October 11, 2012

Big Dutchman releases new agricultural operation tool

Livestock equipment firm, Big Dutchman, releases the new FarmPower-Manager which will aid agricultural operation managers to identify savings potentials on their farm.

The programme is described as 'the first energy management system for livestock producers'. It comes equipped with a PC programme which centrally collects information about the consumption of electrical energy and concisely displays the relevant data. The system analyses rate-based costs in real-time and calculates forecasts of future consumption. This way, energetic weaknesses can be identified and the production can be optimised in regard to cost-intensive energy peaks.

The Big Dutchman software combines multiple data sources. This includes the energy consumption of individual processes in the house, but also the consumption of entire houses or of an entire farm complex. These are combined with data such as type of, number of or age of the animals so that the consumption data per animal, per house or per system or farm can be compared on a mutual basis. It is also possible to record and integrate weather data, data from climate sensors or the energy produced on the farm, for example from wind or solar generators or a biogas plant.

The managing system allows farm managers to switch off irrelevant devices or switch to generator-powered operation. It is also possible to conduct profitability analyses based on the consumption thus enabling the farm manager to plan for an energetically optimised future. The system also supports the standardised IsoAgriNet interface.

The programme is awarded a EuroTier silver medal.