Correct sizing of agricultural machinery increases productivity and reduces costs

The use of machines of a size and quantity below or above the recommended level ends up resulting in a higher final production cost, due to the inadequate use of this equipment. The combination of these factors can interfere with the potential for carrying out mechanized activities, causing losses in the quality and quantity of the final product.

Planning is a necessary process that must be carried out continuously, so that the steps that will be followed during the agricultural year of a rural property can be defined, allowing for early planning of activities and avoiding possible problems that may occur during the planting or harvesting of a given crop, or even in the periods between harvests, when care for soil preparation begins.

The size of the agricultural fleet is extremely important to define the mechanized system, as well as the number of sets needed to meet the needs of the production system, such as the implementation, management and removal of the crop installed on the property. This stage of production is influenced by external factors (soil and climate), as well as internal factors, such as the size of the property, the type of crop planted, the type of management and also the operational rhythm of the farm's agricultural machinery.

The use of agricultural machinery is of great importance for the cultivation of soybeans and other crops, and the incorporation of technology into this equipment increasingly leads to an increase in global agricultural productivity, increasing operational efficiency and improving the use of inputs, reflecting a high operational pace.

Thus, the objective of this work was to review the dimensioning of the agricultural fleet of a property in the North of the state of Mato Grosso.

The farm under study is located in the municipality of Santa Carmem, Mato Grosso, more specifically in the North of the state, 530km away from the capital Cuiabá and has a total area of ​​1.900ha.

The climate of the municipality, according to the Koppen classification, is of the Am type, that is, tropical rainy, with a short period of rainfall of less than 60 mm in the driest month. Total rainfall exceeds 2.000 mm (2.064 mm), with five dry months. Average annual temperatures are high, always above 20ºC. They decrease in winter and in December/January with the rains, thus characterizing two waves of higher temperatures, one in spring and the other at the end of summer. Average maximum temperatures are high all year round, above 30ºC.

The prices of the farm's agricultural machinery were obtained from dealerships and representatives who sell the machines under study. The technical specifications of each farm's agricultural machinery were obtained from the catalogs made available by the companies on their official websites. Some machines ended up being discontinued and replaced by others with more advanced technology. For this reason, the calculations were made for the machines and implements that replaced them in the sales line.

To calculate the dimensions and costs of each agricultural machine, several formulas were used that correspond to each agricultural machine and implement. The property in question works with the direct planting system and therefore the farm does not have equipment for soil preparation, such as harrows, leveling harrows, scarifiers, subsoilers, among others. 

The planning of agricultural activities that was defined for the property's agricultural year in the 2017/18 soybean harvest, obtaining a period for carrying out each activity and the days to be worked, considering the period from the application of correctives to the harvest of the soybean crop, taking into account the vegetative cycle of the crop of 110 days, totaling 69 working days worked and a total working day of 552 hours.

For the month of July, which is the period when agricultural activities begin on the property with soybean sowing, 21 days were designated, with weekends and holidays discounted. According to the time available for that month and the property's eight-hour workday, all available days in the month were designated for the application of limestone and correctives, since the property does not carry out soil turning activities, totaling 168 hours of work available for carrying out these activities. According to the sizing calculations made, it was found that the tractor-implement set (Jan Lancer 12.000 TH fertilizer spreader) is suitable for carrying out the activities, being able to execute them during the planned time. The power required at the drawbar by the implement is 40 hp.

For the month of October, the soybean sowing activity was designated, with 22 working days for this activity and an eight-hour daily workday, totaling a 176-hour workday. It was found that the Case IH ASM model 1215 seeder with 28 rows (Tandem) spaced at 55cm is suitable for carrying out the sowing activity on the property, requiring 68hp on the drawbar, which was dragged by the Case IH 340 Magnum tractor that has sufficient power to drag the seeder.

The months of November, December and January were used to apply pesticides to soybean crops, with one application of herbicide and one of fungicide in November, three applications of fungicide and one of insecticide in pre-emergence in December, with other unaccounted applications of insecticide when the level of economic damage was exceeded, and finally, one application of herbicide (desiccant) at the end of January, thus totaling an eight-hour daily workday and a total of 64 hours worked. It was verified that the Montana Parruda 3027H sprayer was suitable for carrying out the activities determined for the 2017/18 harvest.

The soybean harvesting activity was scheduled for the month of February, according to the crop's vegetative cycle. Discounts for holidays and days unsuitable for weather conditions were taken into account, with 18 working days in an eight-hour workday and a total of 144 hours. It was found that only two harvesters would be needed to meet the farm's demand for harvesting, but the farm has three Case IH harvesters (models 8120 and 7120), which is due to the farm's greater preparation for harvesting, avoiding unfavorable weather conditions and harvesting at a faster pace when the weather is good.

Regarding the transportation of harvested soybeans to the storage location and subsequent sale, nine trucks were rented from a transport and logistics company, where a daily price was paid per truck during the soybean harvest period.

Regarding labor, the farm has four permanent employees who work year-round on the property, i.e., 475 hectares per employee. Gimenez (2006), in a study carried out in the state of Paraná, in the Campos Gerais region, found one worker for approximately 120 hectares, which may explain the reduction in the payroll of a property with the increase in mechanization, since on the farm under study each employee is related to a relatively large area.

The highest costs were found in harvesters, possibly because they are machines that require more care, have greater added value and participate in one of the most important stages of a farm's agricultural year, which is the harvest, which demands a lot of time, costs and care. High costs were also observed in agricultural tractors, which participate in farm activities for most of the year, and due to the long time of use, there are higher expenses with fuel, lubricants, maintenance, among others, totaling an annual cost of R$ 121.000,08. Oliveira (2012), in a study evaluating the operational dimensioning of a sugarcane farm with an area of ​​3.500 hectares, found an annual fixed cost of R$ 330.772,19, leaving aside other costs that further increase the total annual cost, which leads to a concern in the correct dimensioning of the agricultural fleet so that it becomes possible to reduce expenses during agricultural harvests.

However, it can be concluded that the property studied, even though it has not dimensioned its agricultural fleet, has an ideal fleet to carry out its activities, which can also be seen on other properties.

The cost of agricultural operations is highly expensive, highlighting the need to save money and optimize agricultural operations on a rural property as much as possible.

The sizing of the agricultural fleet is of great importance so that rural properties can maintain machines and implements in the ideal quantity and size to meet their needs.

*Per Weslley Buratto, Antonio Tassio Santana Ormond, Alicia Cristino Arenhart, Gessiel Mendonca Leles e Marcos Ferreira do Prado, from Unemat, and William Buratto, from UFMT