Jordy's passion for farming was bred into him on his family's South Australian broadacre cropping farm, and this is what drives his ambition to improve the industry in smart ways. In 2020, he took some time to think about emerging farming trends and what tools farmers would need in the future.
'For financial and environmental reasons, farmers need to be using less herbicides and pesticides.'
He knew that for financial and environmental reasons, farmers need to be using less herbicides and pesticides. So, he started Flux Robotics and began building different algorithms to recognise weeds from crops. With that, his innovative high-precision sprayer, now marketed as Onyx, was born.
Onyx uses selective herbicide spraying technology for outdoor row crops such as potatoes, onions, carrots and pumpkins. It is towed behind a tractor, covers three veggie beds, or about six metres, in each pass and travels at about 5km/hour.
The product has only recently launched and is now being used by a handful of farms on a lease arrangement. Jordy says pricing the machine was difficult because it differed from any other piece of farm machinery and because the product is set to become more valuable over time due to software and algorithm improvements.
'Today, it's just detecting and spraying weeds, but next year, it could be doing a whole lot more.'
Today, it's just detecting and spraying weeds, but next year, it could be doing a whole lot more. This is thanks to its high-tech sensors, which can be improved with new functionality with a simple software update.
In building the machine, Jordy and his team of engineers have also created a range of tools that can assist farmers in learning new things about their soil and crops. They have also developed their products with the ability to actuate or hit targets with high precision, and they are currently developing thermal and mechanical weed controls.
Jordy's education in farming goes beyond the family farm. He has spent time with soil consultants, visiting leading farmers, and, importantly, listening to them talk about everything to do with their operations.
As he hears about the everyday challenges producers are facing, his mind churns through opportunities for solutions. Jordy built his company from the ground up, from writing the algorithms to going out into paddocks and collecting data himself. He even works with engineers on the physical build.
'There's a massive talent shortage in engineers in Australia who know how to make 'real stuff.'
He says there's a massive talent shortage in engineers in Australia who know how to make 'real stuff', so he's trying to nurture talent. Flux Robotics has had more than 20 engineering interns come through the business in just a few years.
Jordy tries to spend as much time as possible in paddocks as a countermeasure to time inside offices thinking about problems. Also, because he just loves it. Most of Flux's prototyping and fabrication happens between Jamestown, SA and the Lockyer Valley, QLD.
A new answer to a costly problem
Weeds can be an expensive problem to solve - both financially and environmentally. Jordy explains that selective spraying not only reduces costs of chemical use by about 80 per cent but also helps to address industry issues such as chemical resistance, run-off, spray drift and soil health. Farmers are also under regulatory pressure and customer demand to reduce chemical use.
Onyx will allow farmers to reduce chemical use, but Jordy would like to take that to the next level with a precision tiller to remove young weeds before they establish. That machine is not yet commercial, but it's on its way.
Jordy may be a mad scientist and has met with his fair share of naysayers, but he's excited about the role artificial intelligence will play in the future of farming. He's also passionate about sharing this message and learning from farmers.
When he's not out in the field or working away in his workshop, he loves running demonstration days, showing off his gear and chatting around a barbeque and an Esky. You can take the farmer off the land, but you can't make him stop talking about farming and dreaming about its future.
