The 2024 Farm Progress Show is in the books and we walked an average of 16,000 steps per day to capture all the latest farm equipment and precision technology innovations in Boone, Iowa. Here are 5 of our top takeaways.

What Farmers Want: New Technology Has To Be Simple, Reliable & Affordable 

New Holland hosted a technology panel discussion with Carlo Lambro, global president of New Holland agriculture, Paul Welbig, director of precision agriculture for New Holland, and one if its local customers, John from the Des Moines, Iowa area. John was asked about the top factors he considers when determining whether a technology upgrade is worth the ROI in his operation. He says it comes down to simplicity, reliability and, above all else, the pocketbook. 

"There are a lot of factors that go into it, but the first one is cost," he says. "I'll liken it a little bit to the Tesla car. The world isn't quite ready for the fully autonomous self driving car, but we like the idea of maybe being able to roll down the interstate and having it take care of stops and starts for us, and let us enjoy the drive a little bit more. I think agriculture needs to follow the same pattern. As a farmer, I'm not totally ready to give up my space in the cab to a computer. But I think there are enhancements we can make along the way to take the tension out for a person like me who is not just running the combine, but it's my job to be the accountant, and it's my job to help guys working with the machinery. So, when you're sitting in that machine and thinking about all those things that are stressful, anything you can do to lower that stress is beneficial. It has to be simple, easy to use, reliable and it has to be cost effective."

Autonomy is Here

Fresh off announcing a strategic partnership with New Holland, Bluewhite showcased its autonomy aftermarket kit at the Farm Progress Show for the first time. Alon Ascher, chief business officer for Bluewhite, gives us an in-depth look at the components of the kit in the video below.

Solinftec Debuts New Autonomous Filling Station 

The Solinftec booth was jam-packed early Tuesday morning as attendees got their first look at the company's new autonomous filling station for the Solix Ag Robot. The solar-powered station ensures the Solix Ag Robot has access to the necessary products needed for 24/7 autonomous operations. The station also incorporates scouting data obtained throughout the growing season to ensure the right products are available for day-to-day executions. Guilherme Guiné, COO North America, gives us a first-look at the station in the video below.

“We plan to equip the station with several products and allow the robot to apply the test concept in the field,” Guiné says. “Solix has the ability to use a small amount of product in a section of the field and check the crop's response. Solix can then monitor that area and broaden the scope of application based on results. With this, we will be able to increase the speed of adoption of new products on a large scale, considering the diversity of each field, region and season.”

PTx Trimble Makes Splash with OutRun System

PTx Trimble, formed earlier this year by AGCO and Trimble, introduced its OutRun autonomous retrofit grain cart system, which is expected to be commercially available in 2025. As you can see from the photos below, the company did a nice job relating the technology to real harvest problems faced by farmers in Nebraska and Iowa. 

Sprayhawk Turns Heads

There's something that instantly grabs your attention every year at the show. This year it was a helicopter-turned-autonomous drone called the Sprayhawk from Rotor Technologies. Here are some key Sprayhawk stats shared by the company:

- Useable Capacity: 110 gallons
- Productivity: 240 acres per hour
- Direct Operating Cost (including pilot and crew): $480 per hour
- Autonomous Spraying: Yes
- Fuel Type: 100 LL
- Purchase Price: $990,000 (until 12/15/2024)