Machines & Maintenance
think a 10 % increase wouldn ' t move the needle very much, but it does.”
Availability
Freight costs aren ' t the only challenge facing equipment businesses. Lead times and parts availability can also affect how much inventory companies need to keep on hand. These components range from cameras and sensors to specialized electronics.
“ We don ' t necessarily stock large quantities of everything,” Fang said.“ We look at lead time, failure risk, how easily a component can be substituted, and, most importantly, what happens if we don ' t have it. A common inexpensive part that can arrive tomorrow is very different from a specialized component that could take weeks to replace.”
Forecasting
To manage each piece of the inventory puzzle, businesses are turning to several strategies to help control costs. According to Fang, Beagle Technology is focusing on better forecasting, disciplined spare-parts planning, local support, and efficient logistics.
Thunderstruck Ag is also leaning on available technology to improve its inventory management, using artificial intelligence( AI) to help determine what it needs to keep on hand.
“ AI has been one of our most efficient tools in helping us manage our inventory,” Matuszewski said.“ It has helped us analyze our sales and order history, our stockout data, and has helped us do a better job of forecasting quantities that we need.”
Walking the Tightrope
“ I don ' t expect these costs to disappear,” Fang said.“ The bigger opportunity is getting better at planning around them through local support, smarter inventory management, and more efficient logistics.”
Beagle Technology will instead focus on getting support and critical inventory closer to where the machines are actually operating, especially as the company’ s deployment footprint grows.
Matuszewski’ s outlook shares similar sentiments, with costs even expected to rise. Freight costs will go up as fuel costs increase, while tariffs and rising steel prices may boost parts costs. Slower inventory turns could also create additional storage expenses.
“ The Canadian government put a 15 % tariff on U. S. made harvest products, including combine parts, so all of our Razors Edge Concaves now carry that tariff,” Matuszewski explained.“ For farmers in Canada who need to order a part, those parts are coming from the United States, so they ' re going to have to pay for it. That ' s a significant hit for us, since Razors Edge Concaves is one of our best-selling products and made up about 30 % of our sales last year.”
As a result, Thunderstruck Ag has decided to absorb the tariff rather than pass it along to farmers, adding yet another cost for the company to manage.
For equipment businesses, those decisions will continue to come down to finding the right balance between having what customers need when they need it and controlling the costs of getting it there.
34 | 800-247-2000 | 515-955-1600 | October 2026