What does sprayer productivity cost?

The size of a sprayer is usually a major factor when purchasing a new sprayer.  The larger sprayers are more productive and a balance must be found between the sprayer investment and the amount of work to do.  I found some interesting conclusions and some numbers that are a little shocking to me.

It is difficult to evaluate machinery costs and return on investment.  I wanted to look at sprayer efficiency and find ways to evaluate the productivity of a sprayer.  One of the first tools I found was a sprayer productivity calculator published by Tom Wolf and Jason Deveau of the Sprayers101.com website.  Subscribe to their newsletter, it is a great resource.  I have used this calculator to compare various sizes of sprayers and to evaluate the options as objectively as possible.  The smaller sprayers did get a slightly higher turn speed in the calculations since they are lighter weight and usually more agile.  The factors used in the calculations were ½ mile field length, two headlands, 15 gallons per acre, and 14mph spraying speed.

I also priced two brands of sprayers from our local dealers and averaged the prices together for the comparisons.  The sprayers were equipped with the latest pulsing nozzle technology and auto-guidance systems. The smaller sprayers didn’t have quite as many features since some of the options were only available on the larger sprayers such as a stainless steel tank.  Prices were collected for the 600, 800, 1000, and 1200 gallon sprayers. The 600 and 800-gallon sprayers had 90-foot booms, the 1000 gallon sprayers had 100-foot booms, and the 1200 gallon sprayers had 120-foot booms. The average price of each class of sprayer and the cost per acre/hour are listed in the following table.  

Several conclusions can be derived from this study:

• Slower loading times increase the cost per acre/hour of productivity dramatically.  The increased cost ranges from 26 to 42 percent higher.

• Spending 10% more for a larger sprayer will increase productivity by about 8%.

• Spending 7% more for an automated mixing system can increase productivity by 20% to 30%.

• It is interesting that the smaller sprayers are more cost effective for their capacity.  The manufacturers seem to give a better price advantage to the 600-gallon sprayers, notice the cost per acre/hour of productivity.

• The price difference of 100 acres per hour of productivity is shocking when comparing a 1200 gallon sprayer loading in 15 minutes and an 800-gallon sprayer loading in 5 minutes.  The price of the 1200 gallon sprayer is 32% higher and costs $93,000 more. The lowest cost way to improve productivity is to reduce loading time.

Mixmate Fusion

Mixmate Fusion combines the best features of Mixmate for automated mixing of bulk products and includes a specially designed inductor measuring by weight in one compact unit which is precalibrated. The inductor includes a high flow rate rinsing system for better handling of dry products and a valve manifold that automatically routes multiple bulk inputs with rinse water through a single flowmeter. Mixmate Fusion processes jugs in about 12 seconds and is easily expanded through CAN Bus connections.

Mixmate Flow

The Mixmate Flow Stack is an automated chemical blending and recordkeeping system designed for bulk chemicals.  The new software and electronics support a manifold of four valves to automatically route three bulk chemical inputs and rinse water through a single flowmeter.  The flowmeter features a +/- 0.5% error rating and comes calibrated and no additional calibrations are needed in the field.  Multiple stacks can be combined for additional inputs. A flowmeter and valve can be added to measure and control the water in the mix. The Mixmate Flow Stack is an excellent companion product for the Handler, Chemblade, or a basic inductor.  The Mixmate Flow Stack can also be combined with the Mixmate Pro and Fusion Inductors at any time to give unmatched capabilities by any mixing system.