Serving farmers with specialized farm equipment since 1954.
In the early 50’s, Wilbur West, an engineering graduate of Purdue and former test pilot, was farming on family land in Pine Bluff, AR and saw that new equipment was needed for changing farming practices. One issue they noticed was that it was getting harder and harder to find good hoe operators to manage weeds in crop fields. Fortunately, Esso Oil company had developed an herbicide oil that stunted weed growth. So one day, Wilbur approached Robert Atkinson and asked if he would take a chance on a new venture with him.
In the back of Robert’s plumbing company in Pine Bluff, they started manufacturing and selling an oiling bar to apply Esso oil. Then, combining the first letter of each of their last names, W&A Manufacturing was born.
Over the next 65 years, through development and acquisition, W&A added numerous products to it’s offering of Mid-South and Delta specific machines. From the Mix-Mizer, which combined two fertilizers and placed them in a band next to the seed, to cotton tillage equipment, sprayers, rice levee plows, a PTO ditcher and more, W&A has always looked to offer products to help Mid-South and Delta farmers get the most out of every acre.
In 2018 the company was purchased by Kearney, NE-based, AGROdeviate. AGROdeviate is an agronomic tool supply company with a focus on product innovation through the fusion of technology, agronomy, and mechanical design. W&A continues to focus on row crop bedding and water management tools for growers throughout the Mid-South, but now with a new emphasis on innovation for the future.
Technology has come a long way since the oiling bars Wilbur and Robert manufactured and sold out of the back of Robert’s plumbing shop. But we continue to pride ourselves on our history because we know our decades of experience helps us to make machinery that perfectly fits your operation.