Wrightson farm service

Press, 7 June 1983, Page 31

Wrightson farm service

A new computer service for farmers, Data Yield, has been developed by Wrightson NMA as the start of a project which will eventually involve the company in providing a wide range of farm computer services. Data Yield bureaux will be set up at Wrightson branches to provide farmers with access to microcomputers for cash-flow planning, gross-margin analysis, long-term farm development budgets, account analysis, inter-farm comparisons, and feed .budget-

ing. The first bureau in Hamilton will be rapidly followed by others around the country, according to Wrightson’s finance executive, Mr Warwick Webb. “At the same time as we extend the range of locations, fjnew software pack-

ages specially written by our own staff in association with farmers and field officers will be introduced. Livestock recording and performance programmes are currently being considered.” Original development work had been started because of the need seen by field staff for a programme to help prepare clients’ cash flow budgets. “From this we saw a way to use our network of Sord computers to help farmers, clients, and non-clients to improve farm profitability. “It was a logical extension of our involvement in the application of new technology in agriculture which currently includes viewdata and other investigations. Ultimately, we believe electronic communications technology will revolutionise

farm management and agricultural business activities.”

However, Wrightson’s research here and abroad, indicated that adoption would be gradual, Mr Webb said. Fanners in general were not disposed to undertake the relatively large investment involved at this stage in purchasing micro-com-puter systenfe. There were attitudinal as well as financial reasons for this. By and large, farmers had not yet had much experience of the technology and for the most part remained to be convinced that their conventional methods of handling financial and other business information would not be sufficient. “There are also indications that in some instances where farmers have bought micro-computers, the sys-

terns are grossly under-util-ised or even unused because of a lack of software and support.

“Nevertheless, Wrightson’s feels that the microcomputer technology available is capable of contributing to improved profitability, and should therefore be exploited as far as is possible.”

With this in mind, Wrightsons had chosen not to become involved in the business of selling computer hardware, in favour of providing a bureau service which as well as providing farmers with an earlier introduction 'to computer hardware than would otherwise have been the case, offered the access to accumulated district data and performance measurements, {Mr Webb said.