Martin Hays Contracting of Top Farm, Rylah Hill, Bolsover, Derbyshire is Farmers Weekly’s Contractor of the Year.

Despite having no background in agriculture, Martin Hays says he has been hooked on farming since watching over his garden fence as a Ford 5000 and Kidd double-chop forager cleared a field of grass.

He served an eight-year “apprenticeship” with a local contractor before deciding to go it alone with a Case-IH 956XL, a small square baler and a flat-eight sledge.

His level of service, even in those formative years, speaks for itself, with his second-ever customer still on the books 27 years later.

Early success with the baler led to further investments in a plough, power harrow and drill, but his big break came in beating the competition to the purchase of an umbilical spreading system in 1996. In doing so, he rapidly cornered the market.

Slurry spreading has remained the backbone of the business, although he continues to seek ways to improve his offering with technology such as flow meters and nitrogen sensors.

Other services have come and gone, with a recent streamlining effort leading to peripheral, less-profitable work being dropped and the associated machines sold.

This has reduced the workload, minimised wasted travel time and increased profitability.

See also: NAAC farm contractor charges 2022-23

Machinery

Martin has a laser-sharp focus on his costs, which allows his to assess the worth of every service he offers.

As such, prices tend to be raised every year and, by his own admission, he’s one of the dearest contractors around – but that hasn’t deterred his customers, who still feel they get value for money.

Adding value is key, whether it be a weigher and moisture meter on the baler, or variable-rate nitrogen spreading using Isaria’s wing mirror-mounted CropXplorer.

It’s not all about new technology, though. The last two tractors came second-hand, and Martin proudly claims to have never paid above £100,000 for one, although his resolve is likely to be firmly tested over the coming years.

This willingness to dip into the used market for frontline machines can pay off handsomely, with the most recent investment, a Massey Ferguson with a little under 1,000 hours on the clock, coming in almost £30,000 cheaper than buying new.

Further savings are achieved by completing intermediate services in-house, cutting maintenance costs by 35p/clock hour compared with committing to a full dealer package.

He has also been able to tap into grants to fund improvements – most notably a new spray store and wash-down area.

Staff and customers

Several of Martin’s 125 customers have been with him for more than two decades, and their loyalty demonstrates the impression he has made on their business – both in terms of reliability and quality of work.

He employs two other members of staff, including his son, Daniel, who is taking on more responsibility for the baling side of the business.

It means Martin can remain hands-on and doing work on farms – something his customers appreciate and he loves.

The other finalists were:

• Glover Agricultural Contractors, Hill House Farm, Norfolk
• Vince Janes, Winterwell Barn, Gloucestershire