Should I upgrade?

It is a question I often get on a service call or at a farm show.

As we discuss their operation, it usually becomes clear which upgrades make sense.

The latest advancements in planter control, harvest, and display syncing are only available on the newest displays. Ag Leader's InCommand 1200 & 800 have these features. Ag Leader’s legacy displays (Integra, Versa, Edge, InSight) still work and work well, but they can not support the current feature set.

If you are struggling with your data management or want to start mapping, then some type of upgrade is in order. AgFiniti makes your data management easy and secure. It is available on the legacy Integra and Versa, but its true versatility and ease of use is only available on the InCommand 1200 and 800. You can also sync your data directly to an iPad using AgLeader's mobile app.

Eric Post

Don’t forget about nutrient distribution, autoswath, soil sampling, drainage (AgLeader’s Intellislope), VRA dry spreading, adding starter to your planter, and controlled traffic. All of these have an ROI too. Give me a call and take advantage of our Precision Ag Evaluation and be ready for 2018.

How do we make good decisions?

As we calculate profitability to determine what balance of crops we will grow in 2018 on our own farm, we discuss the “Wins” and “Losses” of our tests and observations over the last couple of years. What did we learn and did it provide a return?

So how do we make good decisions based upon our experiences? We measure. We gather our data and we take a look at it. Now, that doesn’t mean everyone has to be an expert in everything. Most of us have some trusted partners that we lean on. But, the first step is to gather good data. We can’t analyze what we don’t measure or don’t measure accurately.

One of our supposed “Wins” was a late season N application. We knew exactly where it was, because we had mapped the application. At a glance, it did look like a “Win”. However, after looking a little deeper and running the numbers, it wasn’t. A properly calibrated yield monitor with gps reveals the hidden truths.

Could we have gotten the same result with a weigh buggy and some stakes? Maybe. But, the time saved and the certainty of the results out weigh the cost of the equipment. Don’t forget, that same data tells you a whole lot more about your farm and your choices; such as, tillage practices, planting date, seed choices, drainage, and N applications to name a few. Without the data, there are no truths to reveal.

Whether you need help with the systems you currently have or are making your initial precision ag investment, we at Kelley Engineering are ready to be your precision ag partner. Give us a call today and be ready to measure in 2018.

A new look for us and a data driven world!

Well, we've finally gotten around to updating our web site. The new look will allow us to post new content quickly and keep our product and support sections up to date more efficiently. We've also joined Facebook! A lot of change around here in the communication department.

Things are changing fast in agriculture as well. The technology we use to farm and to communicate has changed greatly since I came back to the business in 1999. Shortly before I came back, I was still using a bag phone. We had an Ag Leader 2000 yield monitor and looked forward to the quick and easy precision farming future that many companies promised was just a few years away. Apparently their definition of "a few" is different than mine.

Today, the technology and equipment we have available is fairly easy to use and robust. We can generate mounds of data about all of our field work, but to what end? Here are some points that may be helpful to consider.

• What are you trying to accomplish?
• Is the data accurate? Did you calibrate like you were supposed to?
• Are you taking the time to setup the console correctly to save you or your ag data analyst hours in the office?
• Do you sit down and take the opportunity to leverage that data? Your data.
• You've either invested a lot of money in products or may be thinking about it. How are you going to get a return on that investment?

At Kelley Engineering, we continue to grow and evolve in a ever changing marketplace. We want to work with you to do the same in your marketplace by realizing the full potential of your investment.

Thanks for your consideration.