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FieldAlytics v3.93 Release Notes
The FieldAlytics team is excited to introduce the following new features into version 3.93 of the FieldAlytics software program as part of our upcoming scheduled feature release.
Main
Batch Farm Plan Management
Users working within the program will now be able to setup and manage their Farm Plans in a batch fashion from the Grower or Farm level in the profile tree. This new functionality will help improve the ease and convenience for users working within the Farm Plan management tools.
To begin the process of utilizing this feature, first select a desired Grower or Farm from the left pane profile tree. Select the “Farm Planning” text option from the list.
With the “Batch Farm Planning” modal loaded now begin the setup process. The modal will initially display two-tab options. “Farm Plan Management” and “Farm Plan Creation”.
Select the option for “Farm Plan Creation”. This will allow the user to setup and create any desired plans for the current or upcoming seasons. Begin the definition by selecting a desired Crop Year the Farm Plan will be associated to. Along the top of the screen the user will be able to limit the farm/field display by utilizing the Farm Filter. Users can also elect to utilize a Previous Crop Filter to help limit the field display. Previous crop information is obtained from previous years selected plans.
Once those control functions have been defined, the user will now begin to define the setup criteria on a field-by-field basis within the table rows. A small image of each field, along with its display name, previous crop and acreage will show. These pieces of source information will help ensure users have all available information while working with each field.
From there, the user will need to identify their desired Yield Source that is available to the field, confirm or modify the Average Yield value from that source and then lastly select the desired Farm Plan Template that is available. If a user would like to apply a certain farm plan template to other farm plans, select the hamburger menu icon to apply to plan template to that of all plans or selected plans for quick definition.
Once all information has been identified and selected, select the “Save” button at the bottom of the window to apply the information and values to the selected fields. The system will process the request and respond will either a “Failed” or “Success” alert message to the user. The creation process will take a handful of seconds in the background.
Batch Farm Planning – Creation View
With available Farm Plans now created the user can also utilize the Batch Farm Planning feature to manage any existing plans. From the “Farm Plan Management” tab within the tool, select a Year to begin the process. The plans available for the selected Year will then appear.
Here too, users can elect to limit the overall display by Farm, by Crop as well as “Planned” versus “Actual”. These limiting functions will then allow only those plans matching the selection criteria to display.
Select a desired plan(s) by placing a checkmark in the field selection box for the field(s) you wish to edit/manage and then select the “Add Event” action button found in the lower left side of the modal.
The system will fetch all needed information and data for the selected plans and then display the “Add Event” input modal. Once this screen has loaded, the user can now elect to add additional template events to the existing plan. Simply use the “Select a Template” dropdown function to view all available selections. Pick the appropriate option from the dropdown and then “Confirm” the template selection. This action will then apply the template and all its stored values to the existing plan for that field(s).
Batch Farm Planning – Adding Events
Farm Plan Integration to Bushel
Clients working within the FieldAlytics program will now have an additional connection feature that will enable selected Farm Plan reports to be shared to Bushel to better enable the sharing of information to the connected growers Bushel account.
This connection is a unique permission that can be setup for any VAR client by the FieldAlytics support team. Then, with the Bushel permission enabled, the user can work with a Grower customer in the system who also has an established Agris ERP connection.
Then, when working within the Farm Planning Reports window, a new toggle option will appear for the user to “Send to Bushel”.
This is a simple Yes/No function. When toggled to YES, the FieldAlytics system will forward on the selected reports to a new FieldAlytics report section within the Bushel Mobile application.
To help ensure full communication on this request, requesting users will also be delivered a copy of the report via email and be notified of delivery failures if they were to occur.
Farm Plan Integration to AgVend
Clients working within the FieldAlytics program will now have an additional connection feature that will enable select Farm Plan reports to be shared to AgVend to better enable the sharing of information to the connected growers AgVend account.
This connection is a unique permission that can be setup for any VAR client by the FieldAlytics support team. Next, with the AgVend permission enabled, as well as the needed URL and Authorization Token supplied to FieldAlytics support by AgVend, the user can work with a Grower customer in the system who also has an established Agvance ERP connection.
Then, when working within the Farm Planning Financial Reports modal, a new toggle option will appear for the user to “Send to AgVend”.
This is a simple Yes/No function. When toggled to YES, the FieldAlytics system will forward on the selected reports to a special FieldAlytics report page within the AgVend’s FieldAlytics inbox for the selected customer/AgVance ID.
To help ensure full communication on this request, requesting users will also be delivered a copy of the report via email and be notified of delivery failures if they were to occur.
Automated Soil Yield Potentials – Past 3 Years
When a user creates or edits and existing field boundary in FieldAlytics, many pieces of information are provided automatically such as captured satellite imagery, yield potentials from NDVI imagery, elevation layers as well as SSURGO soil management zones and associated attributes.
Now, as an expansion to this automated information, a historical Yield potential from SSURGO soil types layer will present itself and be listed by Crop upon field creation or edit. Previously this soil information was available as upper and lower yield bounds for NDVI yield potentials or within the SSURGO management zone. These Yield Potential layers utilize the SSURGO soil polygon spatial layer as its base and couple that with the EFC Algorithmic soil yield potential algorithm that works with various other data and information added on top of it to attempt to reflect the true potential for each listed crop within the known soil classifications for each given year. Multiple crops are available within the same crop year, so users will be able to explore various yield and cropping scenarios. Depending on the state that the field is within various cropping scenarios are available reflecting that of the dominant crops grown in the state.
Users will be able to uniquely identify this layer aside from current user created layers via its name, which will be the Year, base layer type + Crop Name. “2020 – Soil – Soybean (Auto)”. These layers can be used anywhere other yield potential layers are used in the application.
Users working with these layers can elect to manually update the Min and Max Yield values assigned to the layer. Modifications to the default naming can also occur to allow for personalization of the information and display.
Work Order
Dispensed Summary Product Updates
To better enabled transparency to the users, updates have occurred within the system to ensure that new products added to a job at the blender will appear then within the supplied Dispensed Summary if not originally included within the work order setup.
These new products that get added during the blending process will be shared to the connection enabled with FieldAlytics. If detected the system can now ensure that an alert notice to the user is provided and that is will properly identify and include within the Dispensed Summary the full information surrounding these new products (Names, Weights).
Job Detail – Dispensed Summary Notification
Notification Center – Additional Product Alert Notification
Email Alert – Additional Products Added
The originally defined and requested product list and information will remain intact for both management and traceability purposes. This will ensure users can look back to what was requested versus management or inventory requirement changes that occurred and differed from the original request.
Original Work Order Product Request/Setup
Building off the transparency requirements, it also needs to be noted that if a “new” product dispensed is supplied that the FieldAlytics Work Order systems does not have access to, such as a connected ERP product on a non-connected grower, that product will not transfer to the Application Summary form since this product technically does not exist for that client. However, it will still appear in all other summary reports and documents.
Tools
Agris Product Management
To better allow users working with their connected AGRIS ERP solution, a critical management tool feature has been added to the system to allow for product import and editing.
Within the Tools menu dropdown, users can select the option for “Connect 3rd Party ERP”. Within this feature the user would select the available “AGRIS” ERP option and then at the bottom of the page select the “Product Setup” action button.
This selection will then expose the “Setting up Agris Products” display modal. Within this window, users will have full exposure to all available products along with the ability to upload their products manually via csv.
Uploading New Products
Users can upload new products via a CSV file that has been exported from their AGRIS ERP. Click the green “Upload Product File” button at the bottom of the tool. Browse your local file system to obtain the csv file to select for upload. Each time a product csv file is uploading it updates all existing products. If a product is not present in the csv file that previously was uploaded, the product will be inactivated in FieldAlytics. An inactive product will then be no longer selectable when creating new jobs or editing existing jobs. User may upload updated product files as often as they wish and as long as they complete product setup, the new products will be available for immediate selection throughout FieldAlytics.
If the file is missing any of the required columns a message is presented to the user indicating which required columns are missing. Columns do not have to have values for each product, but they must exist in the csv file.
Managing Existing Products
Once products have been uploaded, they need to complete set up by defining the product type. Users will select either Chemical or Fertilizer from the product type selection. Additionally, not all products uploaded must be set up, only products that the organization wishes to use in FieldAlytics must have the product type defined. Convenience tools have been added for the user to be able to complete the set-up process as quickly as possible.
From the “Agris Product Filters” selection, 4 unique categories are then offered to the user. A product name search can be utilized. This feature will allow the user to begin typing in a desired product name and have any/all matching instances filtered out and displayed on the resulting form.
Users can also elect to filter by “Category”. This option allows for a quick limitation based on Chemical vs Fertilizer, Dry vs Liquid as well as by Wholesale products, Additives or Amendments. This category value is obtained from the uploaded CSV file.
The display list can also be limited based on a specific product Manufacturer. The dropdown list will populate any available matching manufacturer in alphabetic order. Selection of one will then limit the display to just those products associated to the selection.
The last option on this form is an “Only Show” selection for the user to decide on how and what they would like to see. There are quick selects for Fertilizer, Chemical or Products NOT setup. This enables user to quickly see what products have or have not been set up within the application.
Users can elect to fill out all or just some of the listed filter options. Select the “Submit” button at the bottom of the form and the system will then update the display to show only those matching the filter selection criteria.
Agris Product Filter Form
Users can also use the listed Filter/Search functions to perform some basic “Mass Updates” to the products. Based on the displayed products found from the Filter, the user can select the “Mass Update” button. Then the user can elect to set all products matching the listed criteria to a Fertilizer, Chemical or “Not Set Up”.
The final feature of this tool is an “Upload Product File” function. This feature works with an Agris Product file export. The system will alert the user and protect the system from upload if the correct file type and all matching column criteria is not properly found.
Performance Improvements
· Transfer units update within Dispensed and Application Summary
· Updates performed to the Finalized Application Summary
· Farm Plans added support for Yield Modification
· Location Level acres on Applicator Report
· Update to Grower Search function to display map coverage
· Date Accepted added to the Work Order overview report
· Update to allow Farm Plans to maintain correct Year and order when copied into a new plan.