Mesh Protection
Value of data
This trial has really opened the eyes of the wine growers as to how things change in real time. One day last autumn they thought they were going to have a frost event. The temperature dropped to a point where they would have turned the system on previously, but because they could see it was rising from borderline critical, they decided not to respond and the frost did not eventuate. They have the confidence to do this with the new system in place.
At another 200-hectare Marlborough vineyard, Indigo Systems installed 15 units to control irrigation, not frost protection. The system monitors the downstream pressure on several irrigation pumps, which are prone to blocking and failing. Nodes automatically check these pumps around the clock, saving the grower time and effort in daily monitoring.
A smaller system is also installed in a Martinborough vineyard where there are 15 units installed for frost protection. This vineyard has a wind-powered system for breaking up the cold air on frosty nights. The current trials have progressed to stand-alone systems with little need for input from Dr Rankin, but he is there for troubleshooting should the need arise.
He aims to export the system, but he would like to gain market control in New Zealand first. He does not have many competitors and sees his advantage lying in cost savings as well as in the flexibility of his system.
The radio units currently cost $250 each and the rechargeable battery units are $100 each. Solar panels, at $350 each, require virtually no maintenance. Growers add the number of sensors that they need and these are available off-the-shelf, or as part of a solution package.
A huge advantage the system has over current systems is that it uses license-free frequencies in the ISM band (Industrial Scientific and Medical). Other systems face great expense by using mobile phone-based communication.
Dr Rankin is spreading the word by advertising in trade magazines, as well as attending conferences. In the complex business of producing wine from vines exposed to so many climatic variables, it makes sense to monitor the growing process as carefully as possible. Using Indigo's cutting-edge technology is one way that growers can achieve consistently good harvests and increase their profits.
Claire Le Couteur is a Christchurch-based freelance writer.
