Nelson Silos is one of the Elmore Field Days’ stalwart businesses, attending all 62 events. Gary Gibson has attended a handful in his 25 years with the company. Photos: Jordan Townrow.
Elmore Field Days has been going strong since 1964, marking the 62nd edition of the beloved event this year.
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Two businesses have seen every single field days since.
Rochester’s Nelson Silos is among the mainstays, started by Lindsay Nelson in 1962.
Gary Gibson has worked for the company for 25 years in total and has attended many field days in this role.
“When they first started, I think it was about a quarter of this space was theirs,” he said.
“They just slowly grew because they’ve put more silos, now we’ve got nine on site.”
Every year, the company’s silos tower over the field days, taking up four blocks in the centre of the action.
In Mr Gibson’s experience, the three-day event provides a great opportunity for connection.
“We get some sales, but a lot of contacts,” he said.
“We then follow those up, and they turn into a lot of sales.
“We get the chance to see the actual product, and then we get existing customers coming in, having a chat.”
Just around the corner at the field days site is McCullochs, a hydraulic engineering company that has also attended all 62 editions.
Steve McCulloch is fourth generation in his family business, Bendigo-based hydraulic engineers McCullochs, another company at the field days since its inception.
Photo by
JORDAN TOWNROW
Founded by William McCulloch and his son Ron in 1945, a fourth generation McCulloch, Steve, is the current director.
“We were agricultural engineers, and we made farming implements for farmers; land graders and scoops particularly,” Steve McCulloch said.
“That caused us to travel all over the countryside ... field days were a big thing for us in the early days.”
Both businesses continue to manufacture locally, including from the largest Nelson Silos facility in Rochester, and McCullochs’ Epsom site.
“Everything gets made in the factory,” Mr Gibson said.
“It’s one of the few factories that actually produce things from scratch.
“There’s only small parts that (are not), but every handle, every slide, everything’s made in the factory.”
Beginning with static displays and machinery demonstrations, McCullochs now takes up a significant footprint at the Elmore event.
McCullochs supports industries such as transport, defence, drilling, mining and, of course, agriculture.
“We’ve got a huge manufacturing plant in Bendigo,” Mr McCulloch said.
“We’re fairly diverse now, but at the core of all of that is hydraulics.”
Along with hydraulics, McCullochs’ attendance at Elmore Field Days has stayed consistent.
“There's obviously a legacy there, I was coming out to this event when I was a baby,” Mr McCulloch said.
“This was always the biggest (field days) out of all of them, and because it’s local to us.
“We love dealing with the Elmore committee ... we love supporting the event.”
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