About Us |
About Our Business |
How it all began............ In 1970, four men with farming backgrounds as rice farmers, farm land owners, farm business owners, and one with a mechanical engineering degree, formed a corporation and bought an existing Minneapolis Moline tractor and implement dealership in Welsh, Louisiana that was being sold due to the retirement of the owners and the poor farming economy at that time. Within a year, they relocated the new business to the current location it is today, 106 East Russell Avenue. The new, larger facility in Welsh not only had a better location, but it also had a greater possibility for expansion. At this point, they sold MM gasoline tractors, propane tractors, diesel tractors, natural gas power unit engines, gasoline power unit engines, propane power unit engines, diesel power unit engines, farm implements, and re-lift pumps. The service department was geared to repair all types of tractors, irrigation engines, re-lift pumps, gear drives, belt heads, and implements. In 1972 they purchased additional property to start a complete machine and welding shop to service a now growing farming community. They built and installed hydraulic dump systems on rice trucks, built ditching blades to mount on tractors, puddlers, tractor-mounted dozer blades, irrigation engine cooling systems, steel offsets and ell tubes for pumping systems, check valves, engine skids, combine friction drive plates, tractor steel wheels, drag harrows, fabricated pump replacement parts, and design and build custom tractor driven centrifugal pumps, to name a few services they provided. They also began selling irrigation pvc pipe and fittings designed for use as underground irrigation and drainage structures to replace the old canal systems to help prevent erosion of farm top soil and evaporation and water loss due to canal leaks and pumping time lost due to just fill the canals high enough to push water to higher fields. These improvements are still an important and ongoing effort in farming efficiency. With the purchase of backhoes, dozers, trenchers, larger trucks and trailers, winch trucks and crane trucks, they were able to offer turn key installation from pump, ell tube, natural gas, diesel, or electric motor, gear drive or belt drive, offset, and underground irrigation and pvc fittings. They also purchased a Deutz tractor, engine, and implement company in Welsh and merged it into the existing business. Soon afterwards, they quit selling the large tractors and implements, and concentrated on farm irrigation and drainage. During the 1980's they added a farm and home hardware department and an auto parts department. They also added a compact tractor line and an assortment of short line equipment. Over the years, as the older original owners retired, the corporation purchased their stock until Welsh Equipment was owned by the last original owner, Kenneth Daniel. He had grown up on a farm northeast of Welsh, worked for his father, whom had farmed and owned an engine repair shop and water well drilling company, and Kenneth put himself through college as a mechanical engineer. In addition to hardware and auto parts, he added overhead irrigation systems, welding supplies, temporary storage container rentals, cummins and deutz diesel engines, portable and stationary pto pumps used for rice, crawfish, fish, and duck ponds. In 2005, Kenneth Daniel decided to retire and sold this company to his son, who had grown up working in the dealership starting at the age of 10. Other than changing the name from Welsh Equipment Company Inc. to Welsh Irrigation & Equipment LLC, he continues to operate the dealership in the same fashion as his father has for over 35 years. |
Some of the manufactures and suppliers this company has and still sale and service include: Cummins engines; Deutz engines and tractors; Minneapolis Moline tractors, engines, combines, and implements; Yanmar tractors and implements; VM engines; Zetor tractors; Soileau Industries irrigation fittings; Diamand Plastic pipe; Amarillo gear drives; DeRan gear drives; Randolph gear drives; Johnson gear drives; Stapleton gear drives; US electric motors and gear drives; LoLift pumps; Goulds pumps; LMA pumps; J-line/American Marsh pumps; Rainbow centrifugal pumps and sprinkler systems; Berkeley pumps; Gorman-Rupp pumps; Isuzu engines; Detroit engines; GE electric motors; Impco carburetors and regulators; Bumper to Bumper auto parts; Orgill hardware; Murphy engine controls; Zimmatic center pivots; Valley center pivots; Becknell supply; Tisco/Woods tractor supply; Fresno irrigation supply; Waterman irrigation supply; Protec pump priming equipment; Smitty specialty oils; ADS drainage pipe and fittings; AirGas welding equipment. This is only a partial listing of equipment we offer, some of the list above are no longer available, but we have always tried to locate a replacement part or option for any obsolete equipment. |
SITE DESIGNED BY SUZIE DANIEL |