GMRS Two-Way Radios Keep Custom Harvester Connected on Farms
This harvest season, Midland is catching up with its agriculture partners to share how GMRS two-way radios are making a difference on the farm.
Garrett Correa, a custom harvester, is sharing how GMRS two-way radios play a role in their operation.
@garrettcorrea
Farming family
Garrett Correa works as a custom harvester, but also has his own farm in Echo, Oregon.
“We’re customer harvesters so we just travel all over and harvest for the farmers. We grow a little bit of corn and hay there. We also raise registered Black Angus Bulls for breeding.”
Correa is a fourth-generation farmer, his father and grandfather starting their custom harvest business. For him, deciding to go into the family business was always part of the plan.
“I was always hanging out with my dad in the combine, growing up seeing everything, I always wanted to run the equipment. As you get older, you get more involved. The long hours are tough sometimes, but I wouldn’t want to do anything else.
How custom harvesting works
For Correa, custom harvesting keeps things interesting and there’s never a dull moment.
“We travel around Oregon and Washington. We’re always going somewhere new.”
For the harvesting we just SWATH. We cut a lot of grass seed, beans, peas, canola, all seed crops, except for wheat straw. We cut a lot of wheat straw out in the dry land country and some irrigated as well.”
SWATH refers to the process of cutting crops and arranging them into rows or windrows to dry before being collected or baled.
With custom harvesting, he gets he chance to meet people from all over.
“My favorite part about farming is all the different people we get to meet. I enjoy traveling to all the different farms and meeting the different people on the operation- the farmers, farm workers, the fuel truck drivers, everyone you meet is awesome.”
GMRS two-way radios for harvest
Correa began bringing Midland GMRS two-way radios into their work just this year after dealing with unreliable communication.
“My buddy up in Washington- they run Midland radios and I had been having horrible luck with the radios I was using. None of them would work. I asked my friend what he used because I knew he had radios working on his operation. I went to the website and ordered 3 Tractor Bundles.”
The team uses Midland’s MXT115AGVP3 MicroMobile® Farm Tractor Bundle. The farm saw the benefit of powerful GMRS two-way radio communication right away.
“These radios are awesome. The first day we had them installed, we had a fire in one of the fields and if we had our old radios, it would have gotten out of control.”
At first Correa was intimidated, worried the installation would be difficult, but after reaching out to Midland for installation support, he quickly realized how plug and play Midland’s GMRS two-way radios are.
“These radios are just so easy to use. You can just plug them in and they work. The install is super easy.”
He’s seen firsthand how GMRS two-way radios have improved the operation on a daily basis.
“Having radios that work has been a huge help. f we didn’t have the radios, we wouldn’t have near the same efficiency that we have everyday. You can’t move as fast, you can’t cut as fast. People make mistakes without communication.”
Not to mention, Midland’s GMRS two-way radios help promote safety on the farm.
“We’re on the roads all the time being a custom crew. We’ve got like 25-foot headers going down the road so it’s nice to be able to tell the guys when there are cars coming. This is so important in us trying to keep everyone safe.”
September on the farm
During the month of September, the team will be working wheat straw and beans, swathing for their clients.
To do so, Correa says they’ll rely on GMRS two-way radio communication.
“We’ll be using the radios constantly, for everything.”
