Sites Reservoir is significant for California and the nation, and a substantial loan through the WIFIA program will help us realize the many environmental and water supply benefits of this project. Sites Reservoir is a beneficiary pays project, which means that the loan will be repaid by project participants.

“The significance of this opportunity cannot be overstated. We thank our federal partners and the Biden Administration for supporting Sites Reservoir in such a meaningful way.”

Said Fritz Durst, chairman of the Sites Project Authority

Established by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014, the WIFIA program is a federal loan and guarantee program administered by the US EPA. WIFIA’s aim is to accelerate investment in the nation’s water infrastructure by providing long-term, low-cost federal loans for regionally and nationally significant projects. The Sites Project Authority submitted a letter of intent to apply is July 2021. WIFIA funding helps finance drought resiliency projects as well as clean water and safe drinking water infrastructure projects across the United States. After a robust statutorily required review process, the WIFIA Selection Committee selected Sites Reservoir to apply for a loan.

“For Sites Reservoir to be built – bringing substantial and critical environmental benefits to California – it has to be affordable for our participants. This loan can get us there,”

Added Durst

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Mark Cuban has some good advice for all the business people dealing with the coronavirus pandemic:

“Make use of whatever down-time you might have to brush up on the skills that might impress your future employer. Every interviewer from now on is going to ask you what skills did you add during the pandemic of 2020.”

He also suggests we use this time to become great at the work you want to do and add new skills to your repertoire.

This is excellent advice, but sometimes it’s hard to find educational opportunities for those of us in the water conservation business. Thanks to Jain Irrigation, this is changing. Recently Jain started providing regular irrigation training a couple of times a week for free to anyone wanting to improve their skills in irrigation, water management, and sustainability. The Jain Irrigation training sessions are inspiring water managers of all levels and in multiple water management fields.  This is your chance to join experts and enthusiasts to discover and share new techniques, smart tips, and new technology.

The webinars cover various subjects and many cover subjects that do not include information about Jain products. They cover topics like System Management In Controlled Environment Agriculture, Harvest Recommendations, Budgets, and Best Practices For Marketing Hemp, Critical Success Factors For Landscape Contractors, and many more. There are some specific to Jain Products, unique product offers, and discount pricing for Jain products offered during the instruction. However, the instructors and guests are very aware this is a learning experience and provide a positive learning experience for those who attend.

Future webinars are posted on Jain’s website. If you scroll down on that page, you will also see the previous webinars, and you can watch all these for no charge. Jain provides these at no cost as part of their conservation and sustainability message and helps fulfill their mission to leave this world better than you found it.

For all the runners, walkers, and water managers who like to listen on the go, the training is available on Apple, Spotify, iHeart Radio, and Google podcasts. Just search Jain Irrigation training on the channels, and you will find all the episodes. If your favorite podcasts are on Stitcher or TuneIn, you can find them there too.

The instructors come from all over the irrigation industry. They include Landscape Architect, Lance Sweeney, Ag Irrigation Designer Perry Continente, The Hawthorne Gardening customer support team, Jim Kauth from Aqua Trac System in Arizona, and Ken Olson from Olson Business Solutions, to name a few. Also, President of Jain Irrigation, Aric Olson, discusses the future of Ag Technology and covers a three-part series on nitrogen and fertilizer for agriculture. You will also find several of the subject matter experts on products for Jain Irrigation presenting as well. It is a well-rounded group covering different but specific subjects each week.

A big thanks to Mark Cuban for helping us put this crisis in perspective and motivating us in a positive direction. Jain training is valuable now and in the future. There is so much to learn about water management, conservation, and sustainability and I look forward to many years of training from Jain.

Source: Jain

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Laybourn will bring his more than 20 years’ experience in commercial, industrial, agriculture, and landscaping sales to focus on the development of the enterprise strategy, along with managing the Fortune 500 customers of ETwater.

Andy Belingheri, National Sales Manager at Jain Irrigation, Inc., said:

“We’re excited to have Dave join our team and lead our Enterprise Sales activities. His caliber of success and experience are ideally suited for selling the most innovative, technologically advanced intelligent, smart irrigation control system worldwide. Under Dave’s leadership, we look forward to helping many more businesses conserve water, reduce expenditures, and improve their corporate sustainability.”

Richard Restuccia, V.P. of Water Management Solutions is excited about Dave joining the team and growth at Jain Irrigation Inc.

“Jain Irrigation is in growth mode right now and additions like Dave Laybourn are great for the company. Jain feels a deep sense of responsibility to develop products and educate customers to manage water responsibly. Dave brings a wealth of irrigation knowledge plus a passion for sustainability and water management, three of our most important initiatives.”

Before joining Jain Irrigation, Laybourn was at Olson Irrigation where he was responsible for the go-to-market of an automatic self-cleaning water filter for agriculture. Prior to Olson, he worked at Rain Bird in field sales and product management that included being named on two U.S. patents for drip irrigation. Laybourn said:

“Agriculture is where I learned about ET (evapotranspiration) and how valuable it is, not only for saving water but also for the best plant health. I look forward to sharing this and other insights with the Enterprise about ETwater technology, which should be their basis for making investments in smart irrigation that deliver financial payback and a return on investment that is often much better than the owner’s core business.”

Dave Laybourn has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University.

Source: JAIN

The post Jain Irrigation hires industry veteran as Enterprise Sales Manager appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

The 2,756-pound (1,250-kilogram) Aqua Cutter 410V uses 15,000- to 40,000-psi water jets and a range of attachments for efficient concrete removal or surface preparation. Contractors can adjust the robot’s stroke to control removal depth and vary the water pressure to match the application, increasing precision, and efficiency over hand lances and other manual methods. This can significantly increase efficiency for applications such as tank and large-diameter pipe cleaning, reducing the time and personnel required while still producing high-quality results.

Roger Simonsson, Aquajet managing director, said:

“Industrial cleaning applications require flexibility. But with the models in the Aqua Cutter 410 series and Aquajet’s extensive range of attachments, contractors have the power and precision to tackle any application safely and still achieve unparalleled productivity. For example, we had a customer using a 410A that was able to reduce a routine pulp and paper scrubber cleaning from 30 hours to just five.”

The 410V also allows operation from a safe distance using the unit’s radio remote control, either wirelessly or with a hard wire. Contractors can remove the power control module from the tracked portion to reduce the crawler to one-third of its original size and create an even more compact robot. This provides the ability to drive the crawler into tight and inhospitable environments, such as small tunnels and flooded pipes, while the module remains connected via a cord.

And, thanks to superior lance control and Aquajet’s Equal Distance System (EDS), the 410V easily removes concrete and other materials in corners that would be difficult to access with hand tools. Its small size and light footprint allow operators to use the unit in confined areas — including passing through narrow passages, such as doorframes or operating from scaffolding — while retaining full mobility.

The 410V features electric power and is compatible with Aquajet’s line of accessories, such as the Extension Kit LT and Rotolance 2500 LT, as well as spines and frames. Contractors can also choose the Aqua Cutter 410V Tunnel Kit, specifically designed for cleaning and surface preparation in applications in steel or concrete pipes and tunnels up to 10 feet (3 meters) in diameter. The kit uses a rotolance and features automatic detection and the ability to adjust the distance to the tunnel surface. This makes it very easy to operate in uneven tunnel shapes or oval tunnels.

The post Aquajet’s 410V Hydrodemolition Robot increases efficiency in industrial cleaning applications appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

This is a text originally written by the AG Leader media center. Here is the full-text.

SureForce is a hydraulic downforce and uplift system that automatically adjusts the right amount of force on each row to achieve optimum and uniform seed depth in the field. While the optimum depth for corn is generally universal no matter where you are located, your ground and farming practices can make a big difference in what you need to do to achieve that depth – especially tillage practices.  

So we set out to answer – How does SureForce perform compared to springs in a no-till environment and a conventional tillage environment. While there are many factors at play- we found some trends in a recent trial conducted in Ohio.  

Trial 1: No-till field 

The soil conditions in this no-till field were hard and compact, requiring higher amounts of force to place seed at the proper depth. For this field the factory springs were set at their highest downforce setting, which provide about 300 lbs. of force to the row unit. In Figure 1, shown below, SureForce (blue) operated mostly around the 200-300 lb. range. This means that the white areas of the map that had conventional downforce springs set to their heaviest was right where they should be.  

However, SureForce still operated a significant portion of the time in the 100-200 lb. range, and even dipped into the 300-400 lb. range. While SureForce is able to react to changing ground conditions throughout this 11–acre field, the factory springs are often applying too much downforce, causing compaction. At other times the factory springs are applying too little downforce, causing shallow planted seeds. 

Preventing Uneven Emergence

Spring of 2020 provided exceptionally dry weather, which allowed planters to hit the fields in a timely fashion. While dry planting conditions are generally preferred over wet conditions, there are some pitfalls to be aware of. The most widespread issue this spring was planting too shallow. 

Incorrectly planting seeds too close to the soil surface exposes them to varying moisture levels compared to seeds planted deeper in the soil. This creates more issues when some seeds access more or less moisture than the others, eventually leading to uneven emergence. 

In Figure 2, the seeds were planted with the factory springs, applying about 300 lbs. of downforce, whereas the SureForce system was applying 350 lbs. on the adjacent rows. Uneven emergence was found on the half the planter equipped with springs.  

Here, uneven emergence is caused by a difference in moisture levels indicated around the seed. With less than a ½” depth variation, this is a painful example of how just a slight difference in seed placement can reduce yields and profits. 

Next, let’s take a look at other areas of the field that didn’t require as much force to achieve depth. In those areas, the factory spring system was still applying 300 lbs. downforce, while the SureForce system had automatically reduced the downforce to 100 lbs.  

What happens in these areas where the springs are applying 200 lbs. too much of downforce? This next picture (Fig.3) illustrates what happens. 

Roots that can’t penetrate the wall of a compacted seed trench are forced to grow along the trench, which is the path of least resistance. When roots can’t grow downward, they can’t access moisture and nutrients resulting in reduced yield and profit. 

Trial 2: Conventionally Tilled Field

Next, this planter moves to a conventionally tilled field (Fig. 4) to continue planting. The factory springs are left at a heavy setting. Since the SureForce system automatically adjusts itself to current ground conditions, we see a stark difference in applied downforce. Within this field, SureForce values range from 200 lbs. of uplift on the row-unit to 400 lbs. of downforce. That is a 600 lb. range across this field. 

We went to an area of the field where SureForce was providing uplift, thus reducing compaction. On the other hand, in the adjacent rows the factory spring settings are fixed and are not capable of adjusting automatically, which caused some compaction damage.  

SureForce Proves Advantageous to Plant Development

Visual plant health differences were observed at V3-V4 growth stages on June 10, 2020. Below in Figure 5, the rows to the right were equipped with SureForce. The rows to the left were equipped with factory downforce springs. 

To better understand the “root” cause of these health differences seen above ground, we took a look below ground.

In Figures 6 and 7 above, it is obvious the rows equipped with SureForce provided the best root development. In every case, SureForce provided: 

1. Deepest radical and seminal roots 
2. Widest branching of nodal roots 
3. Great root hair development 

On June 10th, it was clear the rows planted with SureForce were off to a much better start. From seed to soil contact these rows were positioned to provide increased yield and profit. 

A return trip on August 11th, 2020 continues to show not only greater root development as seen in Figure 8, but also larger ears are observed with less tip-back as seen in Figure 9. 

Source: AG Leader

The post AG Leader explains SureForce in No-Till and Conventional Till appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Together, Alltech and Corey Nutrition are committed to bringing quality and innovative products to the aquaculture market. Customers will gain from Alltech’s 40 years of research and development in novel nutritional technologies, combined with the aquatic expertise of Alltech Coppens Aqua Centre (ACAC) in formulating specialty fish feed. This, coupled with Corey Nutrition’s 38-year history in producing aquafeed for optimal nutrition and a quality manufacturing process, will ensure the American aquaculture producers have access to advanced nutritional solutions, backed by science.

“We want to provide aquaculture producers in America the opportunity to achieve maximum productivity and efficiency from their feed, producing more nutritious fish for consumers,”

said Alex Tsappis, aquaculture business manager, Alltech.

“This partnership with local partner Corey Nutrition will deliver high-quality fish feed, using Alltech Coppens formulations to help farmers to achieve the best possible results.”

For farmers, Alltech products help to support immune function, improve performance and support feed efficiency; to aid fish utilizing nutrients for maximum absorption, resulting in more robust fish. Backed by extensive research at the ACAC in the Netherlands, specialized feed formulations are shown to provide key nutrients to fish while improving water quality.

“We are excited about our new collaboration with Alltech,”

said Lee Corey, founder and CEO, Corey Nutrition.

“Corey’s long local history together with Alltech’s unique ingredient and aquafeeds nutrition research create a powerful partnership to better serve the nutritional needs of our fish farmers. Quality and efficiency are the most important elements when choosing an aquafeed supplier. We are creating enhanced aquafeeds produced to the highest quality to help farmers produce high-performing fish while maximizing their profitability. Like us, Alltech is a family-owned business; we have much in common; integrity and independence are part of our DNA.”

Together with Corey Nutrition, Alltech looks forward to producing new specialized aquafeeds to help producers in North America achieve high-performing results. Working with a local partner that understands what Alltech is trying to achieve is a significant step forward, and together they will ensure that they are providing benefit to customers.

Source: Alltech

The post Aquaculture partnership between Alltech and Corey Nutrition appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.