Effect of controlled traffic on field efficiency

Two machinery operations in two different fields were monitored and analysed. The operations involved slurry applications carried out by machinery systems involving an application unit (AU) and a refilling unit (RU). The application systems consisted of an un-controlled traffic farming (UCTF) system and the controlled traffic farming (CTF) system. The results of the experimental operation were used to estimate the operational parameters of the modelled field efficiency. In the one case, the operation was simulated following the CTF system while in the other case it followed the UCTF system.The results show that the implementation of the CTF system rather than the UCTF system significantly increases the in-field transport distance travelled by the AU. The reduction in-field efficiency, in terms of transport distance, ranged from 4.68% to 7.41%.In addition to the analysis of the observed and simulated field traffic patterns, the value of the applied simulation model as a tactical and operational planning tool was also demonstrated. It was possible to evaluate different user configurations in terms of work pattern, machine dimension, and location of the RU in the field and to estimate the effect on the field efficiency.