This month we feature Chris Marshall, the Production and Improvement Manager at cloud based cellular farm monitoring and data company Levno New Zealand.
Things you spend most of your time on: A lot of my time is spent analyzing or interpreting our data (milk/water/fuel) to help identify events or opportunities for us to increase value to our offering. Involved with projects around new product development, internal standards/processes and customer engagement while providing a second level of support for both internal and external customers as well as contractors.
Things I enjoy the most about the role: Being able to actively engage with our customers and see the benefits of our products every day. It’s helping to protect from fuel theft, preserving milk quality and saving vat loads of milk for our customer and their business.
Getting to be a part of a business at the forefront of Ag-Technology while being in a space that helps with every day decision making on and off farm.
The culture at Levno is also a major part of it, being able to do all that we do with the team that we have – since being here I’ve never woken up in the morning thinking “I have to go to work today”.
How would you describe Levno’s technology?
It’s a combination of hardware and software that allows our customers to monitor their milk, fuel and water.
What kind of hardware is installed to monitor milk?
A series of sensors (probes) measure the temperature of the milk going into and out of the vat; the temperature of the water going into the primary cooler; and the temperature of the milk inside the vat (as a back-up to the sensor built into the vat). Additional sensors measure the volume (quantity) of milk in the vat. A magnetometer measures the agitation (stirrer).
How is the hardware connected to the software?
Levno for milk is wired into transceivers that connect with a customer’s mobile network.
Once everything is installed, how do farmers access their data?
An intuitive dashboard provides them with a ‘live view’ of each sensor. Data is recorded continuously every three minutes. A farmer or their staff can log in to their dashboard remotely, 24/7, and see exactly how various parts of their plant are performing.
A series of charts helps our farmers analyse their historical data and live data. Each sensor is mapped over time against MPI’s milk regulations so it’s easy for someone to know if they’re operating inside or outside its parameters. It’s also possible to review past events such as tanker pick-up times, milking start/stop times, washing temperatures…
Extra statistics are available to track a farm’s milk production. For example, average milk times or the average volume of milk produced over a certain period.
What kind of issues does Levno alert dairy farmers about?
Five basic alerts are sent to their mobile phone or PC (as texts or emails) when an issue in their milking shed needs urgent attention:
1. When power is out (to Levno’s unit). It also sends an alert when power resumes.
2. If the stirrer (agitation) has not been turned on.
3. If the primary cooler has not been turned on or the water isn’t the right temperature which impacts on the milk’s temperature.
4. If the temperature of the milk in the vat is too warm.
5. If the temperature of the milk in the vat is too cold.
Ten other alerts include general information about a plant’s performance and milk production but these don’t require urgent attention.
What is the most common situation Levno protects against?
Some refrigeration units on dairy farms are automatic, others are manual. A manual unit relies on someone turning it on. Every week 15 percent of Levno’s dairy customers (a farmer or their staff) forget to turn their refrigeration unit or primary cooler on. Without receiving an alert, thousands of litres of milk would be spoiled and thousands of dollars in profits would be lost.
How can someone interested in Levno for milk, fuel or water find out more?
They can visit our website www.levno.co.nz or call us on 0800 453 866. We’re real people in Palmerston North who are passionate about helping farmers improve their production and profits.