Equipment that optimizes sprayers transforms planting routine

Agroflux created a product that contributes to the farmer's daily life by identifying problems when spraying low-lying crops such as cotton and soybeans. The company developed equipment that adds technology to checking the tips of spraying machines, eliminating manual work.

“We created a product that did not exist on the market, Fluxin, to help farmers check equipment and ensure that the input applied reaches the target in the appropriate quantity. Sometimes there are more than 100 points that, with our equipment, can be checked automatically”, explains entrepreneur Guilherme Castro Diniz, computer scientist.

Before spraying, the equipment is attached to each of the sprayer tips and checks the flow rate of each one, sending information via Bluetooth to the cell phone for analysis and management. It is portable and uses a long-lasting rechargeable battery.

The idea came up in 2019, following a conversation between the other Agroflux partners, agronomist André Henrique da Silva and electronics engineer Rafael Felipe da Costa. They identified the opportunity to help solve one of the segment's pain points and began looking for the market in 2020, in the middle of the pandemic.

“Because it was a new product and there was no way to compare it, we knew it wouldn’t be easy. What we noticed is a difficulty because the agricultural public expects to see the product working, in person, but even in the pandemic scenario, we are closing sales”, says Guilherme.

In the traction and development phase, Agroflux, which is part of the innovation ecosystem in Campo Mourão, northwest of Paraná, is already present in 11 Brazilian states and also sells the solution in Paraguay, Argentina, Uruguay and Bolivia.

A service provider for farmers, from Arapongas, is one of Agroflux's clients. The company acquired five equipment for testing last year and today has more than 30. According to the company's application technology specialist, Lucas Rafael Maesta Dias, the objective was to modernize the sprayer tip checking service.

“Before it was manual, with a bucket. Now we carry out measurements using equipment that generates quick and practical reports. Previously, work that took around five hours using a sprayer now takes less than 30 minutes”, says Rafael. He adds that the solution has helped to build customer loyalty.

Redesign

Product development posed challenges for entrepreneurs. The group started the project with low investment using its own resources. Guilherme says that the first version still has a rustic finish. “In this format the product never gave recall, but now we are redesigning it”, explains the entrepreneur.

Agroflux contracted the redesign last year with resources obtained through Sebraetec, a program subsidized by Sebrae/PR to provide opportunities for innovation in small businesses. The 3D model and version 2.0 mold are ready. The electronic part was outsourced and will come ready from China. The expectation is to launch the pilot in May.

This year, again with support from Sebraetec, the company will take another step in adapting the solution also for spraying tree plantations, such as coffee and orange. Furthermore, the resource helped the company create the application linked to the solution.