STRAIGHT FROM THE BIG CITY

Ike Señeres
Modern farms

MANILA -- The convergence of technologies should not only happen in the information and communications technologies, it should also happen in agricultural and industrial technologies. For some reason, no one seems to be talking about automating or computerizing agricultural processes, but I think that it is a logical and practical idea to pursue.

I have written about the subject of Process Logic Controllers (PLCs) before, but I think that it is time to again follow up on this topic. Simply put, a PLC is the brain of an automated system. In a manner of speaking, a PLC could be likened to the engine of a machine, being the one that runs the operation of machineries.

This comparison is actually inexact, because a PLC actually has a higher function than an engine, given the fact that a PLC could run and automate the operation and the synchronization of mechanical engines. To some extent, a PLC could be likened to a personal computer (PC) except for the fact that a PLC has a higher and more robust processing power than a PC. Adding to the comparison, a PLC is more like a server than a terminal.

In Israel , agricultural farms are networked in such a way that servers are able to deliver water and liquid fertilizers to specific farm sections, as the demand for water is triggered by moisture sensors. To some extent, this programmable and addressable infrastructure could be likened to the programmable and addressable process of delivering video signals to cable television customers who are ordering pay per view shows.

For some reasons, the purpose of irrigation systems in the Philippines seems to be limited only to rice, which is really very limited in purpose. When will our government planners ever reach the consciousness that irrigation or water is also needed by fruits, vegetables, poultry, livestock and even tree farms? In Thailand , they irrigate and water their coconut which is a rather alien concept here.

Since the price of PVC pipes have gone down, why don’t we shift our irrigation design to pipelines so that we could irrigate more farms? In Israel , they pumped water 300 kilometers inland. Why can’t we do it here?

Email iseneres@yahoo.com or text me at +639293605140. Watch my TV show “KA IKING LIVE” every Friday from 930 to 1030 PM in Destiny Cable Channel 3. Tune in to “KAPIT-BAYAN” in DWIZ 882 KHZ 5 to 6 PM Mon to Fri. Join the Inter-Charity Network. Form your local chapter.