Kitching, Lacey combine for Precision Ag talk
By Farms.com Media Team
Some good-natured banter between Case IH and John Deere loyalists underscored a spirit of cooperation and shared learning at a mid-day breakout session at the Precision Agriculture Conference recently in London, Ontario.
Darryl Lacey, precision agricultural specialist with Delta Power Equipment, and Greg Kitching, Premier Equipment’s integrated solutions consultant, gave separate presentations on the latest developments in precision ag machinery.
Darryl Lacey started the session with an assurance that cooperation between Case IH and John Deere was a good thing, and that working together on advances in precision agriculture was important.
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| Greg Kitching, left, and Darryl Lacey chat with Scotiabank's Jay Cunningham following their presentation at the recent Precision Agriculture Conference. |
“We need to continue to cooperate and share information,” he said.
Other points made during Lacey’s presentation included:
• Lacey considers himself to be an environmentalist, and said that “my vision is that we’ll have green fields all year long. We’ll be farming into green cover crops all year long.”
• Following the ideas of Steve Jobs, Lacey said “we are pushing the boundaries of of agriculture.” And “innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”
• “It is our goal to find the solution before the problem exists. By talking with the grower and finding out what the goals are, we are able to offer a value added solution.”
• Lacey gave insight on a few innovations coming from Case IH, including electric steering for the Pro 700 series, and a redesign on the Pro 700 Intelliview ISO Task Controller controls and custom settings.
• “At Delta we want to introduce new solutions for farmers that will provide a return within a year, ideally.”
Premier’s Greg Kitching took over for the second half of the session. Kitching was raised on an eight-generation dairy and cash-crop farm, and the points he covered included:
• With regard to the precision ag conference themes, Kitching observed that “traditional agriculture was all about being bigger, faster and stronger. Now with precision ag, it’s about being eaiser, smarter, and more precise.”
• “Data is the key to unlocking the next level of value in modern agriculture.”
• Kitching agreed with Lacey on the need for cooperation and said “we have to get over this brand loyalty. We are all in this together. Deere, Case, whomever.”
• “Connectedness is critical to how we service our clients. Through Trimble’s Connected Farm dashboard, with data being sent to the John Deere Operations Center, and so on.”
• Kitching said he was “very excited” about a number of innovations, including Deere’s Active Yield with automated calibration, and also the addition of Mobile Data Transfer to Operations Center, making it easier for producers to wirelessly transfer data from older Deere equipment and non-John Deere displays.