Institutional development · Research, innovation and assessment · Indonesia
IPB University professor says Indonesian farm machines must be designed for local soils
In a keynote address, IPB University's Prof Wawan Hermawan argued that Indonesia's agricultural mechanisation depends on designing machines suited to local soils, crops and farmers, not only on the supply of machinery.
Why it matters: According to Prof Wawan, Indonesian farmers working varied paddy soils, including deep and muddy ones, need machines designed for those specific conditions.
According to IPB University, Prof Wawan Hermawan, a Full Professor in its Faculty of Engineering and Technology, delivered a keynote titled “Machine Design as the Heart of Innovation in Indonesia’s Agricultural Mechanization” on Saturday 24 October.
He argued that Indonesia's self-reliance in farm mechanisation requires the capacity to design technology matched to land, crops, growing environments and farmers' needs, rather than simply having machines available.
He said that varied rice paddy soils in Indonesia, including deep and muddy ones, mean that a machine that performs well in one place may not do so in another.
He said design should begin by measuring the characteristics of whatever the machine will handle, with that data then used to set design parameters for field operation.
Editor’s view
Scott James, Research and Innovation Editor
Prof Wawan's stated view is that if machines are not adapted to the soils, crops and farming environments where they are used, equipment that succeeds in one Indonesian location may fail to give the same results in another.
