Canadian-developed autonomous field unit DOT has made its debut in Ontario, beginning with a commercial fertilizer application in Chatham-Kent.
This first autonomous unit is owned by Haggerty Creek and contributes to operator efficiency, says Chuck Baresich, general manager of Haggerty Creek.
“The operator can be answering calls and providing service to customers while the machine is spreading product in the field. There are other things our staff can be doing, rather than driving the machine,” Baresich says. “I knew there was going to be a solid investment behind this technology. Autonomous farming isn’t coming. It’s here. DOT is the first step, and we wanted to lead the charge.”
Raven Industries purchased DOT Technology Corp. (DOT) in early May 2020.
AGRIS Co-operative general manager Jim Campbell says autonomy is the word this year, “Haggerty and AGRIS are always bringing you what’s next. This is what’s next.”
Haggerty Creek Ltd. is jointly owned by the Baresich brothers, Chuck and Justin, and AGRIS Co-operative Ltd. Haggerty has been active in precision farming for many years, specializing in controllers and farmer training. Now they are early adopters of autonomous farming equipment with the purchase of the DOT platform and an additional smaller unit for soil sampling and other applications.
