Martin Lishman

What Martin Lishman does

Martin Lishman Ltd is a privately held British manufacturer of agricultural and amenity equipment, founded in 1975 and headquartered in Bourne, Lincolnshire. The company designs, manufactures, and sells crop storage monitoring and conditioning systems, compact sprayers, moisture meters, potato quality testing equipment, and impact sensing products. Its flagship offering is Barn Owl Wireless, a GSM-connected, cloud-hosted monitoring and automatic fan control system for grain and potato stores, complemented by the legacy Pile-Dry Pedestal and FloorVent grain cooling product lines and the ImpacTrack and TuberLog impact-sensing product families.

The company's underlying technology combines proprietary hardware (pedestals, fans, sensors, sprayers) with a custom mesh-network and GSM-connected cloud web app for telemetry, alerting, and automatic control. Notable proprietary components include the 1975 Pile-Dry Pedestal architecture, the Multi-Sense Grain Probe combining temperature, CO2, and moisture sensing, and 32+ 3D-printed dummy food shapes used in ImpacTrack to replicate produce impact characteristics. The business model is primarily hardware sales (Barn Owl Wireless systems priced from £3,190 to £10,213+, sprayers, pedestals, meters) supplemented by an annual Barn Owl Wireless Connectivity Plan subscription at £525/year (~£1.44/day) and recurring service and calibration revenue from moisture meters.

Go-to-market combines direct field sales (North and South England managers), a UK dealer locator network, dedicated distributor Barkley Green for sprayers, direct e-commerce, and international distribution into 52+ countries, supported by trade show presence at Cereals Event, LAMMA, Fruit Logistica, and Royal Highland Show. The company underwent a change of ownership in 2023 and in 2025 is celebrating 50 years of innovation alongside multiple industry award wins.

Name

Martin Lishman

Legal name

Martin Lishman Ltd

Website

https://martinlishman.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Martin Lishman Ltd is a privately held British manufacturer founded in 1975, designing grain storage monitoring and cooling systems, compact sprayers, moisture meters, and produce impact sensors for agricultural, potato, fresh produce, and amenity customers in 52+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Equipment

NAICS

Farm Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing (333111), Industrial and Commercial Fan and Blower and Air Purification Equipment Manufacturing (333413), Automatic Environmental Control Manufacturing for Residential, Commercial, and Appliance Use (334512), Agricultural Implement Manufacturing (33311)

SIC

Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523), Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Industrial & Commercial Fans & Blowers & Air Purifing Equip (3564)

akta.pro primary industry

IoT Farm Sensors & Edge Devices (Soil, Weather, Crop, Water) (AFAAAFAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Farm Technology Enablement & Data Integration Advisory (FMIS/ERP, IoT, Decision Support) (AFACAJAG), Precision Sensing & Monitoring (Soil/Weather Stations, In-Field Sensors, IoT) (AFAGALAB), Barn Environmental Control & Ventilation (Fans, Curtains, Cooling, Heating) (AFAAAIAJ), IoT/On-Farm Sensor Deployment & Monitoring Services (Weather Stations, Soil Moisture, Telemetry) (AFACACAJ)

Keywords

• Grain storage systems
• Crop monitoring equipment
• Agricultural sprayers
• Potato quality control
• Impact sensing technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Bourne

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Agricultural Equipment Hardware Sales: Primary revenue stream from selling physical products including grain cooling systems, moisture meters, sprayers, soil testing equipment, impact sensors, and associated components and spare parts. Products are sold through direct sales, dealers, and e-commerce.
2. Barn Owl Wireless Connectivity Plan: Annual subscription service required for Barn Owl Wireless system operation, providing real-time monitoring, automatic fan control, cloud data storage, and technical support. Working out to approximately £1.44 per day (£525/year standard charge).
3. Service and Repair: Service and repair programs including moisture meter calibration and servicing, providing recurring revenue from maintenance contracts and one-time service work.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Martin Lishman designs, manufactures, and sells agricultural and amenity equipment focused on post-harvest grain storage and cooling, crop quality monitoring, compact sprayers, and impact sensing technology. Its flagship Barn Owl Wireless system combines proprietary mesh-network sensors with a cloud-based web app and automatic fan control to remotely monitor and condition stored crops. Supporting products include Pile-Dry Pedestals, FloorVent and StoreVent ventilation, moisture meters, TuberLog and ImpacTrack impact sensors, a range of compact sprayers (70–600 litres), soil testing kits, and Bird Scarers, complemented by moisture meter servicing and grain clinic advisory services.

Product overview

Martin Lishman is a British manufacturer of agricultural and amenity equipment with a diverse portfolio spanning grain storage and cooling systems, crop quality monitoring, compact sprayers, soil testing, and impact sensing technology. The core offering centers on Barn Owl Wireless, a GSM-based remote monitoring and automatic fan control system for grain and potato stores. Supporting products include Pile-Dry Pedestals and FloorVent underfloor ventilation for grain conditioning, alongside moisture meters (Grainmaster, Field Check Plus, AgroLog), temperature monitoring (MiniTemp, Grain Temperature Probes), and quality control equipment. The potato division offers TuberLog impact sensors, dry matter measurement tools, and quality testing equipment. Compact sprayers range from 70 to 600 litres with various mounting options. Impact sensing includes ImpacTrack shock loggers for fresh produce and BeetLog for sugarbeet. Services include moisture meter calibration, equipment repair, and educational resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Barn Owl Wireless: Remote crop monitoring and automatic fan control system for grain stores, silos, potato stores, and compost facilities.
• Pile-Dry
• FloorVent
• TuberLog
• ImpacTrack
• BeetLog

Products and services

• Barn Owl Wireless Wireless crop store monitoring and automatic fan control system using proprietary mesh network and GSM connectivity with cloud-based web app. Monitors temperature, humidity, and CO2 in grain, potato, and compost stores, automatically controlling fans for efficient crop conditioning. No per-sensor charges.
• Pile-Dry Pedestals (Grain Cooling Pedestals) Grain cooling pedestals with high-output external fans that cool crops fast, protect quality, prevent pests, and meet assurance standards. The original Pile-Dry system pioneered in 1975.
• FloorVent Underfloor Ventilation Underfloor grain cooling system combining Pile-Dry Pedestal technology with simpler, lower-cost installation using standard building materials and removable pedestals. Extracts warm air directly outside rather than venting into roof space.
• StoreVent Building Ventilation Building ventilation system for grain storage buildings that extracts warm, moist air and replaces it with cool fresh air to increase cooling effectiveness and avoid condensation.
• StockVent Livestock Building Ventilation Livestock building ventilation system providing continuous fresh air to alleviate heat stress and maintain livestock production levels.
• Compact Sprayers (ATV, Demount, Tractor Mounted, Trailed, Pedestrian) Range of compact agricultural sprayers combining amenity specification with agricultural strength. Tank sizes from 70 to 600 litres and boom widths from 1 to 8 metres. Mounting options include ATV, demount, tractor-mounted, trailed, and pedestrian (Micro-Spray, Nano-Spray).
• TuberLog Electronic Potato Electronic potato impact sensor that monitors handling and transport impacts to help reduce bruising and waste in potato processing operations.
• ImpacTrack Shock Sensor Shock sensing data logger using 3D-printed dummy food shapes that replicate movement characteristics of fruits and vegetables during handling and transport, enabling on-site analysis of handling equipment via Bluetooth and the ML Sensing smartphone app.
• Grain Moisture Meters (Grainmaster, Field Check Plus, AgroLog, Balemaster, Timbermaster) Range of moisture meters for grain, field, bale, and timber moisture measurement. Includes the Grainmaster voted best for accuracy, Field Check Plus handheld meter, AgroLog wireless probe, Balemaster for bales, and Timbermaster for wood products.
• Moisture Meter Servicing Service and calibration program for moisture meters of any make and model, providing calibration certificates for crop assurance schemes.
• Service and Repair Program Equipment servicing, repairs, and maintenance support to keep agricultural equipment performing optimally.
• Grain Clinics Expert grain quality assessment and advice service for grain storage operators.
• Soil Testing Kits and Equipment Kits and equipment for analysing soil nutrient levels, pH balance, electrical conductivity, compaction, and sampling for informed crop management decisions.
• Bio-Acoustic Bird Scarers Bird deterrent systems using natural warning and distress calls, with random playback and volume/direction variation to reduce habituation.
• Barn Owl Wireless Connectivity Plan Annual subscription service required for Barn Owl Wireless system operation, providing real-time monitoring, automatic fan control, cloud data storage, web app access, alerts, multi-user access, and technical support at approximately £1.44 per day (£525/year standard charge).

Quantifiable outcome

• Energy savings of at least 40% when using temperature differential fan controllers and Barn Owl Wireless automatic control
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Barkley GreenminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBarkley Green operates as a distributor for Martin Lishman Sprayers in the UK market, expanding reach for the compact sprayer product line through their distribution network.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Trimble Agriculture: Global precision agriculture platform offering farm management software, IoT sensors, and analytics. Broad incumbent whose connected farm platform competes conceptually with Martin Lishman's Barn Owl Wireless as precision agriculture consolidates around larger vendors.
• AGCO Corporation: Global agricultural machinery giant with a Grain & Protein division (including GSI grain storage, bins, and aeration equipment). Broad incumbent that competes with Martin Lishman in grain storage and conditioning, particularly with larger enterprise farms.

Direct peers

• AgraTronix: US manufacturer of moisture testers and agricultural sensing equipment for hay, grain, baled crops, and soil. Direct competitor to Martin Lishman's Grainmaster, Field Check Plus, Balemaster, and Timbermaster moisture meter lines.
• PFEUFFER: German manufacturer of grain moisture meters, sampling equipment, and grain quality testing instruments. Directly comparable to Martin Lishman's Grainmaster, Field Check Plus, and grain quality testing products, serving the same grain farmers and processors across Europe.
• BinMaster: US manufacturer of grain bin level sensors, moisture monitoring, and inventory management systems. Direct competitor in the grain storage monitoring and control category, particularly in North American markets.
• OPI Systems: Canadian provider of remote grain bin monitoring and automatic aeration control systems (OPI Blue / OPI Integris). Direct competitor to Barn Owl Wireless in the wireless crop monitoring and fan control category for grain storage.
• Dickey-john: US manufacturer of grain moisture analyzers and agricultural testing equipment. Direct competitor in the grain moisture testing and quality instrumentation category, particularly in commercial grain handling operations.
• IntraGrain (Bin-Sense): Canadian agri-tech company offering Bin-Sense remote grain monitoring with temperature and moisture cable sensors. Direct competitor in IoT-enabled grain bin monitoring, similar in product positioning to Barn Owl Wireless.

Emerging players

• Hardi International: Danish sprayer manufacturer focused on professional crop spraying equipment. Adjacent peer to Martin Lishman's compact sprayer offering, particularly in the UK amenity and agricultural segments.
• Amazone: German manufacturer of agricultural sprayers and soil tillage equipment. Relevant peer for Martin Lishman's compact sprayer line, though Martin Lishman targets smaller/amenity-mounted units while Amazone serves larger tractor-mounted mechanized spraying.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Martin_Lishman
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCbwRcMr24_OxLhFRCAoUJSQ?view_as=subscriber
• Facebookfacebook.com/martinlishmanltd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/martin-lishman-ltd
• Instagraminstagram.com/martinlishmanltd
• TikToktiktok.com/@martinlishmanltd?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Martin Lishman