Our History and the Manutec Promise

Manutec: Who We Are

Established in 1984, Manutec has over 30 years of experience in manufacturing and distribution. Through the years, we’ve grown significantly, diversifying our product range but always sticking to best industry practices for optimal results.

The Manutec journey began in Adelaide, where we commenced rubber part manufacturing for other Australian companies. Over time, we also reached a number of conclusions that proved to be vital for the direction our manufacturing endeavours took.

In the 1980s, we discovered that existing mobility products for caravans and trailers are often difficult to use and even dangerous. Based on this observation, our trailer division began working on the design and development of user-friendly, affordable products. These same manufacturing practices and quality principles have been observed ever since, resulting in what we call “The Manutec advantage”.

Our research and product development projects contributed to the registration of two Australian Designs for brand new, dare we say, revolutionary products. The quick release swivel bracket for jockey wheels and quick release adjustable stabiliser for caravans are common features for over 95 per cent of caravans in Australia today.

When we claim that we know caravan parts, we mean it. Our specialisation is Manutec’s biggest strength, enabling the creation of very safe, reliable and user-friendly solutions. These have become so defining for an entire industry that you’ll often come across numerous copies of the original Manutec designs.

The Manutec Timeline and Key Milestones – From Trailers to No-Till Agriculture

Focus and Innovation

1980’s: Innovative Solutions: Caravan and Camper Product Development

Throughout the 1980s, we focused on developing a range of innovative and functional caravan/camper spare parts. Soon enough, we had the largest range of specialized jockey wheels, including the first true offroad jockey wheels on the market.

As needs arose to make new parts for the industry Manutec continued to develop its range of products. We focused our efforts on a range of parts aimed at stability and safety in terms of trailer loading, unloading and use in a stationary position. We reviewed the design of existing products and spare parts, making those easier to use and more tailored to survive Australian conditions.

1980 – 1990’s: Innovation and Advocacy: No-Till Farming

In the 1980s and 1990s the nucleus of new farming techniques started to form, thus focus shifted toward agricultural developments and innovation.

At that time, some Australian farmers and scientists were adapting the concept of minimum tillage farming to Australian conditions. Eventually, their ideas became no tillage farming, commonly referred to as No-Til.

In many ways, this was one of the earliest forms of carbon capture, as previously most organic matter was burnt off and many may remember the regular smoke haze and dust storms that happened as a result. The aim of no-til is to improve soil condition, reduce erosion and ultimately – ensure better, more environmentally-friendly yield.

Understanding the vast potential of this movement, we started working on new products aimed at simplifying no-til and making it more approachable.

The aim of no-till is to improve soil condition, reduce erosion and ultimately – ensure better, more environmentally-friendly yield.

Understanding the vast potential of this movement, we started working on new products aimed at simplifying no-till and making it more approachable.

Manutec is one of the South Australian No-Till Farming Association (SANTFA) sponsors and we’ve worked actively on popularising no-till practices. Just like most new techniques and technology, there was some resistance by farmers and the government to get on board. Eventually, the government grasped the potential of no-til farming, launching widespread campaigns and possibilities for the adoption of the technique.

Not only did we act as advocates, we also developed an array of no-til products that are still prominent throughout Australia. The early product we developed and patented was the integral hub press wheel – an important part sold to Australian seeding equipment manufacturers and farmers. These original wheel designs are still in use today.

2000’s: Innovation and Australian Application: Press Wheel and Coulter Assemblies

By 2000, Manutec had listened to the stories and sagas of thousands of farmers. Since then, we have been creating products to meet their specific needs. We found out that many agricultural practices and products developed for the North American and European markets weren’t applicable in Australia. Manutec began the development of press wheel and coulter assemblies, aimed at helping Australian farmers retrofit their machinery to address differences in seeding methods, soil types, crop types, seasons, moisture levels and many other parameters. Our key design promise was to ensure excellent performance regardless of crop or soil type.

At the very same time, we continued our work on caravan and camper part innovation. We became committed to providing a one-stop-shop for all Australian caravan, camper and trailer spare parts needs. We also worked with some of the biggest manufacturers to build a comprehensive and reliable range of products.

Where We Are Today

It all started with a single press wheel. Today, Manutec is the largest specialized press wheel parts manufacturer in Australia. We dare say that we’re also one of the most prominent market participants internationally.

The Challenges: Manutec Evolution and Promise

Technologies and farming practices evolve all the time. This is why Manutec hasn’t slowed down. Our research and product development endeavours continue to address contemporary realities and offer our loyal clients innovative, reliable and safe solutions.

No-til has become a prominent agricultural trend. Many smaller farms were consolidated, which resulted in an array of new challenges as far as machinery was concerned. Larger farms created much higher dust loads and much longer continuous use periods. Press wheels are now having to service larger areas in particularly dry conditions. This is why Manutec had to adapt and keep on growing, thus began a process of changing over the traditional press wheels to low or zero maintenance.

At the very same time, we faced a brand new challenge – the decline of Australian farm manufacturing. Many local farmers started using North American branded air seeders. The importation of machinery became a standard practice. These imported machines were fully fitted for no-til farming. There was just one exception – the machines were created to meet North American conditions. As already mentioned, this wasn’t necessarily a good idea for Australian agricultural producers.

So in 2015, to address the problems farmers faced, Manutec developed a range of aftermarket products designed to retrofit these machines to suit a wide range of differing Australian farming conditions so as to make these machines more productive. Through the acquisition and installation of such parts, agricultural producers benefited from an opportunity to increase the practical range of uses and the profitability of imported machines.

Since day one, we have been committed to listening.

This is why the Manutec slogan is Talk to Us!

We have become a market leader because we listen to our clients’ needs. We also believe that tailored and personalised solutions are needed to ensure the effectiveness of agricultural processes.

Through the years, simple 30-minute conversations have been used to address many of the problems our clients face. The input and data we’ve gathered through the years have contributed to the thorough transformation of the Australian agricultural, trailer and caravan industries.

So what does the future have to hold for us? Based on the following promises we continue to:

Employ knowledgeable and highly dedicated humans to answer our customer’s calls
Adopt and personalize new technology to improve the reliability of our products, making them contemporary and capable of addressing today’s realities
Listen to our customers and use their input to continually improve existing products
Listen to our customers in an attempt to develop new and innovative products
Listen to our customers to help them solve their problems
Pass on lessons learned to those who will benefit from them the most

Are you ready to make use of the Manutec promise? If you have questions, information about an issue you’re dealing with or any other input, get in touch with us today.

Visit our other specialist divisions: