Manitoba raised and educated, and now living in Winnipeg with my teenage son. I graduated from Mechanical Engineering at the University of Manitoba in the early ’90s, and focused the early part of my career designing and manufacturing Agricultural Equipment. After getting an MBA I started leading departments and companies in a variety of manufacturing industries to determine the need and opportunity that existed in electronics. I then started JCA Electronics out of my parents garage, building wire harnesses for OEMs, and growing the company profitably at close to 100% per year over the next 10 years. At that point, the relationships we had established with our Ag OEM customers allowed us to develop our own line of electronic controllers and software to meet the demands of advancing automation in farming. We were looking to the future, and incorporated prevalent technologies into our products such as connectivity with smart devices. And over the next 10 years our evolution continued, with the hiring of over 100 employees, establishing a US Engineering office, and developing more products such as advanced sensors, software libraries and an autonomous hardware platform. We were focused on establishing powerful technologies in a standardized and practical manner in Agriculture. We now serve the needs of some of the largest and most innovative Ag Equipment manufacturers in the world. Utilizing a model of innovation and business we refer to as the JCA Way.
2022
John is an entomologist with Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development based out of Carman. He conducts monitoring programs for some of Manitoba’s major insect pests and provides information on insects, both beneficial and potential pests, to farmers, agronomists and those working in agriculture. John does numerous presentations and information updates for agronomists and farmers, and co-produces a weekly Manitoba Crop Pest Update during the spring and summer. He has worked for Manitoba Agriculture since 1997. John has a bachelor’s degree in environmental biology and a M. Sc. in entomology from the University of Guelph, and completed his Ph.D. in the department of entomology at the University of Manitoba. Aside from entomology, John also enjoys cycling, travelling and observing almost any type of wildlife.
Justine Cornelsen is the Agronomic and Regulatory Services Manager with BrettYoung. She carries over 10 years of agricultural and environmental experience from previous positions with the Canola Council of Canada, Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada, and Parks Canada.
Justine graduated in 2014 from Brandon University with a Bachelor of Science degree. In 2021 she completed her Master of Science degree at the University of Manitoba.
Justine currently resides on acreage near Virden, where she is surrounded by many, many horses.
