Industrial Beacons helps to Protect Valuable Assets at AgroVista Farms

Introduction: Navigating Agricultural Challenges

Situated amidst the undulating terrains of rural Europe, AgroVista Farms exemplifies a benchmark of contemporary agricultural proficiency. Covering thousands of hectares, AgroVista cultivates a variety of crops year-round, from wheat fields glistening in the summer sun to vast orchards enduring the cold of winter. The farm maintains a large inventory of advanced machinery, featuring tractors, combines, irrigation systems, trailers, and specialized harvesting tools, as well as expansive storage facilities and warehouses.

However, similar to numerous significant agricultural businesses, AgroVista encountered distinct difficulties caused by seasonal changes. Severe European winters, rainy springs, sweltering summers, and dusty falls resulted in logistical challenges—lost equipment, operational setbacks, poor inventory control, and even theft of assets. Every interruption caused lost time, expensive replacements, diminished productivity, and difficulties for the management team.

The Challenge: Where Did the Harvester Go?

At AgroVista Farms, the operational rhythm is dictated by nature’s calendar. Precision and timing are everything. A day’s delay in locating a vital piece of equipment can mean missed planting windows or compromised harvest yields. Unfortunately, for all the modern machinery and vast resources at AgroVista’s disposal, one very analog problem kept repeating itself: they were spending too much time looking for things.

Lost in the Fields

Tractors, plows, combines, irrigation reels, seed spreaders—each of these assets plays a crucial role, but many are mobile, frequently relocated across vast fields, storage yards, or neighboring lots. Often, during high-intensity periods like planting or harvest season, equipment is moved quickly and sometimes left in unexpected places. Without a robust tracking system in place, operators were relying on memory, spreadsheets, or informal communication to keep track of them.

It wasn’t uncommon for a field crew to spend 30–60 minutes simply looking for a specific trailer or an attachment that was used “somewhere near the south orchard last week.” Multiply that across teams, equipment types, and growing seasons, and the inefficiencies started stacking up.

A Climate That Doesn’t Cooperate

The European climate brought its share of complications. From freezing sleet in winter to sweltering heat waves in late summer, equipment on the farm had to operate in all weather—and so did any tracking solution. Springtime brought mud and flooding; summer brought dust and dry heat. Electronics that weren’t purpose-built for such conditions would often fail, requiring frequent replacement or repair, especially after unexpected rainstorms or temperature drops. For AgroVista, this ruled out many cheaper consumer-grade trackers.

The Hidden Costs of Downtime and Theft

Beyond time loss, there were direct financial consequences:

• Idle equipment meant idle workers. Teams had to wait while managers or crew members located the required gear.
• Unplanned rentals. On several occasions, AgroVista had to rent backup equipment to stay on schedule—simply because they couldn’t locate what they already owned.
• Theft and unauthorized use. Despite being in a rural region, AgroVista wasn’t immune to asset theft, especially of smaller tow-behind equipment and trailers. Without real-time location alerts or geofencing, there was no immediate way to detect unauthorized movement.

Disconnected Systems

While AgroVista had already embraced some smart farming technologies—drones, automated irrigation, soil monitoring—their asset tracking remained painfully manual. This disconnect created bottlenecks in their broader digital transformation initiatives. The farm needed a solution that could bridge this gap without overhauling their entire infrastructure.

The Solution: Robustness Meets Precision Tracking

AgroVista decided to tackle these challenges head-on with an innovative technological solution. After a thorough evaluation, they chose the B010 Industrial Beacon, combined with Lansitec’s comprehensive B-Fixed® Personnel & Asset Tracking Solution. This combination provided the perfect blend of ruggedness, simplicity, and accuracy that AgroVista required.

Why B010 Industrial Beacons?

Deployment: Seamless Integration into AgroVista Operations

The farm undertook the following straightforward and efficient deployment strategy:

• Asset Installation: Each major piece of equipment—from large harvesters and tractors to stationary irrigation systems and trailers—was fitted with a B010 Beacon.
• Facility Coverage: AgroVista installed B010 beacons in critical fixed positions within warehouses, grain storage silos, barns, and other facilities to enable precise indoor location tracking.
• Gateways Installation: Rugged LoRaWAN gateways with IP67 ratings were strategically placed at elevated locations for expansive network coverage across fields. Indoor Bluetooth gateways were placed every 10-15 meters throughout storage buildings, using Lansitec’s triangulation positioning algorithms to deliver a precision of around 3-5 meters.
• Solar-Powered Solutions: Solar-powered gateways, installed in distant fields, provided cost-effective and environmentally sustainable coverage even in remote locations without traditional power sources.

This combined setup enabled seamless indoor-outdoor tracking and a comprehensive digital map that accurately visualized asset locations in real time.

Deployment: Seamless Integration into AgroVista Operations

The farm undertook the following straightforward and efficient deployment strategy:

• Asset Installation: Each major piece of equipment—from large harvesters and tractors to stationary irrigation systems and trailers—was fitted with a B010 Beacon.
• Facility Coverage: AgroVista installed B010 beacons in critical fixed positions within warehouses, grain storage silos, barns, and other facilities to enable precise indoor location tracking.
• Gateways Installation: Rugged LoRaWAN gateways with IP67 ratings were strategically placed at elevated locations for expansive network coverage across fields. Indoor Bluetooth gateways were placed every 10-15 meters throughout storage buildings, using Lansitec’s triangulation positioning algorithms to deliver a precision of around 3-5 meters.
• Solar-Powered Solutions: Solar-powered gateways, installed in distant fields, provided cost-effective and environmentally sustainable coverage even in remote locations without traditional power sources.

This combined setup enabled seamless indoor-outdoor tracking and a comprehensive digital map that accurately visualized asset locations in real time.

Implementation: A Smooth Transition to Digital Farming

As AgroVista Farms embarked on the transition from traditional, manual asset tracking methods to a fully digital solution, management approached the implementation process with understandable caution. After all, introducing any new technology into daily farm operations could potentially disrupt workflows, creating more chaos than clarity. Fortunately, their concerns quickly turned into relief as the experience of implementing the B010 Industrial Beacon alongside the Lansitec B-Fixed® Personnel & Asset Tracking Solution proved remarkably seamless and efficient.

Strategic Planning & Initial Steps

Lansitec’s skilled technical team worked closely with AgroVista’s operations managers, beginning with a thorough analysis of the detailed CAD maps of the farm and its facilities. They performed a site assessment, pinpointing key areas for beacon and gateway setups to enhance signal coverage and precision. The installation plan was customized to meet AgroVista’s operational requirements and environmental conditions, considering the distinct topographical elements of the vast European terrain and the diverse structures positioned across the farm.

Efficient Installation and Setup

Once the strategic plan was finalized, the physical installation process began:

• Asset Beacon Installation: Installation crews swiftly secured durable B010 Beacons to essential agricultural equipment—tractors, harvesters, irrigation systems, trailers, and also storage containers and crates. The installation process was quick and unobtrusive, with every beacon firmly attached using sturdy brackets made to endure continuous outdoor conditions.
• Facility Beacon Deployment: Fixed B010 Beacons were strategically positioned at facility entrances, storage bays, machinery sheds, and warehouses. Technicians secured beacons to walls, gates, and support beams, ensuring comprehensive indoor coverage and seamless integration into the farm’s existing infrastructure.
• LoRaWAN Gateway Deployment: LoRaWAN gateways were thoughtfully placed on elevated structures—barn rooftops, storage silos, and tall support poles—to optimize the wireless coverage across the farm. With their IP67-rated, weather-resistant housings, these gateways required minimal ongoing maintenance despite constant exposure to harsh weather conditions.
• Solar-powered Solutions: Remote and open-field areas, distant from traditional power sources, presented unique challenges. To overcome this, AgroVista deployed Lansitec’s solar-powered Bluetooth gateways, leveraging renewable energy to ensure continuous tracking capability. Even during periods of extended cloud coverage, their robust battery backups ensured uninterrupted operation.

Rapid Integration with Minimal Disruption

Throughout the implementation, AgroVista’s daily farming activities continued smoothly, thanks to careful scheduling by the Lansitec technical team. Installations were organized strategically, avoiding peak working hours and seasons whenever possible. Farm operators experienced minimal disruption to their routines; within mere days, hundreds of assets were brought seamlessly into the digital tracking ecosystem.

Immediate Staff Training and User Adoption

To ensure the transition was intuitive and swift for farm employees, AgroVista and Lansitec jointly conducted brief yet thorough training sessions immediately following installation. Staff members—from equipment operators and maintenance workers to logistics coordinators and managers—were introduced to the Lansitec tracking management platform through concise demonstrations.

The Lansitec platform’s intuitive user interface allowed farm personnel, regardless of their technical expertise, to grasp essential functionalities within hours. Employees quickly became comfortable accessing asset locations, viewing movement history, configuring alert notifications, and even leveraging data analytics for equipment usage patterns.

A Visible Shift to Digital Efficiency

Within a week of implementation, the results were strikingly visible. AgroVista’s office transformed into a digital command center, where managers and operations staff confidently monitored asset movements on their screens or mobile devices, instantly retrieving asset locations with just a few taps. Lost equipment and frustrating searches became history overnight, replaced by clear visibility and streamlined operations.

Staff members excitedly highlighted the advantages, commenting on how much simpler their work had gotten with real-time digital tracking implemented. Even the most doubtful employees, who were initially uncertain about the new technology, swiftly became enthusiastic supporters after witnessing firsthand how efficiently it resolved daily annoyances and enhanced their productivity.

Seamless Scalability for Future Expansion

Perhaps most encouraging for AgroVista’s leadership was the system’s inherent scalability. With the foundational infrastructure of beacons, gateways, and network coverage in place, AgroVista could effortlessly expand asset tracking to newly acquired equipment, additional farm locations, or even incorporate personnel tracking for improved employee safety measures in the future.

Results: Tangible Improvements & Metrics

With the B010 Beacon and Lansitec’s robust asset management solution in place, AgroVista Farms experienced significant, measurable improvements:

• Operational Efficiency: Equipment location time drastically reduced by 60%, allowing workers to focus on productive farming tasks instead of time-consuming asset searches.
• Reduced Asset Loss: The farm observed a 95% decrease in asset loss or misplacement incidents due to continuous, accurate tracking and geo-fencing alerts that immediately notified management when an asset moved beyond a designated area.
• Cost Savings: The precise management of assets cut replacement and maintenance costs by 30%, directly improving the farm’s profitability.
• Enhanced Productivity: Asset utilization rates improved by 40%, as downtime due to misplaced or unavailable equipment was significantly minimized.
• Theft Prevention: Incidents of theft reduced by an impressive 90%, thanks to immediate notifications triggered by geofence violations.

Additional Benefits: Empowering Decisions and Safety

Beyond direct asset tracking, AgroVista’s management team leveraged analytical insights provided by Lansitec’s tracking platform, which revealed usage patterns, idle times, and equipment maintenance needs. This allowed informed decisions regarding asset procurement, servicing schedules, and overall resource allocation.

Furthermore, with accurate asset tracking in place, AgroVista improved workplace safety standards—rapidly locating machinery during emergencies, swiftly conducting safety checks, and efficiently managing preventive maintenance tasks.

Testimonials: Voices from AgroVista

“The introduction of the B010 Industrial Beacon with Lansitec’s tracking solution was transformative. What used to be hours wasted on asset searches is now merely seconds of checking an app.”
— Julia Andersson, AgroVista Operations Manager

“We can’t control the weather, but now at least we control our response to it. This technology gives us an edge in managing seasonal fluctuations and has truly modernized our operation.”
— Hannes Schmidt, Chief Technician, AgroVista Farms

Conclusion: Transforming AgroVista into a Future-Ready Farm

The adoption of the B010 Industrial Beacon and Lansitec’s comprehensive B-Fixed® Personnel & Asset Tracking Solution has been nothing short of transformative for AgroVista Farms. By overcoming significant operational challenges related to asset misplacement, environmental resilience, and theft prevention, AgroVista not only streamlined daily operations but significantly strengthened the farm’s overall business resilience and profitability.

Now, with real-time asset visibility at their fingertips, AgroVista’s management and employees spend their valuable time and resources on productive farming activities rather than wasteful searches or manual inventory audits. This new efficiency directly contributes to higher crop yields, optimized labor allocation, and substantial cost savings—essential components for maintaining a competitive advantage in the highly demanding agricultural industry.

Moreover, AgroVista’s leadership has gained critical insights into asset usage patterns, enabling proactive rather than reactive decision-making. By integrating digital tracking with their existing smart farming technologies, the farm has moved closer to its vision of becoming fully connected, digitally optimized, and environmentally sustainable.

Looking forward, AgroVista plans to expand this digital asset-tracking initiative further, exploring innovative applications such as personnel safety monitoring, advanced environmental data collection, and predictive maintenance powered by analytics. With a scalable infrastructure now in place, the possibilities for continuous improvement and innovation are virtually limitless.

Ultimately, the implementation of this robust tracking system not only addressed AgroVista’s immediate operational challenges but also paved the way for long-term growth and industry leadership, firmly positioning AgroVista Farms as a prime example of modern, digital-forward agriculture.