AMVAC, Simplot to Collaborate on SIMPAS Prescription Application System
July 31, 2017 AMVAC Chemical Corp. has announced collaboration with the J. R. Simplot Co. to field test the proprietary SIMPAS prescriptive application equipment from AMVAC. SIMPAS stands for Smart Integrated Multi-product Prescriptive Application System. This technology enables Simplot Grower Solutions (SGS); a division of the J. R. Simplot Co. and leading full-service agronomic input supplier, to test run the application equipment as part of the SGS comprehensive services provided to their growers. SIMPAS allows growers to apply multiple differentiated products to only the portion of the fields needing specific inputs. This is possible by using new SmartCartridge container technology to utilize on-the-row RFID-tagged containers for application.
The collaboration allows AMVAC to install hardware and software at select SGS retail locations in order for those retailers to handle and process the SmartCartridges used by SIMPAS equipment to prescriptively apply products. SGS will then be able to pre-commercially test SIMPAS SmartCartridge hardware and software at multiple SGS locations during the 2018 crop cycle in anticipation of the soft launch of the technology in 2019 by AMVAC.
According to Dave Dufault, Vice President and General Manager, J. R. Simplot Co., “We’ve been big and early supporters of 4R Nutrient Stewardship to ensure growers use the right fertilizer in the right amounts at the right time and in the right place and this technology expands these services to a total solution. Combining SmartFarm data-driven agronomy solutions from Simplot and SIMPAS technology from AMVAC, we can enable farmers to apply crop protection, nutrition and specialty products to only those areas of their fields where they’re needed. That’s good stewardship and it helps farmers maximize their return on investment.”
Bob Trogele, AMVAC COO, says, “Simplot Grower Solutions is one of the premier precision ag organizations in the world so we’re thrilled with the opportunity to make pre-commercial SIMPAS systems available to their leading-edge, innovative farmers. Simplot crop advisors, utilizing the Simplot SMARTFARM program, know where and at what rate each product should be applied. The opportunity to combine SIMPAS application technology with SmartFarm prescriptions and post-harvest analysis will give participating farmers and their advisors a head start in the process of scouting for location-specific problems, identifying solutions, developing and applying prescriptions, and assessing the results.
Installed as “after-market” equipment on a wide range of planter brands and models, SIMPAS equipment will prescriptively apply multiple in-furrow products from on-the-row SmartCartridges in a manner that is similar to the way a printer dispenses ink from multiple ink cartridges. The system uses software to control the application rate of each product on every row at every location in the field with an accuracy of +/- 1%. Each SmartCartridge is a self-contained closed-delivery container that is equipped with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag that confirms each cartridge is authorized for use, properly installed, and in the correct position on the planter. The RFID tag also “links” individual cartridges with the purchaser, enabling farmers to receive credit for unused SmartCartridge contents when returned to the original place of purchase.
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