Summary
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Con Kyriazis, a contract broiler grower for Baiada, was aware of the short and long term benefits of investing in technology. Operating eight thermally efficient tunnel ventilated sheds on a farm near Little River, Victoria, Con identified that energy consumption was a large and growing cost on his farm.
Acquainted with the AgriCool system and the operation cost savings possible, Con turned to ebm-papst to find a solution to curb his rising electricity bill. 112 50 inch energy hungry AC belt-driven fans were replaced with 64 50 inch efficient, quiet, direct drive EC fans from ebm-papst. The whole system was able to be integrated into Con’s existing farm control system, providing a streamlined and easy to operate solution. Thanks to the retrofit Con saw his electricity bills go down, and was happily surprised by additional benefits including improve peace of mind due to the system’s redundancy features, improved bird spread, and huge reduction in maintenance costs. Background
Con Kyriazis, a contract broiler grower for Baiada, operates an eight shed farm near Little River in Victoria. Built in 2005 by local builder Eddie Dimech, the sheds are designed to be thermally efficient for a temperature range of 5 to 35°C. The farm design maximises the production potential of top quality climate controlled tunnel sheds.
With rising energy and water prices and flat grower returns, Con was motivated to find a way to further reduce the farm’s operational costs. Standard AC belt-driven fan systems have high energy consumption and, according to Con, his fans were requiring constant maintenance “belts, bearings and the motors themselves were all sources of breakdown and at one stage we were experiencing fan problems on a daily basis”. The upgrade
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Fig 1: Grower Con Kyriazis with Steve Davies (Agricultural Automation) and ebm-papst A&NZ Sales Manager Chris Hauck in front of the newly retrofitted AgriCool tunnel fans.
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Con and ebm-papst had been developing a professional relationship since 2011, discussing how more efficient and reliable fans could be used in broiler sheds. In August 2015, the retrofit of existing tunnel ventilated broiler sheds on Con’s farm began, with ebm-papst direct drive EC fans replacing old AC belt-driven fans.
From the retrofit, the number of tunnel fans on the farm dropped from 112 to 64, as each shed’s original 14 conventional AC tunnel fans were replaced by 8 direct drive ‘intelligent’ tunnel fans. In Con’s half brooding shed an additional seven de-stratification fans were fitted to the roof apex. These fans reduce the temperature differential in a shed by moving warm air downwards, keeping the litter warm and promoting good bird spread.
As the EC direct drive fans turn on there is no in-rush of air or loud start-up noise to disturb the birds thanks to the fans' ‘soft-start’ feature. Due to complete speed control of the new EC tunnel fans, the AgriCool system gently modifies the shed’s climate. Overall the air flow improved in the sheds, reducing the occurrence of hot-spots and increasing bird spread. |
Fig 2: The easy-to-use AgriCool shed ventilation system control panel. Key information is displayed including airflow and shed temperature.
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In the control room, Con’s centralised control system monitors the farm from a desktop computer. Integrating the AgriCool system into the farm’s control systems was simple, with HMI Electric providing installation and technical support. Instead of a large number of contactors and relays the AgriCool system is contained to a monitor, sensors, and some cables saving Con on wiring and installment costs while removing a potential fire hazard.
Once set-up, the AgriCool system looks after itself. Critical functions are displayed on a monitor including volumes per cubic meter expelled, fan speed, and power consumption. Sensors within the shed enable AgriCool to compare the required and actual airflow; ensuring ventilation requirements are always met. Should an issue occur with any part of the system, an alert is sent directly to Con’s mobile and the farm control system. A back-up program steps in to supply adequate ventilation, ensuring that the livestock are well ventilated, allowing Con to rest assured his livestock are secure thanks to AgriCool.
Once set-up, the AgriCool system looks after itself. Critical functions are displayed on a monitor including volumes per cubic meter expelled, fan speed, and power consumption. Sensors within the shed enable AgriCool to compare the required and actual airflow; ensuring ventilation requirements are always met. Should an issue occur with any part of the system, an alert is sent directly to Con’s mobile and the farm control system. A back-up program steps in to supply adequate ventilation, ensuring that the livestock are well ventilated, allowing Con to rest assured his livestock are secure thanks to AgriCool.
Outcome
With reduced electricity consumption and labor costs that result from constant maintenance needs typical to older fan designs, Con has achieved his goal of reducing the operational cost of his farm and gained additional benefits. The direct-drive fans have no maintenance requirements throughout their lifetime, saving Con time, money, and worry. The redundancy and fail-safe features of the AgriCool system provide Con with peace of mind, knowing that his livestock are always secure and well ventilated and that he will be the first to know if any system errors occur with the direct-to-mobile alarm feature.
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“Availability of spare parts has never been an issue since we started our change to the new fan and climate control system, we simple don’t have to touch the fans anymore”
– Con Kyriazis |
The collaborative effort between HMI Electric, Automated Agriculture, and ebm-papst to develop and deliver the AgriCool system has been a success. The reliability and efficiency delivered by the new fans and the level of service from by ebm-papst and their distributor Agricultural Automation has Con enthusiastic about his new fans.
The Details
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The AgriCool Climate Control System
Material:
Tunnel Fans Number of fans: 64 Fan type: 50 inch high-efficiency, direct-drive, three-phase EC fan motors with in-built speed control Shutter system: Supplied by Agricultural Automation De-stratification Fans Number of fans: 64 Fan type: 200mm high-efficiency, direct-drive EC fan motors with in-built speed control Original system Number of fans: 112 Fan type: 50 inch standard belt-driven AC fans |
Farmer Con at the ebm-papst A&NZ head office with Sales Manager Chris and Design Manager Alex
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