Pumping white gold: rural water solutions backed by 70 years of success

Amidst rising operational costs across the country, Australian farmers are looking for ways to make every dollar count. 

To manage climbing expenses, farmers are seeking out solutions that deliver maximum “bang for buck” – in terms of not only the input vs output ratio, but also the use of their properties.

In the world of pumps, this search for increased efficiency is all about developing innovative ways to transport water to hard-to-reach areas while circumventing rising costs.

One company making significant tracks in this space is White International.

Beginning with the foundations of products developed over the decades prior, White International has been making gradual enhancements since 1976.

“We chose not to reinvent the wheel, but rather enhance it,” says Managing Director Tony Ryba.

“Working in partnership with some of the best manufacturers from around the world, we started to explore and to invest in research and development.

This arrangement meant that while many competitors were tied to one brand and limited factories, White International has been able to bring forth innovation from multiple manufacturers, giving rise to several stand-out brand partnerships.

“We’ve represented our premier brand, DAB, for about 40 years, and they’re currently producing exciting new products in the domestic pumping space, like the Esybox Max,” Tony says.

“We’re also celebrating 20 years since we launched Bianco Pumpz and will be launching a revised product range driven by innovation and technology in 2024, after two years of R&D work – really setting this established brand up for the next decade.”

“We’re proud to have grown and developed the BIANCO brand ourselves, sourcing products from the best manufacturers around the world and delivering great value for money.”

The pride is well founded, not least since our BIANCO NXT pump controller won an Australian Design Award – but the innovation and development is far from over.

In fact, the company is currently developing and planning to launch a new economical pump controller in the first quarter of 2024.

The latest movement in the ongoing White International product range expansion is the acquisition of generator specialists Welling & Crossley – a move which Tony says makes perfect sense for the company.

“Also a family business, Welling & Crossley embodies the values that have been central to our company ethos for nearly 50 years,” Tony says.

“Our product innovation and development experience over the past few years will carry across to what we do under Welling & Crossley in the generator and energy sector, forming a complete package offering, with the exception of the piping.”

“As far as innovation goes, all of White International’s product ranges – which include brands like Dunlite, GenTech, and Welling & Crossley – are being looked at now as opportunities to breathe some excitement and life into the company.”

Naturally, the family business ethos that underpins the selection of partner brands also informs the White International approach to managing employees and serving customers – because, as Tony says, “anyone servicing farmers needs to be family-oriented”.

It follows that more than one-third of the approximately 140 White International employees have been with the company for longer than 10 years – and counting.

“Family business values are absolutely core to the ethos and fundamentals of not only our business but our business dealings, and the vast majority of our suppliers’ and customers’ businesses as well,” Tony says. 

Giving priority to relationships and customer service is integral to the White International philosophy of providing holistic solutions that cater to customers’ needs.

“When we develop new products, we take our customers with us through field trials, encouraging direct feedback and deep engagement – whatever it takes to help them achieve their goals and for us to ideally get it right the first time” Tony says.

“Rural based retailers look to us for guidance – for ideas on enhancing their operations, targeting the right markets, and ultimately growing their business – and the products come as a result of those considerations. We co-create value. If our customers feel they're getting great wins from us, then that suits our working and winning together philosophy.”

Loyal customers like Brad Batten from Watermart Bathurst confirm that this level of customer care is the best thing about working with White International.

“Their catchphrase ‘working and winning together’ is really evident in the way that they deal with their customers.

“When we first engaged Whites, Tony came and sat down with me for three hours in my office to see what he could do to service our business.

“That three hours was all about how Whites could serve us better, but there was no sales pitch – it was a relationship meeting. I still tell a lot of our customers about that level of service.

“When things go wrong on a job, we rely on our pump suppliers for technical support, and none offer a greater standard than White International. They'll send a technical guide to site to assess it with us, to troubleshoot and make sure we can give those solutions to our customers, which has been a really crucial point for us.

“Another big thing is that we're not coming and going from sites trying to troubleshoot it – because they're helping us, we're able to make sure our solutions are targeted .

KEY BENEFITS

-         Targeted Expertise: We have 50 years’ experience in developing water pumping and power generation solutions

-         Specialty Trade Tools: Our broad product portfolio spans multiple industries, offering a range of specialty trade tools.

-         Distribution Business: Our primary focus is on efficiently supplying products to customers.

-         Customer-Centric Approach: We tailor our service delivery approach to meet the needs of a diverse customer base.