Sprayer operators everywhere know the frustrations with slow pumps, dumping jugs and inaccurate flowmeters that kill the productivity of their sprayer.
When an operator is in the field, they may be covering 3 acres per minute. But when they're sitting at the edge of the field loading, zero acres are being covered. Fortunately, technology that automates the mixing and loading of sprayer batches has been developed and brought to the industry.
"Early adopters of mixing and loading systems, such as QuickDraw from SurePoint Ag Systems, have experienced significant productivity gains, as well as other benefits," said Matt Wolters, co-founder and QuickDraw product manager of the Kansas manufacturer.
"Automated sprayer tendering is not only more accurate and more efficient, but it's also safer and improves record keeping from the field."
QuickDraw Max (Surepoint Ag Systems photo)
Wolters has worked extensively with farmers and applicators to implement these loading systems, and has seen first-hand how many producers are able to take their load times from 25 to 30 minutes down to 8 minutes or less.
"When weather conditions are right, the last thing you want to do is waste precious time sitting at the edge of the field," Wolters said. "Reducing the load time for each batch by 20 minutes means that a sprayer operator can cover an additional 60 acres with that recovered time. Over the course of an entire day, it means that same operator can now spray 2 to 3 more batches in a single day than they could without an automated mixing system."
Mix station (Surepoint Ag Systems photo)
As this technology has begun to infiltrate the market, the main themes that operators report on consistently are improved efficiency, improved accuracy and seamless record keeping. However, the fourth benefit that is gaining popularity is the added safety.
"Operators are no longer exposed to harmful chemicals, and the risk of wasting chemical is dramatically reduced," Wolters said. "In highly regulated parts of the country, this benefit makes an automated system a worthy investment all by itself. But the efficiency is what makes the technology truly pay for itself."
Spray rig (Surepoint Ag Systems photo)
For more information, visit www.SurePointAg.com
