Reinke

Richard F. Reinke, founder of Reinke Manufacturing Co., Inc., was a pioneer in the irrigation industry. Many of his innovations he conceived have become standards for the industry throughout the world.

Richard, the youngest of twelve children, helped with his family's 480 acre farm near Byron, NE USA where he could pick 125 acres of corn by hand himself. Given his background in agriculture and his desire to build things, at age 15 he purchased educational material in engineering, architecture and draftsmanship determined to invent a better future. It took Richard's "waste not, want not" attitude to turn his inventions and passion for agriculture into the world leader in mechanized irrigation system technologies.

Today, most mechanized irrigation systems incorporate many of the concepts, inventions and patents he introduced during his lifetime. So the next time you see a center pivot effortlessly moving around the field, you can thank Richard Reinke for that.

Beginning in 1954, Mr. Reinke formed the company on a family farm and began manufacturing farm and commercial building structural components specializing in chicken houses and laminated rafters. 

During the late 60's, Reinke introduced the ELECTROGATOR® center pivot irrigation system. The first reversible, electric drive center pivot with collector ring allowing continuous rotation and span over 100 feet in length with a patented V-jack truss design. These designs are now used worldwide by all major manufacturers of center pivot and lateral move irrigation systems.

The ELECTROGATOR® was also the first to incorporate interchangeable pipe and truss components, an O-ring gasket (Reinke exclusive) between pipes for a non-intrusive seal and first gear driven towable system with rubber tires. 

Also a Reinke first was the introduction of the MINIGATOR®, the first system with 4-1/2” water pipe designed for low water supplies and smaller fields.

At the beginning of the 1970's, Reinke continued to make great improvements and innovations by adding more water pipe options such as 6" water pipe as well as providing the largest selection of water pipes for varying water quality and field conditions. This lead to the first Chromium Nickel Plus (CN+) steel water pipe option and the introduction of the first successful aluminum system, the ALUMIGATOR®. These options still remain a Reinke exclusive to this day. 

Perhaps the greatest breakthrough during this period was the introduction of the high strength steel. Higher strength was introduced to reduce the weight, increasing the life of the drive train and reducing soil compaction in the field. This also included the completely new way of connecting the base beam to the water pipe using the Reinke exclusive single leg tower. 

In the later part of the 70's, Reinke introduced the versatile 2-wheel drive power tower the MAXIGATOR®, a lateral move irrigation system allowing for maximum coverage in rectangular shaped fields. 

To prevent leaks at the water pipe connections, Reinke developed a new way of preventing gasket failures due to misalignment and sunlight. This included embedding a V-ring seal as a non-intrusive gasket between pipe flanges (Reinke exclusive) allowing the flanges to be connected face to face. Thanks to a unique flange design, the V-ring seal is completely hidden and allows the flanges to join together without the interference of a gasket.

Reinke has made great improvements in electronic enclosures. This decade also brought the introduction of the double walled, injection molded tower box that features a safety interlock (Reinke exclusive) which prevents the cover from being removed without first disconnecting the power to the tower. This exclusive tower box provides a moisture-free environment for electrical components and is the last place you'll ever find condensation.

Other advancements such as the patented Energy Saver Package (ESP) for swing arm corner systems with limited system gpm (Reinke exclusive). The first bow string truss over 210 feet was also introduced.

With more irrigation dotting the globe, challenges in covering every acre possible was the challenge of the day. Reinke introduced the Drop Span, which would allow the connection and disconnection of adjacent spans, and the system to cover additional acres.

Advancements were also paramount in the on-board irrigation system controls. Reinke introduced the Reinke Automated Management System (RAMS) control panel and the Digital Precision Application Controller (PAC Timer) which changed the way growers managed their systems. This decade also brought Stainless Steel as a new water pipe option for corrosive water applications.

The 2000's brought the most technical advances since our humble beginning. Reinke has been the leader in Global Positioning Systems (GPS), Precision Management main control panels, water pipe options, satellite-based communications and much more.

• Reinke introduces Navigator GPS guidance swing arm corner systems. The first to offer successful GPS guidance for swing arm corners
• A single phase power option is offered for systems
• The ELECTROGATOR® II is introduced featuring new tower and span designs
• Reinke begins to offer Navigator GPS controls for end of system and guidance for lateral systems, the first to successfully do so in the industry
• Robotic welding is installed by Reinke to improve productivity quality
• Reinke becomes the first to offer five types of water pipe for their systems (aluminum, galvanized steel, stainless steel, poly lined galvanized steel and chromium nickel plus)
• Introduction of the 10 degree Wrap Span
• Development and introduction of the Reinke Precision Management (RPM) control panel series
• Introduction of the 90 degree Wrap Span
• Option for either a trailing or leading swing arm corner
• Introduction of the revolutionary Touch Screen Main Control Panel. Reinke was the first to bring this technology to the market
• Introduction of Reinke Base Station software allowing remote management of systems via radio communication
• Variable Rate Irrigation (VRI) with accuracy and management via the Reinke Touch Screen Control Panel
• Reinke introduces the Pivoting Lateral, which is integrated with GPS guidance and offers the benefits of both a center pivot and a lateral move system
• ReinCloud® is introduced. Offering growers worldwide a new platform for collecting, processing and presenting key data