As technology continues to transform all types of industries, there’s been an increasing trend in the adoption rate among those involved in the agriculture community. The second Green Revolution is happening now, and in this three-part series we’ll discuss the boom of agriculture technology driven by the growing need at the farm level to save money and time without added complexity.
A broad explanation of AgTech is that it’s a word-mashup to describe the application or leverage of technologies in the agricultural industry. AgTech is considered to have started with the emergence of precision agriculture many years ago.
Whipcord has been involved in AgTech since before it was a buzz word or hashtag and our experience in technology spans decades. We’re a team that’s been involved in many different aspects of the agriculture sector over the years, so we understand how it can be used to improve production and profitability for farmers.
Embracing the Technology
- Checking weather on a smart phone.
- Reviewing farm machinery on a computer
- Flying drones to check crops
- Collaborating through social media
As the agriculture industry embraces these new technologies, farmers are seeing the benefits in numerous ways. As rural connectivity improves, it makes sense to implement it in day-to-day operations.
The trend of increased use of technology in agriculture is a direct result of the growing number of younger generations continuing to expand their role within the farming industry. Technology helps farmers make better decisions when it comes to sustainability and profitability.
GPS enables farmers to save money and time and, due to continued technological developments, it’s now available in almost every machine. For example, sectional control provides the benefits of reduced overlap and increased consistency across fields. Or, building on the power of GPS assisted steering of machines, guidance lines can be optimized for tilling, swathing, seeding and spraying to also maximize consistency and efficiency, while reducing the costs associated with unnecessary passes. However, the challenge farmers are seeing is that not all guidance systems or packages are created equal, with many unable to effectively reduce redundant passes in the field and avoid the dreaded “row of shame”.
The First Pass product from Whipcord improves on your existing GPS by optimizing routes, eliminating overlap and reducing travel and fuel during in field operations. It also increases efficiency by making it easier to manage equipment and labour, with pre-set optimized guidance lines that all operators follow instead of each making their own route.
First Pass reduces field costs by 5-7% by reducing distance travelled and in turn, increasing your equipment and time ROI. Simply put: Drive Less. Spend Less.
