# Sukup Manufacturing Co. > Sukup Manufacturing Co. is a privately held, family-owned Iowa manufacturer of grain storage, drying, and handling systems for farms and commercial agricultural operations. Founded in 1963 after farmer Eugene Sukup devised an automatic stirring auger to prevent grain spoilage, the company now makes bins, dryers, conveyors, bucket elevators, controls, steel buildings, and related equipment, selling through a dealer network across the United States and in more than 80 countries. Its differentiation is a broad, largely integrated product line, in-house engineering and manufacturing, a substantial patent record, and practical product development shaped by farmers and dealers. - **Founded:** 1963 - **Headquarters:** Sheffield, Iowa, United States - **Founders:** Eugene Sukup (Co-founder and inventor), Mary Sukup (Co-founder and corporate secretary) - **Team size:** More than 800 employees across combined locations was reported by Sukup in 2024; company materials also describe more than 600 employees at the core manufacturing business. - **Products:** Stirway stirring machine, Farm and commercial grain bins, Grain dryers, Grain handling equipment, Material handling systems - **Notable:** Grew from a single stirring-machine invention into what the company describes as the world’s largest family-owned and operated manufacturer of grain storage, drying, and handling equipment., Has held more than 100 U.S. patents according to current company history materials., Designed and manufactured the 165-foot-diameter Golden Grain Energy bin completed in 2021, with capacity of about 2.25 million bushels and a record as the world’s largest free-span grain bin. ## Products & services - **Stirway stirring machine** — The automatic in-bin stirring system that grew from Eugene Sukup’s attempt to break up hot spots and prevent stored grain from spoiling. - **Farm and commercial grain bins** — Corrugated-steel storage systems ranging from on-farm bins to free-span commercial bins with capacities above two million bushels. - **Grain dryers** — Portable cross-flow, mixed-flow, tower, and related drying systems with controls and heat-recovery features designed to preserve quality while reducing harvest bottlenecks. - **Grain handling equipment** — Unloading systems, sweeps, spreaders, aeration equipment, fans, heaters, floors, and pneumatic movers used inside and around storage systems. - **Material handling systems** — Bucket elevators, drag and belt conveyors, double-run conveyors, towers, catwalks, and support structures for farm and commercial sites. - **Pre-engineered steel buildings** — Customizable steel structures for agricultural, commercial, and other industrial uses. - **QuadraTouch Pro and connected controls** — Electronic control and mobile tools for managing dryer operation and related grain systems. - **Synk** — A developing Sukup Innovations platform focused first on bin monitoring, with a broader goal of integrated grain-management controls and automation. - **Safe T Home** — A corrugated-steel humanitarian shelter adapted from Sukup manufacturing capabilities for use as housing, schools, clinics, and other facilities. ## Achievements - Grew from a single stirring-machine invention into what the company describes as the world’s largest family-owned and operated manufacturer of grain storage, drying, and handling equipment. - Has held more than 100 U.S. patents according to current company history materials. - Designed and manufactured the 165-foot-diameter Golden Grain Energy bin completed in 2021, with capacity of about 2.25 million bushels and a record as the world’s largest free-span grain bin. - Expanded to more than one million square feet of office, manufacturing, and warehouse space worldwide. - Sells throughout the United States and in more than 80 countries; the company FAQ specifies more than 87 countries. - Charles Sukup was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering in 2018. - Received a 2023 Community Award from Innovative Captive Strategies for employee and community programs. - Developed more than 500 Safe T Home structures for humanitarian uses by 2023, according to the company and GoServ Global partnership story. ## Latest updates - **2026-05** — Marked 25 years of manufacturing its own grain bins and highlighted safety-door and structural features in current product materials. - **2026-03** — A company interview described direct sourcing of roughly one million pounds of U.S.-mill steel per week for Sheffield operations and discussed grain-storage innovation and local employment. - **2025-10** — Tom Mangan was scheduled to become president and CEO as Steve Sukup moved toward the board chair role, the first transition of day-to-day leadership to a non-family executive. - **2025-04** — Expanded the Ames, Iowa footprint at the Iowa State University Research Park to support Synk development, product assembly, testing, engineering, IT, and recruiting. - **2024-07** — Detailed the planned Synk ecosystem, beginning with bin monitoring and aiming toward integrated controls and real-time grain-management automation. - **2024-05** — Introduced Sukup Innovations, bringing Ramco Innovations, Maple Studios, and new automation products under one umbrella. - **2023-12** — Acquired Ramco Innovations, a Midwest automation distributor with 65 employees at the time, to expand industrial and agricultural automation capabilities. ## Links - Website: https://www.sukup.com - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sukup-manufacturing-co- - Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/SukupMfg - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/SukupMfg - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sukupmfg - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SukupMfg --- Profile page: https://yespress.io/sukup-manufacturing-co Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io Last updated: 2026-08-12