Opportunities for more efficient storage in the bulb shed

From research by the Rabobank This year, it turned out that two out of three farmers will invest in precision agriculture within five years. Above all, growers expect to be able to work more accurately and efficiently. In recent decades, mechanization has taken off and it is now possible to work more precisely and efficiently on land by means of accurate GPS systems, advanced harvesting machines and tractors that are full of handy technology.

That's why a tractor in 2020 quickly looks like this:

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Technology in custody

Once harvested, it is the right storage that should guarantee the quality of the bulb harvest until export, growth or replanting. The large quantities that come from the country in crates must be rinsed, dried, sorted in a short time and then undergo a temperature treatment. During custody, lots of different shapes and sizes are each moved between 5 and 15 times. Even in the event of a failure, (partial) delivery or detour, it is again necessary that all locations are updated. Precision and overview are therefore crucial here because of the large quantities of lots, cultivars, sizes and storage cells.

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“Combining storage locations, climate data such as temperature and RH values and yield data per batch offers opportunities for new insights.”

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Nevertheless, in custody, the administration usually looks like this:

• A stack of paper on the forklift
• A stack of paper with magnets on the cold room door
• A written driving map on each front stack of crates or bins
• A whiteboard or chalkboard with the cell layout written on
• An excel sheet that is filled out at the office (often at the end of the day)

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Why do most companies still work this way? After all, software is becoming increasingly mobile, faster and more user-friendly. You would say that there are therefore great opportunities for companies to work more efficiently in custody. “Above all, it should be practical in the shed” is a sound we hear a lot. Due to the lack of an easy and (financially) accessible solution, the step to working digitally was too big for many companies for a long time. A mobile app should not only be as practical as paper or a whiteboard, but everyone should also be at all times (remotely!) can check how the cell looks, how much of a species you have left and, for example, how much space is left.

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“If a customer then calls about a delivered party that has something wrong with, you are strong as a supplier if you can immediately show where that party has been.”

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Practicality is just the beginning

While a custody tool should of course be practical, this is where the benefits begin. Due to the increasing requirements for tracking & tracing (such as the introduction of the plant passport) and the shortage in the labor market, it is increasingly important that fewer people can work more accurately. Getting off the forklift to write down locations, retyping at the office in Excel and walking back and forth with papers is a waste of time. In addition, the risk of errors and “losing” a party is considerably smaller when there is an overview and a complete history per party. If a customer then calls about a delivered party that has something wrong, you are strong as a supplier if you can immediately show where that party has been.

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(Big) climate data

Sensors are getting better, more reliable and more affordable. Climate computers are getting smaller and smarter and there are now sensors that send their data directly or via a gateway to the cloud. Combining storage locations, climate data such as temperature and RH values and yield data per batch offers opportunities for new insights. What is the optimal temperature for each cultivar and size? Exactly how much air do different cultivars and sizes need? Can we better predict where and when fusarium will develop? Until recently, growers were dependent on public practical or private research by, for example, WUR or Delphy. By collecting and combining this digital data themselves, the grower or a product group can in the future do your own research and provide better and more precise answers to these types of research questions.

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At Beam, we're working hard on our mission to help companies control custody from start to finish and improve year over year. By starting in practice and with the tracking & tracing of parties, we lay a basis for linking with sensor data and even more overview in storage. Several growers, cold stores and export companies such as Nord Lommerse, Via Roma and Van Haaster Vijfhuizen already rely on Beam for the convenient storage of their flower bulbs.

Our mission is to make corporate custody more efficient and smarter. More information or exchange ideas about this? Mail us at info@beamtracking.com.