Sugar beet harvester and self-propelled slurry applicator specialist Vervaet has launched a new telematics system that the company says maintains its place at the forefront of its areas of expertise for beet harvesting technology.
The basic version of Vervaet Connect, which was developed in-house, is now a standard feature on all the company’s machines. It features sensors that collect machine performance and operating data that’s automatically transmitted to a webserver and presented in real-time through an intuitive new online portal called MyVervaet. Both current and historical machine data can be accessed via this easy-to-use platform from any location, and a high-level of compatibility means that the information can be shared with and exported to numerous other popular systems, further enhancing its value.
The information displayed is extensive, and includes, but isn’t limited to:
- real-time tracking of the machine;
- machine operational status including speed, engine power usage, fuel consumption and hectares worked;
- current settings and parameters with a live view of the in-cab screens;
- service information such as fuel tank level and hours worked;
- alerts of any problems or error codes;
- historical data of previous work carried out by the machine;
- when specified (for harvesters), yield mapping with harvest data collected and displayed on a field map;
- application maps and total volume applied (for Hydro Trike and Quad).
The system’s benefits are far-reaching. The owner/operator is instantly able to ascertain the location and status of their machine at all times, speeding up day-to-day management tasks, especially when running multiple Vervaet products. The log of previous work allows parameters such as fuel consumption and performance to be analysed and compared, and improved where possible, increasing efficiency and reducing costs. Contractors also gain from the detailed information, such as the ability to instantly see how much fuel was used in a particular field.
Maintenance management is also streamlined, with the machine’s hours displayed in the dashboard making service scheduling possible from the office. Even the best products breakdown, and alerts of any errors or problems are also flagged up on the MyVervaet portal. This is also visible to the dealer and manufacturer, with remote diagnostics possible and the ability for software updates to be installed wirelessly, all reducing machine downtime.
The precision agriculture elements of Vervaet Connect bring considerable advantages to growers aiding them to maximise the potential of their land and make sound well-informed management decisions. Thanks to the system’s compatibility with other platforms, the data can be especially useful where other advanced farming techniques such as variable rate seeding are already being employed.
For the Vervaet Hydro Trike and Quad the system creates application maps in the MyVervaet portal displaying the rate of slurry applied across each field. This allows applications to be optimised and also provides extremely accurate recording of what was applied and where. Of course, this can already be taken a step further by using a separate John Deere system with an integrated NIR sensor to control the application rate according to the nutrient value of the slurry, allowing a set rate of, for example, nitrogen to be applied evenly across the field despite varying slurry quality.
Although yield mapping for combinable crops has become standard practice on many forward-thinking farms, this generally wasn’t possible for root-crops, resulting in missing data whenever a field grew sugar beet. But growers will be reassured that this gap has been plugged with yield mapping offered as an optional integrated system with the data conveniently presented in MyVervaet. This can be transferred to the customer, along with the total tonnage harvested and other important information, for their records and future use.
“We feel that the Vervaet Connect system brings benefits for all parties involved, from the contractor to the grower,” the marketing manager at Frans Vervaet BV, Daan van de Velde, said. “Farmers are able to use data from the Vervaet Connect system to help optimise their yields and reduce their costs, and time is also saved during maintenance and diagnostic work.
“Our main objective is, and has always been, to provide the best possible support to our sector, and this is achieved when everyone works together – we feel that you shouldn’t ever be afraid of collaboration. So we made sure that the data generated by Vervaet Connect can be shared with other systems to realise its greatest potential for the end user and enhance the development and progress of our industry.”
The sales manager at UK importer J Riley Beet Harvesters, Matt Carse, said the system aids efficiency.
“There is a real advantage from a service point of view, with the ability to diagnose potential issues or help customers with machine setup remotely, which can only make our aftersales support even better,” he added. “The ability to carry out things like software updates wirelessly also means that our service team will potentially spend less time travelling which will, in effect, save money for the customer down the line.
“Another advantage is that the system is completely bespoke to our machines, so it’s tailored to the specific requirements of the harvesters and the slurry applicators.”
