# Vermeer Corporation

> Vermeer Corporation is a family-owned Iowa manufacturer that turns tough, dirty, essential work into machines. Founded in 1948 by farmer-inventor Gary Vermeer, the company built the first commercially viable large round hay baler and grew into a global maker of trenchers, horizontal directional drills, vacuum excavators, wood grinders and forage equipment. Now in its third generation of family leadership under CEO Jason Andringa, Vermeer is 'Equipped to Do More' - serving agriculture, construction, underground utilities, recycling and environmental markets from Pella, Iowa across six continents.

- **Founded:** 1948
- **Headquarters:** Pella, Iowa, United States
- **Founders:** Gary Vermeer (Founder)
- **Team size:** ~4,400 employees (company-reported); estimates vary across data providers
- **Products:** Hay & forage equipment, Trenchers & underground utility equipment, Horizontal directional drills (HDD), Vacuum excavation, Environmental & recycling equipment
- **Notable:** Invented the first commercially successful large round hay baler (1971), transforming forage harvesting worldwide., Pioneered a machine to dig, transport and replace large trees in the 1960s., Built large trenchers for underground pipelines in the 1980s and introduced its first horizontal directional drill in the 1990s.

## Products & services

- **Hay & forage equipment** — Round and self-propelled balers, disc mowers, mower conditioners, rakes, tedders, feed wagons and vertical mixers - a lineage tracing to Gary Vermeer's original 1971 large round baler.
- **Trenchers & underground utility equipment** — Utility and pipeline trenchers, plows, rockwheels and soil/rock tools for installing water, power and fiber lines.
- **Horizontal directional drills (HDD)** — Pipeline directional drills, high-pressure mud pumps and fluid management systems for trenchless underground installation, introduced in the 1990s.
- **Vacuum excavation** — Vacuum excavators and utility locators for safe, low-impact digging around buried infrastructure.
- **Environmental & recycling equipment** — Tub grinders, horizontal grinders, trommel screens, compost turners and low-speed shredders for wood waste, organic waste and recycling.
- **Tree care & landscape equipment** — Brush chippers, stump cutters, compact articulated loaders, mini skid steers and trailers for landscaping and tree care.

## Achievements

- Invented the first commercially successful large round hay baler (1971), transforming forage harvesting worldwide.
- Pioneered a machine to dig, transport and replace large trees in the 1960s.
- Built large trenchers for underground pipelines in the 1980s and introduced its first horizontal directional drill in the 1990s.
- Founder Gary Vermeer inducted into the NASTT (trenchless technology) Hall of Fame in 2012.
- Rebuilt operations after a 2018 tornado struck its Pella campus, continuing production and honoring recovery efforts.
- Recognized by Calvin University with a Business Partner Award for the company and Andringa family.

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — Exhibited at CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2026 in Las Vegas (March 3-7).
- **2026-02** — Announced plans for a new facility in the Des Moines metro area, citing equipment demand and generational innovation.
- **2019-07** — Held a commemoration marking one year of recovery after the July 2018 tornado that struck its Pella campus.

## Links

- Website: https://vermeer.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/vermeer-corporation
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/vermeerug
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/VermeerCorporation
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vermeercorp/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/vermeerjobs

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/vermeer-corporation
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-02