Ag Retail۪s Opportunities With Data

AgPro Industry Voices: What are opportunities for retailers and farmers to work together with data management?  – By Pam Fretwell

Ryan Oehler

Fort Wayne, Ind.

Territory Manager, Ag Leader Technology

A: “It’s an exciting opportunity to digitize the farm and make decisions from data. One of the challenges we feel that farmers have in data management is getting the data from the machines to a place where it can help in decision making. AgFiniti, our wireless data transfer, helps farmers get their data collected quicker, easier and safer to a place to view and analyze. The farmer still needs to add in his own visual data analysis while in the cab to figure out trends or patterns in his fields. But together, that can lead to deeper analysis of the data by the farmer or retailer. AgFiniti can enhance the whole process.”

Ryan Molitor

Sioux Falls, S.D.

Customer Experience Manager, Raven Industries

A: “Field computers that generate data in the cab became a game-changer. But gathering data in the field and getting it on a thumb drive and back to the office has always posed problems for growers and retailers. Our Slingshot system uses high-speed connectivity via cell technology so that data is collected and sent to the cloud. Now, getting data collected in the cab back to the office for viewing is no longer a concern. Slingshot is also great for retailers sending information and instructions to employees in the field. When needed, appropriate files are sent to the appropriate driver from the cloud-based system.”

Deanna Kovar

Olathe, Kan.

Production and Precision Ag Director of Marketing, John Deere

A: “Nobody farms alone. Farmers and their retailers have to work in a collaborative way. There needs to be one source of truth (data) that farmers can share easily with retailers so ag retailers can provide insights back to the farmers based on that data. This collaborative opportunity makes sure that farmers get the best advice from those that they trust, and those trusted advisers get the best data in order to perform those duties. The John Deere Operations Center allows access to data wherever and whenever he or she needs it to share with trusted advisers.”