Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/74662
GRAPE GRO WING Hedging bets on currency Tires that rotate counter to each other, designed by Walter Langlois of Machinery Services Ltd., lift tendrils from the trellis. "It prevents anyone who's cleaning up behind it from having to pull a lot of the large canes with tendrils on them from the canopy," Pillitteri says. "When you pull them out, they'll also some- times break loose and whip the guy in the face, so it's a workplace safety thing as well. We've got all this nasty work done by a machine that doesn't really seem to care how many acres you do, it just keeps working." grapple with shifting exchange rates in cost-conscious economic times. Gregg Marrs of Blueline Manufacturing Co. Inc. in Moxee, Wash., said vineyard equip- ment from Europe is costing more as a result of exchange rates, creating opportunities for domestic manufacturers to develop their own products. A glance at his own balance sheet underscores the pressure on buyers. "Our margins are much thinner than they used to be," he said. "We work very hard to follow the exchange rate, and I buy forwards of currency when I see that the rate's beneficial. I put a lot of effort into that." While this allows Blueline to give custom- "B ers better deals, dealers who don't pay attention to exchange rates face challenges. uy American" is making increasing sense as equip- ment distributors and growers "With the past couple of years, and the pretty drastic fluctuation that we've seen with the dollar against the euro, it's become more of an issue," Gary Chappell, international manager for Bouchard Coo- perages in Napa told Wines & Vines last spring. During the past 18 months, the euro has been worth anywhere from $1.51 to less than $1.20. The trading range has meant varying degrees of buying power for companies, complicating decisions of whether or not to buy. —P.M. QSEE US AT UNIFIED, BOOTH #H4 Wines & Vines JAnUARY 2011 65