No day is ever the same in the Precision Ag Department and that is exactly how Bryan, Precision Ag Specialist likes it!
The role and tasks that come along with the technology side of agriculture greatly varies depending on the season - it's a fast-paced environment as the technology is constantly advancing. Bryan's main job is to provide hardware and software support for the Precision Ag products and services Martin Deerline offers.
As the ground thaws, Bryan will hit the field setting up weather stations and getting clients set up with the Crop Intelligence software to monitor moisture levels throughout the growing season. He also works with producers to do topographical analysis of their land, using the T3rra software to develop water management plans to increase farmable acres.
As crops get planted, grown, and harvested, Bryan provides product support for GPS systems, rate controllers and other technological offerings from John Deere, in addition to mobile software support for programs such as Operations Center. Once harvest wraps up, Bryan works with Operations Center data, cleaning it up and analyzing it to help customers understand their data to make educated decisions for the next year. He also spends time training fellow staff and customers on using the suite of John Deere Precision Ag technologies throughout the off-season.
When asked his favorite thing about his job, Bryan replied, “The fact it keeps me on the move and I get to be engaged with customers from across our whole territory. One day I will be helping a client in Falher and the next day I may be at a farm in Wetaskiwin.” Bryan also particularly likes Spring, “typically producers have a lot of optimism this time of year and are excited to just get back into the field.”
We also asked Bryan his advice for farmers who are just starting to use technology in their operation. “My advice is to start by building a solid digital foundation. By this I mean, start collecting meaningful data early, and make sure you have a method for keeping it consistent and organized. When you've got years of data collected it can be impossible to use if it's tough to find!”
And if you need help building your digital foundation, Bryan is our expert to help you collect, analyze and optimize your data. Spring is the perfect time to get set-up as you seed your acres.
Before long, Bryan will be on the go helping producers across our territory as they start to seed, but as mentioned before he likes to be on the move and stay busy, whether it's at work or in his spare time. Bryan likes to stay active by running and mountain climbing in the summer, skiing in the winter and playing music anytime of year. We have also heard he likes to show-off his karaoke skills when out with family and friends - with his go to song being “The Weight” by The Band
Bryan also likes to try new things and is not afraid to take on new challenges when it comes to Precision Ag, which can be frequent as the technology evolves so quickly. He is always eager to learn and approaches everything with a positive attitude and smile on his face - traits which we greatly admire.
Thanks Bryan for being part of the Martin Deerline team!