M2M and Precision Livestock Farming install automated water monitoring for Queensland cattle farm

Agriculture technology firm Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) has teamed up with M2M Connectivity to enable a central Queensland farm keep track of its cattles’ water supply remotely.. 

The Wendouree farm, approximately 430 kilometres west of Rockhampton, previously required farmers to drive around the 100,000-acre property to record the supply of water through the farm’s network of bores, tanks and turkey nests.

Wendouree owner Doug Carruthers said the manual process was resource intensive and would not accurately track water levels and water consumption rates 

Wendouree engaged PLF to develop a sensor-based water monitoring solution for its tanks and turkey nests. PLF then partnered with M2M to source hardware and design a custom LoRaWAN IoT solution.

“With M2M Connectivity we were able to source the best technology and integration expertise to deliver the best outcomes for Doug and the Wendouree property,” said PLF managing director Paul Stapleton. 

LoRaWAN was chosen because for its suitability for wireless communication with devices over long distances. It requiresa 3G or 4G signal at the gateway.

M2M also managed API integration with the RAVEN data visualisation platform,  ensuring data was accurately decoded and displayed on an online dashboard customised to the client’s requirements. 

The solution combined one Gemtek LoRaWAN Gateway positioned at a high point of the property and Ellenex hydrostatic level sensors with integrated sensor nodes installed at each water point.

Wendouree’s management and staff members have started remotely tracking water levels at each location. They nowhave access to data transmitted to the cloud-based RAVEN platform at hourly intervals and receive critical alerts when water levels drop below predetermined levels.

Stapleton said “The amount of support we receive, especially in project design and evaluation, from M2M is outstanding and we look forward to continuing our partnership as the demand for technology that delivers meaningful insights for the agriculture sector grows.”