Northern Illinois Tractor & Equipment
NITE, also known as Northern Illinois Tractor and Equipment, is your headquarters for new Branson and Zetor tractors and Rhino tractor accessories including mowers, tillers, post hole diggers, etc. We also buy, sell, and trade used tractors and trucks of all makes and models in addition to other types of farming equipment and used construction equipment including skid steers, fork lifts, crawlers, trenchers, and backhoes.
Company details
Find locations served, office locations , manufacturers
- Business Type:
- Distributor
- Industry Type:
- Agriculture
- Market Focus:
- Locally (one state or province)
About Us
Need a new or used trailer? NITE has nearly 300 trailers in stock at all times. Types include many styles of “open” utility trailers, car haulers, heavy construction equipment trailers, landscape and dump trailers, snowmobile and ATV trailers, enclosed trailers of many different shapes and sizes and semi trailers. Tag (bumper pull), gooseneck, and fifth wheel models are available. In addition, we are your one stop shopping location for Calico and Titan horse and stock trailers.
NITE services all the new tractors, tractor accessories, and trailers we sell and services most all other brands of trailers. We provide repair and preventative maintenance services and specialize in the installation of trailer hitches and brake controllers for trucks, SUV’s and vans.
Mission
The Mission of Northern Illinois Tractor & Equipment is to provide competitively priced new and used trailers, trucks, farm tractors and implements, heavy construction equipment, and related accessories and services in an honest and professional manner.
Products typically offered by NITE include:
- Steel and aluminum utility trailers
- Enclosed cargo trailers
- Car haulers
- Tilt trailers
- Deck over trailers
- Heavy duty equipment
- Horse trailers
- Stock trailers
- Snowmobile trailers
- ATV trailers
History
In the beginning, NITE was but a dream in the mind of a young man from central Wisconsin named Jim Sacia. He loved anything with wheels and an engine. He loved to drive and he loved to work. He was a real “people person” too. While growing up on a family dairy farm, Jim saw glimpses of someday operating his own company in which he bought, traded, and sold farm tractors and machinery. Little did he know that NITE would become the business it has become today.
After a stint in the U.S. Army, a college degree from the University of Wisconsin – River Falls, and a short career as a police officer, Jim became an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (the FBI). All the while, Jim’s love for equipment and the farming industry never faded. He and his wife Jenny (also a Wisconsin farm girl and River Falls graduate) purchased a farm near Winnebago, Illinois, just across the Wisconsin/Illinois border. There they raised three terrific boys (and Paint and Pinto horses) while operating the family farm. They called their farm “Treasured Times Ranch”, an appropriate name only if a ranch can include basketball hoops, four wheelers, sports cars, and lots of musical instruments.
The few pieces of machinery required to do the work on a small farm just weren’t enough for Jim. And besides, his boys were getting older and one of them might want to buy and sell equipment with an engine and wheels some day. So NITE began to come to fruition in the late seventies. Oldest son Jerry marveled the machinery and he marveled his Dad. He learned the names of all the tools and soon became pretty good with a wrench, a screwdriver, and a hammer.
With Jenny’s assistance, a little help from the boys in between school and sports activities, and the assistance of a handful of good employees, NITE was first operated out of a pole barn on the north side of the family farm. Jim did the buying and selling in his spare time. Used tractors and construction equipment were the items typically offered for sale. Then the decision was made to try to sell “a few trailers” and the business began to steadily grow.
In 1997, as Jim approached his retirement date from the FBI, twelve acres at a prime location on Highway 20 just 8 miles due west of Rockford, Illinois, was purchased. An office and shop were erected and tons and tons of gravel were hauled in. On any given day, nearly 250 trailers of all shapes and sizes, 50 to 60 tractors, nearly as many trucks, and construction machinery are displayed along with farm implements, recreational equipment, lawn and garden equipment, and various other items are offered for purchase.
Today, NITE continues on as a family owned and operated business. Changes continue and more changes are on the horizon. Jim is currently serving as Illinois State Representative from the 89th district. He spends most of his time in Springfield, at his office in Freeport, or out in the district among his constituents. Son Jerry is now the General Manager and oversees the day to day operations of the business. Jerry also does the majority of the buying, trading, and transporting of equipment. Jenny toils for long hours each day and is primarily involved in the accounting and financing side of the business. She also works in the sales/service side of the business and is particularly active in horse and stock trailer sales. (On a more private note, she also prepares lunch for all of the employees each and every working day.) Including both full and part timers, NITE now employs about a dozen highly skilled and dedicated people who work well together to meet customer needs and realize the objectives of the company.
NITE continues to invest in good employees, tools, and programs to improve customer service which we know will result in higher customer satisfaction levels overall. Current plans do not call for any significant expansion or growth. Rather, current plans call for being better at what we already do. We hope you will be the benefactor of our efforts.
Goals of NITE
Regarding our customers:
- Provide the best possible product application assistance derived from a good understanding of our customer’s needs, an adequate degree of product knowledge, past experiences, and a genuine desire to serve our customer.
- Offer fairly priced equipment represented to the best of our ability.
- Provide prompt “before-the-sale” and “after-the- sale” services.
- Always conduct business forthright and ethically.
Regarding our employees:
- Provide a safe, comfortable, and productive working environment.
- Reward via salary and benefits according to one’s worth, relative to our ability to fund.
- Make available opportunities for personal growth and advancement according to one’s abilities and our needs.
- Promote a “teamwork” approach to problem solving.
- Maintain a business organization that all can respect and be proud of.
Regarding our suppliers:
- Always conduct business forthright and ethically.
- Develop relationships that position us for preferred pricing and delivery considerations.
- Always remember that our suppliers deserve to yield a fair profit from the investment of their resources.
- Procure only high quality products and services delivered on time. (We cannot accept under performance from our suppliers.)
Regarding our community:
- Contribute resources to community projects that improve the “quality of life” for our friends and neighbors.
- Help provide special educational and recreational opportunities for those in our community.
- Encourage other local businesses to become involved in community projects.
- Whenever possible, utilize the services of other small businesses in our community.
- When it is appropriate to do so, promote other small businesses within our community.
Regarding our owners:
- Always be mindful that the owners of our company deserve to earn a fair profit from the investment of their resources on each and every business transaction.
- Honor the owners by treating their property as if it belonged to us.
- Always contribute a full hour of work for a full hour’s worth of pay.
- Remember that the owners of our company deserve the right to make the final decision on any and all matters, even when the merit of the decision is questionable.