Machinery investment workshops summer series COMING SOON

December 16, 2025
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Smarter Machinery Decisions for Stronger Farm Businesses

Machinery investment is one of the biggest and riskiest financial decisions in a farm business. Get it right, and machinery boosts efficiency and profitability. Get it wrong, and it quietly erodes margins, cash flow, and resilience. This January, Eyre Peninsula growers will have the opportunity to step back from day-to-day operations and take a clear, practical look at whether their machinery investment is really working for their business.

AIR EP is pleased to host a five-session regional workshop series focused on making better machinery investment and replacement decisions. Delivered by Peter Newman (Planfarm) and Andy Bates (Bates Ag Consulting), these interactive sessions will provide growers with practical tools, benchmarks, and confidence to assess machinery costs and make informed decisions that suit their scale and system.

Each session runs for 3 hours (including a mid-session break) and is capped at 12 farm businesses to allow for discussion, activities, and peer learning.

📍 Upcoming Session Dates (locations TBC)

  • Monday 19 January – Smoky Bay | 2–5pm

  • Tuesday 20 January – Port Kenny | 2–5pm

  • Wednesday 21 January – Lucky Bay | 2–5pm

  • Thursday 22 January – Port Neill | 2–5pm

  • Friday 23 January – Coffin Bay | 1–4pm

(Final locations and venues to be confirmed and may change depending on availability.)

What Will Be Covered?

Participants will work through:

  • Farm business ratios, including machinery-to-income benchmarks

  • Calculating your own average income and machinery ratio

  • Machinery investment across different farm scales

  • Replacement planning and schedules

  • Funding options: hire purchase vs cash

  • When (and why) it may make sense to break the rules

The sessions are practical, numbers-based, and designed to be directly applicable to individual farm businesses.

Why Attend?

  • Understand whether your machinery spend matches your business performance

  • Gain clarity around replacement timing and funding decisions

  • Learn from experienced consultants and fellow growers

  • Build confidence in machinery decisions before the next investment cycle

Numbers are limited and interest is expected to be strong. Keep an eye out for registration details once venues are confirmed.

For further information, contact Naomi Scholz, eo@airep.com.au 

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