GPS Archives | Alberta Farmer Express

Brandt closes GeoShack deal, locks up Topcon sales in Canada

Tractor company revives Ontario deal

A deal to make Brandt Tractor the exclusive dealer for Topcon geopositioning equipment clear across Canada has been resuscitated. Regina-based Brandt announced Tuesday it has closed its previously-announced deal to buy the assets of GeoShack Canada — two weeks after Dallas-based GeoShack declared that “a mutually beneficial deal… has not been attained.” GeoShack has been […] Read more

Crops, Machinery & Shop

Brandt buys GeoShack’s Ontario business

Deal makes equipment firm the exclusive Topcon dealer for Canada

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News June 8, 2020

Farm, forestry and construction equipment maker Brandt is about to buy itself a lock on the market for Topcon GPS equipment in Canada. The Regina-based Brandt Group announced Wednesday it has reached a deal to buy the assets of GeoShack Canada Co. and the Canadian assets of Inteq Distributors, both owned by Dallas-based Ultara Holdings. […] Read more

Sure, drones draw a crowd, but like other farm tools today, they need to earn their keep by generating usable data that actually increases profits.

Machinery & Shop, News

The farm data overload needs a fix

Ag tech event shows future of farming is data driven — but 'we're not there yet'

By Jennifer Blair September 5, 2019

Jay Bruggencate has a bit of a bone to pick with the ag-tech industry. “We’ve invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into smart equipment that knows what it’s doing but can’t talk to each other,” said the Lacombe-area farmer at the recent AgSmart event at Olds College. “There’s so much data now available to us […] Read more

Crops

Interest in soil health is growing, but testing still lags

It’s only a minority of producers who are soil sampling and that mystifies a provincial crop specialist

By Alexis Kienlen April 2, 2018

Some producers may be looking at soil health a little differently, but there are still not a lot of them taking soil samples, says a provincial crop specialist. “Soil sampling gives you an evaluation of the nutrient levels in your soil,” said Mark Cutts of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry’s Stettler office. “If you know that […] Read more

SeedMaster’s Norbert Beaujot sees DOT technology as one solution to a shortage of skilled operators.

Machinery & Shop

Not just a driverless tractor, but no tractor at all

A global launch at Ag in Motion could change the way you farm

By Laura Rance June 28, 2017

While farmers have been waiting impatiently for equipment designers to commercialize the driverless tractor, Prairie inventor and entrepreneur Norbert Beaujot has found a way to ditch the tractor altogether. And he’s rolling it out for the first time in July 18 to 20 at Ag in Motion (AIM), Western Canada’s outdoor farm show now in […] Read more

General, Machinery & Shop

Farmers keen early adopters, StatsCan report shows

By Terry Fries June 22, 2017

CNS Canada — Canadian farmers in most sectors are strong proponents of data-driven technology, according to a report Wednesday from Statistics Canada. The latest release from StatsCan’s 2016 Census of Agriculture showed farmers were particularly keen to jump into new technology if it improved the efficiency of their operations or their bottom lines. StatsCan spokesperson […] Read more

Researcher Tom Crozier inspects a sample ring from which grass has been cut to provide an on-the-ground sample of green grass in the pasture.

Livestock, Pasture

It came from outer space — better pasture insurance, that is

Using a new generation of satellites to measure grass production promises  to be a game changer for pasture insurance

By Jeff Melchior February 10, 2017

Ask any rancher or other forage producer — insuring pasture land can be a major pain in the neck. Because of the limitations of current assessment tools, in the event of a wreck producers can be paid nothing or an amount that does not reflect actual loss. Instead, payments are made on an area-wide basis […] Read more

Rodney and Tanya Hollman want to give their dog Marleigh the freedom  to roam but still keep her on their farm property.

Heartland, News

Rover will wander no more thanks to GPS technology

By Dianne Finstad November 2, 2016

Keeping a dog within the confines of your own farm isn’t always easy — but technology is changing that. Rodney and Tanya Hollman, who raise purebred Gelbvieh cattle near Innisfail, recently put an “invisible fence” around their property to keep their nine-month-old Kangal-cross dog Marleigh from wandering. The couple chose the Invisible Fence Brand from […] Read more

Crops, Machinery & Shop

Precision ag firm AgJunction plans post-merger job cuts

By Alberta Farmer Staff December 30, 2015

Precision agriculture equipment and software firm AgJunction is set to cut down its workforce in the wake of its merger with a U.S. competitor. AgJunction, which in 2013 relocated its head office from Calgary to Kansas and shut its Calgary manufacturing plant, announced Wednesday it will reduce its total workforce by about 20 per cent […] Read more

Crops, Machinery & Shop, Weather

Trimble to buy consulting firm Agri-Trend

By Allan Dawson November 10, 2015

GPS and precision farming firm Trimble is set to buy the Canadian operator of North America’s largest network of independent agricultural consultants. Publicly traded, U.S.-based Trimble, which specializes in GPS and other location services, including the collection and management of on-farm data and services for precision farming, announced Tuesday it will buy Red Deer-based, privately-held […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME cattle futures end up on firm cash trade

Prairies can expect far better harvest weather this fall

Funds’ net long keeps growing in canola

GFM Network News