If peak seasons make or break your operation, you’ve seen how quickly a smooth-running warehouse can get overloaded. Orders pile up, aisles tighten, and your main forklift fleet hits its limit. You need more capacity fast, but you don’t necessarily need more equipment all year long. That’s exactly where a smart short-term rental strategy comes in. With one of the largest material handling rental fleets in the West and dozens of locations spanning across California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, and Montana, Papé Rents helps businesses add flexible surge capacity without locking up capital in equipment that sits idle once the rush is over. Start with Historical Data Effective seasonal surge planning starts long before the first big order drops. Look at your historical data: Daily order volumes and lines picked Dock-to-stock times Overtime hours Equipment utilization by truck type As you monitor your workflow over time, patterns start to emerge. Maybe ou

With the conclusion of harvest, it’s easy to shift focus from irrigation. The crops are in, and the season’s busiest time is nearly wrapped. However, the irrigation practices in the immediate post-harvest weeks are crucial for next year’s growth, yield, and quality. Market conditions often tighten budgets, labor availability decreases, and water allocations may already be stretched thin from the season. At the same time, crops are still active beneath the soil line, requiring care to build root strength and store nutrients for the year ahead. Balancing limited resources with the ongoing needs of the crop can feel like a gamble, especially when every decision impacts next year’s performance. How HotSpot AG Helps in Practice Reliable irrigation automation makes all the difference. HotSpot AG’s systems were designed with the understanding that every farm has unique characteristics, such as older pumps, intricate irrigation layouts, and specific site challe

The conversations I have about quality tend to focus on red wine. This is especially true in California, where Napa Cabs have historically garnered high prices, followed up by Coastal Pinot noirs and red Rhones. Honestly, in most places I’ve been where the climate allows for ripening red grapes, the reds are the main event with the whites being more of a warm-up act or even an afterthought. As a result, we know a lot about how to grow red grapes for quality – and less about how to grow whites. Consumer tastes are shifting though, and the big reds of yore are taking a back seat. Drinkers want lower alcohol wines with a lighter style and wineries are taking fewer risks with wine they can turn around in under a year. As a result, white varieties are in hot demand. If you’re a grower who can’t sell your grapes, you may very well be considering grafting some of your reds over to white.  So how do you grow a good white? In many ways whites are harder than their r

It’s hard to imagine a time when malolactic fermentation (MLF) in red wines wasn’t standard practice. However, it was not too long ago that MLF could only be completed via spontaneous lactic acid bacteria which was often unpredictable, slow to initiate, and sometimes failed to complete MLF altogether.  The introduction of Oenococcus oeni starter cultures in the 1960s and ’70s marked a turning point, bringing consistency, control, and reliability to the process. These cultures evolved into user-friendly, freeze-dried preparations, transforming MLF and turning it from gamble to a given. But science presses onward and research began exploring the genetic diversity of lactic acid bacteria found in wine. This work led to the discovery and characterization of a unique strain of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. Now, Scott Laboratories has introduced this strain to the U.S. as ML PRIME™, the first and only non-Oenococcus bacteria currently available for mal

Wine Marketers: You’re Probably Using AI Wrong Here's the way to work with your AI Marketing Assistant... Earlier this year, I leaned into GenAI to learn how it might help wine marketers survive a challenging time. Like many wine marketers, I initially viewed AI as another traditional business tool.  I’d ask a question (input) and wait for the computer’s answer (output).  Results? Sometimes insightful or artful, but often decidedly less so. It turns out I was using GenAI wrong when I first approached this unique beast. Here's what I learned... WORKING WITH AI AS A COLLEAGUE...NOT A TOOL Working with GenAI as a colleague, instead of using it as a tool, made all the difference in the world for me.  Instead of simply saying “write a business plan,” I ask my AI assistants to ask me questions about my goals and limitations, enabling them to do their best work tailored to my needs. Then the give-and-take of my conversations with Gen

With decades of automation expertise, Clevertech delivers fully integrated, customizable solutions to streamline production and enhance efficiency for wineries across North America. The family-owned business is one of the hallmarks of the wine industry. These are the oldest type of commercial organization. Studies have found that they are more likely to thrive, in part because they approach business from a legacy perspective. One of the reasons for this success is the inherent multi-generational focus. “The family legacy matters,” says Beth Zarnick-Duffy, who has worked with many family-owned wineries in her 30-year career and is now a sales manager for Clevertech North America (NA). “It's more personal, more about relationship building.” “I agree. It’s a big plus,” says Giorgio Zanardi, Clevertech NA’s General Manager. “Our parent company, Clevertech SPA, is a family-owned company. That means when we do business with our cu

Responding to requests from growers, a longtime manufacturer of precast concrete products has recently begun selling prestressed, steel-reinforced posts for trellising orchards and vineyards. “We talked to a lot of growers,” says Jensen Precast Director of Product Management George Kehagias. “We found there’s a lot of interest in the U.S. People are very intrigued by this system.” Jensen Precast was founded in Reno, NV, by Don Jensen in 1968 and remains a family business. It began manufacturing the concrete trellis posts at its Kingsburg, CA, facility this past May and will market them under the name Harvest Pillar. Many U.S. growers are familiar with concrete posts as they are already using them, but they generally have had to source them from Italy. Shipping costs have skyrocketed in recent years, however, making the posts often too pricey to import. That’s why Kehagias says the company’s employees are excited about their prospects for U.S. s

A Showcase of Skill and Determination at the 22nd Annual Napa County Pruning Contest

NAPA, CA (February 5, 2024) – The Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation (FWF) celebrated its 22nd Annual Napa County Pruning Contest at Beringer’s Gamble Ranch Vineyard on Saturday, February 3.  It was a […]

In an age where reliable power is essential for businesses and critical infrastructure, generator maintenance is the unsung hero that keeps the lights on when the grid fails. However, keeping your generator in top shape is not as simple as it might seem. Many generator owners make critical generator maintenance mistakes that can lead to costly breakdowns and downtime. In this blog, we’ll explore the importance of preventative generator maintenance and discuss some common mistakes to avoid in generator upkeep.  The Importance of Preventative Maintenance Before diving into the common generator maintenance mistakes, let’s emphasize why preventative maintenance is crucial. Your generator is an investment in your power security, and neglecting its care can lead to disastrous consequences. Routine maintenance ensures that your generator is always ready to kick into action when needed, providing peace of mind and reliability. 7 Generator Maintenance Mistakes to Avoid Neglect