38 throwing 50-pound bags . Instead , they ’ re driving a forklift to move the pallets that the robot put on ,” Moore said . “ So then you can do more things in the course of a day because you ’ re not counting on a person to do that .”
The robotic arm isn ’ t the only upgrade they made . Many years ago , they also computerized their feed plant .
“ If you have a feed formula or recipe . Basically , if you tell it you want 200 pounds of this to go into it , it gets 200 pounds out of that bin and weighs it and puts it in the mixer ,” she said . “ It ’ s done that for several years .”
The Stillwater Milling Company had the first computerized feed mill in the state and the largest independently owned feed mill .
The feed mill can manufacture 1,400 tons a day , and all the feed sold is manufactured right here in Stillwater .
ADAPTING TO CHANGES
Walking into the Agri Center , they have an overflow of various items to buy . The business may have started with flour and livestock feed , but they ’ ve grown to sell anything someone may need .
“ Well , there ’ s the store ... a whole line of everything . Clothing , clothing that ’ s for the farmer but clothing that ’ s not . There are shoes in there . There ’ s home goods , ( and ) they have barbecue grills ,” Moore said . “ And then there ’ s animal vaccines for a horse , but there are for ( a ) dog and a cat . And dog and cat food , we sell a lot of birdseed .”
They have also opened stores in Davis , Claremore , and Perry . Moore said they have thought about opening another store but haven ’ t found the right location and community .
“ We ’ ve talked about it for a long time . We just haven ’ t ever found the right community . And right now , with labor as tight as it is , I ’ m kind of glad because it ’ d be hard ,” she said . “ It ’ s hard enough to keep people in full in all four stores .”
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE COMMUNITY
The company has undergone many changes to keep up with the ever-growing world of agriculture . However , Moore said one thing that hasn ’ t changed is the relationship built with the community .
“ We ’ re owned by Oklahomans , so all of our decisions are made in Oklahoma . Somebody out of state didn ’ t tell us what to do ; it ’ s all decided in Stillwater , what we ’ re gonna do , not a corporate office in Minnesota or somewhere ,” she said . “ So we invest in the community , want to do what ’ s good for the community and the farmers and around this area . Well , across the state too , but mostly ( in ) this area . We ’ re all over the state , and we serve farmers all over the state .”
She said knowing your customers is vital because , between the four stores , every community has different needs and wants .
“ Because we know what their products they might need . We have the four stores , but they each buy for themselves because their markets are different . What we sell in Perry versus what we sell in Stillwater is different ,” she said . “ Whereas if we had somebody out of state just sending the same thing to every store the same mix of products , then you wouldn ’ t be taking care of your customers .”
Moore not only knows her customers , but she also said it resembles a family bond . Most often , she knows generations of families .
“ It ’ s neat to see that they ’ ve passed that on . Now , the younger generation they ’ re changing it , and they should be making improvements ,” she said . “ The technology improvements that they have now , their grandparents never could have dreamed of .”
The employees at Stillwater Milling know their customers and their needs , but they also are big supporters of agriculture , helping with youth activities in Stillwater and surrounding areas .
Some of the things Moore said they do for youth are helping with the junior livestock shows and scholarships through Future Farmers of America or anything else related to agriculture .
STILLWATER OKLAHOMA MAGAZINE