone. They’ve always been involved and helped us adapt.”

The family also worked with John Evans at Farm Credit Mid-America, as well as Biehle Electric to make the project possible.

When designing the system, the family kept future expansions and improvements in mind.

“Every farm is so different,” said Brad Schepman, Joe’s son. “What works for one guy may not work for someone else. That’s been a really big advantage — they knew us well enough to make recommendations.

“I’m looking forward to the next phases (of the grain system). This was the hardest step. Now our plans have room for expansions. We’re really looking forward to replacing the next problem spots and moving forward.”

As with any farm equipment, time and age affects grain systems, Joe Schepman said.

When asked what advice he’d give to other farmers considering grain bin updates, he advised taking time to make the decision.

“Think about it a lot,” he said. “Rely on your dealer and GSI team. They see a lot more systems than we do and they’ve seen how things can go well, or not-so-good. Keep your communication open with each other.”

Learn more about GSI at www.grainsystems.com.