MarKit County Grain near Argyle, Minnesota faces pressures shared by most rural elevators: shrinking labor pools, extreme weather, and one task universally recognized as the most dangerous on-site: opening and closing railcar lids.
General Manager Will Kusler has seen the strain firsthand:
“We just operate in an industry that’s difficult. The weather doesn’t cooperate, we’re remote, and it’s hard to find and attract staff.”
With 30+ million bushels moving through their system and less than 30 employees, the operation could no longer rely on bodies alone. Winter conditions reaching - 40°F made the job both unsafe and nearly impossible to staff.
RAYHAWK represented a potential path out of this labor–safety trap.
The introduction was casual— almost a joke— when a colleague forwarded an early RAYHAWK demo.
“A friend [working at a competing elevator] sent it to me and said, ‘What do you think?’ I told him, ‘I’ll come and look at it if you’ll pay for it first.’”
But when Will met with RAYHAWK leadership, Tom Boehm and Muaz Sheriff, the tone shifted. This wasn’t a CGI concept: it was engineered, tested automation backed by a team with depth.
“It wasn’t someone with computer animation skills making an AI video… we saw there’s more to this, not someone in their garage with a welder and a computer. That moved it forward.”
What sealed even more confidence was seeing the system run in the extreme cold of Saskatchewan: conditions nearly identical to northwest Minnesota.
The entire decision could be summarized by Will’s core motivation:
“I was hoping to eliminate people on railcars. That’s the beginning and the ending.”
Everything else- efficiency, labor savings, ROI- came second. Removing employees from the roof of a railcar solved a real, present danger.
Rural elevators cannot easily hire more people. Farms compete for the same shrinking pool.
“We’re 45 minutes away from a metro… Investing in a system like this helps us attract better employees and retain the ones we hire.”
Automation was about keeping the people they already have safe and supported, not reducing headcount.
Before recommending the investment to their board, MarKit County Grain sent representatives to see the RAYHAWK system in action.
“The reviews we got back were tremendously positive. That helped us feel comfortable making the investment.”
Seeing RAYHAWK perform in the same (or perhaps even harsher) severe winter weather they experience each year in Minnesota replaced uncertainty with excitement.
MarKit County Grain wants to remain competitive and efficient without disrupting the producer experience.
“We’re a repetitive industry… if we get really good at something, that’s the trap where you don’t want to change anything.”
RAYHAWK fit their shift toward safer, cleaner, more reliable operations.
Minnesota and surrounding states have seen multiple lid-related incidents: some severe.
“Safety is something you can always improve, but this was a pretty clear solution.”
Early-morning or late-night trains will no longer require extra bodies outdoors.
“Maybe I don’t need to staff a 3:00 a.m. train with four people — I can do it with three.”
Employees will not only be safer: they’ll prefer working at MarKit County Grain.
“It helps us attract better and more qualified employees, and retain the ones we’re able to hire.”
MarKit County Grain did not invest in RAYHAWK for novelty, marketing value, or an experimental bet. They invested because the problem was real, the stakes were high, and the solution worked.
“Safety, staffing, weather: all of it adds up. This addressed a clear issue.”
As installation and their first year with the system begin to unfold, the team is confident that RAYHAWK will deliver exactly what they need: a safer operation, a more sustainable labor model, and relief from the most dangerous task in grain handling.
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