Irrigation scheduling system – Goldtec, Dream 2
Goldtec's irrigation control and supervisory system efficiently manages water and fertigation needs on farm.
Benefits
Dream 2 saves time and labour by eliminating the need to manually track and operate multiple programs.
This is useful for irrigating different varieties of wine grapes and citrus at once, with separate:
- water and fertiliser dosages
- operation timings.
How it works
All irrigation systems across the farm can be automated or controlled remotely from mobile device or PC. The platform provides live pressure and flow rate data for all irrigation lines.
Flushing is automated by time or pressure differential. Intelligent protection and email alarm mechanisms detect problems automatically.
Dream 2 integrates with other on-farm tech to irrigate according to soil moisture, rain accumulation and evapotranspiration.
Connectivity requirements
NetStick (LTE Cat 4), 3G or 4G, ethernet, radio, or cable.
Installation and power
Dream 2 is installed by a Goldtec-qualified technician.
It is solar-powered with a battery.
Pricing model
Upfront hardware cost and ongoing subscription fees.
Producer case study
Producer case study
Brendan Sidhu is chairman at the Australian Nut Industry Council and CEO of Century Orchards. At the time of installing the Dream controller, the property he managed was 465 hectares. It grows pistachios and a variety of almonds, including nonpareil, carmel, price and peerless.
The Dream 2 is designed to be an off-the-shelf solution, but the Goldtec Systems team were happy to make modifications for Brendan to optimise functionality. It has now been in use at Century Orchards for over 15 years, and the property has since grown to 750 hectares.
One of the greatest benefits of the Goldtec system is the time savings, which translates to lower labour costs. Before the controller was installed, all pumps and valves had to be operated manually, which was a huge task on a property this size. Additionally, turning them on and off at exactly the right time avoids stressing the pumps.
The ability to see pressure and flow rate data live from the office has made irrigation across the farm more even and water efficient.
'Before the Dream controller, you’d have to travel upwards of 15 kilometres on-farm just to turn the whole irrigation system on. If there was a problem anywhere in the system, you often wouldn’t know until you got back to the office. This controller saves us wasting that time and resources,' says Brendan.
Support from the Goldtec team has been strong. The irrigation system has been highly reliable, and regular services are provided through local Riverland Irrigation Services. Brendan has found that the system provides a lot of data in a user-friendly interface.
See it in action
To view the Dream 2 dashboard, contact the AgTech Extension Officer at Loxton demonstration farm.
Contact vendor
John Bickerton – Goldtec Systems
Email: john.bickerton@goldtecsystems.com.au
Mobile: 0418 891 488
