Precision Pays

It may still be holiday time but you can still plan ahead for educational events like the 2009 InfoAg.

Dear International Precision Agriculture Community:

Dr. Harold Reetz, Jr.
Chair of the InfoAg 2009
International Plant Nutrition Institute

For Program questions:
Harold Reetz
217) 762-2074
info@infoag.org

For Sponsor / Exhibit questions:
Harold Reetz
(217) 762-2074
exhibits@infoag.org

For Registration / General questions:
Quentin Rund
(217) 762-7955
registration@infoag.org

A report titled, “GPS Precise Positioning Markets 2008-2012,” is now available from Research and Markets according to a release posted on MarketWatch.

GPS Precise Positioning Markets 2008-12 includes details on the projected US$ 6-8 Billion value chain; starting with precision GPS infrastructure, continuing through the market for GPS receivers, finished GPS goods and concluding with GPS augmentation and distribution services. Markets covered include surveying, engineering, agriculture, mining, deformation monitoring, GIS, marine and aviation for both machine control and non-machine control applications for the time period 2008 through 2012.

The global value of precision GNSS products and services is approximately US$3 Billion in 2008 and predicted to grow to a value of between US$6-8 Billion by 2012, a CAGR of 19-23%, although prolonged economic downturn in North America and Europe could see growth slow to a CAGR of 15-19%.

I don’t have any more information on it yet but at least we’ve got the dates/location for the event.

Mark your calendars for the annual Nebraska Agricultural Technologies Association Conference & Trade Show on January 28-29, 2009 at the Grand Island Midtown Holiday Inn Conference Center.

This week I’m attending the National Agricultural Aviation Association Convention in Las Vegas. It’s the first contact I’ve had with this group and I’ve been learning a lot. For example, I didn’t realize how big a role precision agriculture is playing in aerial application. I guess it makes sense though. If you can use gps and variable rate on the ground then why not from the air?

One of the people who explained some of this to me was David Eby, AgSync, pictured on the left of Denise and Ryan Eby in their trade show booth. David says that they realized the need for aerial application companies to have a software solution for managing data, especially when they’ve got multiple planes in the air. So they developed AgSync, which is a web based solution for this problem. We’re sure seeing a growth in web based programming aren’t we? Even in ag!

David says they’ve been working closely with BASF on the development of this program. I’ve been hearing a lot of applicators here talking about BASF’s Headline fungicide and I asked him what that has meant for the business. He says “it has changed our world in aerial application.”

Listen to my interview with David here:

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If you’d like to see some photos from the convention then check these out: NAAA Convention Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2008 National Agricultural Aviators Association Convention
is sponsored by: .

If you’re looking for an economical way to get started using precision ag on your farm, John Deere has some new options.

Adding to the extensive lineup of GreenStar precision ag products, John Deere announces a new line of economical systems to help operators get started with precision ag or enhance the older systems they may already own.

“Let’s start with the new GreenStar Lightbar,” says Kyle Collins, senior marketing representative, John Deere Ag Management Solutions. “Many of our customers need a simple, economical parallel tracking display. Our new lightbar has 27 tracking LEDs to guide the operator as they are driving their equipment through the field. They easily steer the tractor or other self-propelled machine left or right based on which lights are illuminated.”

While I was attending the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention I spoke about the new budget precision options with Laura Robson, John Deere Senior Marketing Manager.

You can listen to my interview with Laura here:

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Precision farming was in the news on LDNews.com. Here’s an excerpt.

“I know it sounds like you’re spending a lot of money, but when you sit down and put hard numbers to it, it pays for itself in a short amount of time,” Diller said. “Guys who are using it tell you it’s the best money they’ve ever spent.”

“Some guys will say that’s half the fun of being out there,” Diller said, eliciting some knowing laughs from his audience.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving from ZimmComm New Media.

And just in case you want to know more, here’s what Wikipedia says about it:

Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a harvest festival. Traditionally, it’s a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general. Thanksgiving is a North American holiday with the dates and whereabouts of the first Thanksgiving celebration a topic of modest contention. It has generally become a national secular holiday with religious origins. Though the earliest attested Thanksgiving celebration was on September 8, 1565 in what is now Saint Augustine, Florida[1][2], the traditional “first Thanksgiving” is venerated as having occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in 1621.

Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Thanksgiving dinner is held on this day, usually as a gathering of family members.

I was just searching for precision agriculture training and found the TransAtlantic Precision Agriculture Consortium. It doesn’t look like they’re currently offering classes but they do have an educational training module still online.

The presentations on this page cover 15 topics important to precision agriculture. After carefully reviewing these topics, you should have a good appreciation for the techniques, technologies, and principles important to precision agriculture as well as their applications to production agriculture.

The information below is derived from teaching material created by Dr. George Vellidis for APTC 3030 – Principles of Precision Agriculture, a course he teaches at the University of Georgia, and from teaching material developed by Dr. Hermann Auernhammer for precision agriculture courses he teaches at the Technische Universität München.

Indiana Unmanned Aircraft Systems is taking precision to the air with a successful test flight. This is a picture of one of their units from their website.

Indiana Unmanned Aircraft Systems (IUAS), a Muncie, Indiana based aerospace company and manufacturer of small unmanned aircraft systems, announced the first successful test flight of its Im VII Air Vehicle Two (Im VII AV-2) took place on Saturday, November 8.

The aircraft is integrated to hyper-spectral cameras for use in precision agriculture image capture and analysis. The images are used by growers to determine the health of their crops, insect infestation, storm damage assessment and nitrogen run-off analysis. IUAS will be working with universities, agriculture business, and farmers across the state of Indiana.