Association Membership: Benefits and Opportunities
In addition to supporting our efforts on behalf of the shortline equipment industry, members of the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association enjoy many benefits, including access to free legal advice on human-resource issues from two of the top HR attorneys in the country.
While reviewing invoices is not normally something one enjoys, the bill we receive from our attorneys is an exception. Each line of the invoice represents a member who gained insight into an important issue on personnel or a dealer or distributor contract. We do not learn which companies use the service, but we know many of you appreciate the expert legal advice and value this benefit of membership.
Of course, this is one among many benefits.
This month, you will receive the 2015 Membership Directory, a vast compilation of companies organized by product or service, geography, and personnel.
The information reflects membership as of January 31, 2015; a continually updated directory is online at FarmEquip.org. Later this year, we will add a mobile version containing the contact information that we see members access on a daily basis.
Also in the mail is the May issue of Ag Innovator, which offers insights into what’s on farmers’ minds, a member’s perspective on patent law, and a profile on member company Custom Products of Litchfield, Minn.
If your copy has not yet been delivered, or made it to the top of the stack on your desk, read it online at FarmEquip.org/AGI.
A less frequent but valuable benefit of membership is a free copy of a standards CD from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. The current CD has 255 ASAE/ASABE standards, engineering practices, and data applicable to agricultural equipment and systems, irrigation and drainage, structures, turf and landscape equipment, food engineering, and electric power applications.
The ASABE charges $499 for this CD. The Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association makes it available to regular members every other year for free—another tangible benefit of membership.
Other benefits cannot be assigned a dollar value, such as the professional relationships that form, and the ideas that emerge from them, through the Association. This aspect of membership is a shared responsibility. As you help us build the Association, you build opportunities for your companies. To that end, we invite you to display this “proud member” sign at trade shows and other industry events.
To receive the sign or a copy of the ASABE standards CD, contact Elaina Jackson, Director of Membership Services, at Elaina@FarmEquip.org. (Supply of remaining ASABE Standards CDs is limited.)
If you have questions about the magazine or membership directory, or just need an additional copy, contact Editor Kristi Ruggles at Kristi@FarmEquip.org. or call (314) 878-2304. S