Dalby company Midwest Fabrication takes out two small business awards, finalists in women's business award

A Dalby harvester manufacturer has been recognised at a business awards event in Sydney after decades of supplying quality machinery to local farmers. Find out more.

Midwest Fabrication CEO Amy Schutt wins small business award

A Dalby harvesting company which employs up to 50 locals has been awarded the Australian Trades Small Champion Award for manufacturing at a ceremony in Sydney.

Midwest Fabrication Pty Ltd which has been operating for almost 26 years creating harvest equipment designed for Australian farmers won the award last month which puts a spotlight on successful trades businesses from across Australia.

The local company scored the highest result in the manufacturing category after being judged on a number of criteria including businesses strategies, growth plans, financial performance, eco-friendliness, innovation, customer service quality and community support.

Midwest Fabrication’s Latisha Couper-Darr said it felt great to win the award and was a testament to the decades of work put in by the Australian owned and run company.

“It's amazing, it’s a real credit to our team, this one goes out to our boys out the back, being a trades award we couldn't have done it without them, all of the guys past and present,” she said.

“It is an Australian-owned company and the fact that our product is made for the Australian conditions is a big help, a lot of the other brands are made for other countries.

“We have been the pioneers in this field, we were the first ones to build a 41’, 45’, 50’, 55’ and 60’ (harvester) we’ve been the ones to build these bigger fronts and the other brands have followed us over the years.

“Our owner Matin Schutt has made it a thing to have these made extremely durable, they are mechanically driven and not so computerised so the farmer can fix them in the paddock themselves rather than waiting for a technician, they are made for the guys actually out there in the field.

“We’ve had customers who have had them last 15 years, they are very reliable and very durable and I think that’s a big plus, you don't have to time to wait for repairs if you need to harvest.”

Ms Couper-Darr said the company had celebrated a successful year at the Sydney awards.

“This is the first time we’ve won this award, earlier in the year we won the Australian Small Business Champions Awards which is very similar, this was the Trades Small Business Award,” she said.

“We won that back in April for the manufacturing sector, it was the first time we’d entered them and we were also a finalist in the Australian Woman’s Small Championship Awards.

“We were hoping for the trifecta of the three but two out of three ain’t bad.

“It reaffirms the way we have try to run the business and is gives the boys out the back a bit of a boost to show them their hard work is being noticed.”