Innovative AGRAVIS concepts for Agriculture 4.0

Digitalisation is becoming ever more important in modern agriculture. Farmers have not been relying merely on their experience and gut feelings for a long time when out in the fields. Data about field sizes, soil properties and fertiliser consumption can be accessed directly from the tractor cab. Satellite-supports steering systems accurately lead the machines across the field to the centimetre.

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Big data in farming – This subject is just starting and offers huge potential. Agriculture 4.0. AGRAVIS Raiffeisen AG recognised this early on and started to develop its own concepts a few years ago, which are now bundled under the brand AGRAVIS NetFarming.

Experts from various areas

"From the very start, our experts and managers from the areas Technology , Crop cultivation and Agricultural Retail were involved," board member Thorsten Pogge explains how AGRAVIS combined the know-how required for this from various areas of the company. In modern agriculture, all areas have to work hand-in-hand, says Pogge. AGRAVIS NetFarming combines technical innovation with crop cultivation concepts, thereby opening new paths to agriculture.

The threads lead to a separate subsidiary, AGRAVIS NetFarming GmbH. In addition, the agricultural trading company based in Münster and Hanover wants to develop networks and structures with partners that are established and recognised in the market.

"In the area of IT, we want to set up a joint venture with our long-standing partner for steering systems, 'geo-konzept gesellschaft für umweltplanungssysteme mbH' announces Thorsten Pogge. If the cartel authorities consent, existing products should be enhanced in the joint venture and networked solutions developed. Examples of innovations that AGRAVIS introduced in the past include the Isaria nitrogen sensor, with which fertiliser can be applied to fields considerably more needs-based than before, as well as AGRAVIS Net . This high-performance RTK network continually transfers precise correction data to automatic steering systems in agricultural machinery. The abbreviation RTK stands for a proces that faciltiates the particularly accurante steering of vehicles via satellite signals.

Focus on practical and economic benefits

"These and other modules are designed to give the modern farmer the greatest possible benefit by combining forward-looking technologies and the expertise of our specialists and to make management more efficient at various levels," reports Pogge. The focus of these products and services is on the practical and economic benefits for the agricultural company by optimising the resources used, such as time and supplies, for example fertiliser or seeds. Tools that are precisely tailored to the respective local parameters and the tailored advice, should also lead to increased yield in the fields. "This is how the farmer physically benefits from AGRAVIS NetFarming. In addition, the precise use of supplies also preserves natural resources," Thorsten Pogge underlines the new possibilities of Agriculture 4.0.

The first networked solutions are to be presented at Agritechnica 2015, which is being held from 8 to 14 November in Hanover.