Celebrating 20 years in business and one year in its new premises in the centre of Newtownstewart, Co. Tyrone, Hood Engineering & Agri Parts manufactures a wide range of feed equipment and farm implements, and also stocks a large selection of tractor and machinery parts, including hydraulic fittings, bearings, nuts, belts, PTO shafts, oil and lubricants.
These are exciting times for the family-run business which has a growing customer-base both north and south of the border as well as in Britain thanks to its Ebay store. Boasting over 30 years of engineering experience, Anthony Hood runs the company along with his wife Marie, son Jack and four staff. Over the past two decades, Hood Engineering & Agri Parts has established itself as a leading manufacturer of farm machinery and a stockist of quality parts, while also providing a top-class maintenance / repair service.
“We can fix, service or repair anything,” Anthony proudly states.
“We have four staff in our workshop where we also manufacture a range of farm machinery. We started off manufacturing 11x7ft tipper trailers and expanded into making other products and undertaking refurbishment work from there. Our manufacturing and repair services are complemented by our parts department. Your special requirements are our speciality.”
Hood Engineering & Agri Parts has experienced a surge in business since moving its shop and parts department into the middle of Newtownstewart, having been originally run from under the same roof as the workshop which is two miles away in the townland of Gallon.
“We opened the shop on Dublin Street in April 2018 and I have to say it has been a great move for us. We have seen a dramatic increase in enquiries and sales, and will hold an Open Day soon to mark our first anniversary in town,” Anthony enthuses.
In July of last year, Hood Engineering & Agri Parts was appointed exclusive Northern Ireland agents for Enorossi, who manufacture an extensive range of farm machinery, including disc mowers, hay rakes, hay tedders, square and round balers, rotary rakes, bale wrappers, mixer wagons, front loaders, backhoes, centrifugal fertilisers and slurry tankers. Enorossi products are distributed by AMIA (Agri Market Insight & Access Ltd), who also distribute SFOGGIA, JayLor, Trenona Farm Machinery, Alstrong, HLA Snow, Nardi, Wild Hare, Palatine, Chapman, Valentini and Tubeline Manufacturing Inc.
“We’ve had a lot of enquiries about Enorossi. They manufacture a wide range of products, but we’re concentrating mainly on rakes and pushing those for them. We’re also an agent for Fleming Agri Products, which has been a well-respected brand in Ireland and the UK for many years.”
Hood Engineering & Agri Parts has invested in a CNC plasma cutter, guillotine and press brake among other state-of-the-art equipment which has enabled it to broaden the type of repair work it can carry out for customers and to manufacture and expand its own range of farm machinery. Following three years of research and development, the company recently launched its unique Q Hitch (Quick Hitch). This product can be fitted to both the front and rear of your tractor and helps you get more use out of your loader / handler implements. The ingenious Quick Hitch allows all your handler implements to be used on your tractor. It makes your tractor more versatile and your implements more cost-effective. It is available in both manual and hydraulic options and can be manufactured with a headstock to suit your handler or loader.
Other products manufactured include a Folding Bale Spike, which is used for round and square bales, and a Double Bale Spike, which is available with four to six spikes. The Hoods have also designed a Bale Shear with Plastic Catchers, which can be fitter with any brackets, with a meal bucket attachment available as well. Land rollers and land levellers are also popular with customers along with various other labour-saving devices. Hydraulic fittings and pipe repairs can also be carried out while you wait.
Hood Engineering & Agri Parts evolved from the family’s background in agri contracting. Anthony ran his own agri contracting business for the best part of 20 years before concentrating solely on his engineering enterprise. Fortunately, he held on to most of his machinery, including a David Brown 1690 tractor and a Taarup 338 mower, which allowed his son Jack to revive the agri-contracting business in 2010. Jack started off mowing grass for local farmers before extending his services to include raking, baling, bale wrapping and hedge-cutting.
“My time spent fixing machinery back in the days when I was an agri contractor led me to setting up Hood Engineering & Agri Parts. Jack is involved in the manufacturing and repair side of things and juggles this in the summer time with his agri contracting business,” Anthony explains.
Hood Engineering & Agri Parts has showcased its products at all the major agricultural machinery shows, including the National Ploughing Championships, Tullamore Show, Armagh Show, Fintona Show and Clogher Valley Show. Anthony concludes by thanking his customers for their continued support.
“The customers we have are very loyal and I would put that down to the service we offer them. We pride ourselves on our quality products, friendly and prompt service and competitive pricing. We will go out of our way to make sure the customer is always satisfied.”
Here’s to the next 20 years of this successful family business!
Hood Engineering & Agri Parts
18A Dublin Street,
Newtownstewart,
Co. Tyrone BT78 4AF
Tel: 028 8166 2907 / 07711 986 155
Email: [email protected]
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 7 No 3, June/July 2019
