Today’s growers are using innovative technology to manage their farm operations and to combat rising issues related to increasing input costs, climate change, soil degradation, water scarcity and other macro issues. They are using digital tools and applications to monitor soil moisture, fertilizer applications, watering systems, plant maturation and more to improve their crop yield and build profitability.
Over the last few decades, precision agriculture, an approach that utilizes technology to optimize crop and livestock production, has become widely adopted. According to a U.S. Department of Agriculture study, yield monitors, yield maps, and soil maps are being used currently by 68% of large-scale crop farms in the U.S., with that percentage expected to increase.
Agtech solutions needed to support precision agriculture and other sustainable farming practices require a wide variety of parts and components, including sensors, automation systems, software and hardware to create products that monitor and collect data during the growing process.
Solutions to support agronomy
DigiKey, a leading global distributor of electronic components and automation products, serves several industries, including agriculture and agronomy. The company supports the development of IoT-enabled agricultural devices, such as sensors, smart controllers and communication modules for real-time data collection and remote monitoring.
Parts and components distributed by DigiKey have been an integral part of the smart soil solutions that AquaSpy, a California agtech solutions company, provides to farmers. For more than a decade, AquaSpy has helped growers gather and analyze their crop and soil profile data to inform questions surrounding their crop management systems. Are they watering too much? Too little? Is fertilizer being applied at the right times? Are their soil nitrate levels adequate?
With valuable insights to these questions, growers can optimize irrigation, minimize runoff and conserve water while still producing strong crop yields. A particular challenge during the growing season is how much and how often to water, with farmers needing to take their zone, crop type, weather patterns, soil quality and other factors into consideration.
AquaSpy’s Vice President of Engineering, Peter Ellegaard, says, “We (humans) are draining the Ogallala Aquifer as fast as we can, and we are killing our soil as fast as we can…The only way you can change it is if you can measure it.” Prolonged droughts are straining regional water systems’ ability to meet farm irrigation demands, which has growers increasingly relying on groundwater due to shortfalls in the surface water supply.
As a result, more growers are closely monitoring soil moisture levels and using innovative below-ground technology to control this aspect of the growing process. AquaSpy offers battery-powered moisture sensors on probes that allow growers to monitor soil quality, moisture levels and crop progression through a smartphone app. The subscription-based solution, called Crophesy, is part of the AquaSpy system.
DigiKey provides the components and parts for these high-tech probes that are easy to install and manage each growing season.
Valued vendor with industry-leading parametric search
For more than a decade, AquaSpy has been working with DigiKey as its primary North American supplier of components due to having “by far the best” website interface, according to Ellegaard, who manages AquaSpy’s hardware development, parts ordering and inventory management in-house.
He says, “Whenever I am looking for a new component, I don’t search on Google. I search on DigiKey’s website.”
Engineers and procurement professionals like Ellegaard greatly value DigiKey’s unique cross-reference tool, which simplifies the search for repeat orders, hard-to-find components, or substitute parts by providing a list of parametrically similar options.
Users enter manufacturer part numbers, and the cross-reference tool displays recommended part options from DigiKey’s extensive database. Once logged into an active account, all parameters become visible for an easy, detailed comparison of listed parts, including a helpful pinout comparison tab. Parts shown with a column highlighted in green mean that the specific parameter is an exact match to the original part, making the format easy to digest and analyze.
“The ability to do parametric search on DigiKey’s website makes it very easy to find new components. DigiKey is the de facto repository for searching for components,” says Ellegaard. He prefers to purchase from DigiKey’s in-stock inventory, working with an annual component budget of about $700,000 and spending about 50% of it with DigiKey.
Continuing to innovate
AquaSpy continues to innovate its products, and has recently introduced a new, slimmer probe that enables nitrate and oxygen sensors to provide near real-time data – a first-to-market solution for the industry. Nitrate is about a third of input costs for growers and a highly important part of soil health. Ellegaard notes AquaSpy is a category leader in terms of cost and technology when it comes to multi-sensor probes for soil intelligence.
DigiKey continues to evolve its offerings as well as help customers efficiently and effectively access the parts engineers and designers need to develop and test products for their business needs. For example, Ellegaard appreciates that DigiKey’s core service has remained the same, but he’s noticed more footprints have been added to the website, which has made it easier to do layouts for product development.
DigiKey’s data shows more than half of its ecommerce customers come without a preference for specific parts or suppliers. Instead, they select the products they need, reinforcing that customers are searching for parts based on availability and price in today’s competitive market and ever-changing supply chain.
Planning ahead is key right now
While most electronic components and automation products are currently highly available, it’s a good time to think ahead and identify alternative parts through your distributor rather than wait until it’s crunch time or there’s another supply chain issue. We recommend reviewing your Bill of Materials (BOM) every six months to a year. Ellegaard at AquaSpy plans and orders his components on an annual basis and fills in as needed throughout the year for specialized products.
You should also consider conducting obsolescence checks. For example, DigiKey’s myLists platform recommends alternatives if a product is unavailable, soon to be obsolete or has a long lead time. DigiKey works directly with suppliers to gain insights into where they’re planning to make changes, when they plan to introduce new products and what products may be discontinued.
Ellegaard noted DigiKey’s inventory search capabilities and reliable inventory have given him and the AquaSpy team peace of mind and stability during an uncertain time when other companies are struggling with affordably importing parts and components and having to rethink their entire business model rapidly. DigiKey continues to be a strong partner for AquaSpy and a proponent of advancing technology in agriculture to support the next generation of food production.
