“Our spraying robot needed replacing after 18 years. There were two words on our wish list for a new spraying robot: fully automatic and sustainable. In our crop, the spraying robot is used for braking, spraying and biology dispersal. The balance is increasingly going towards biological control of diseases and plagues. Royal Brinkman's Alumaster 2.0 is a fantastic machine that is already used for more than 50% of the biology dispersal in our nursery.”

Kees de Jongh, cut flower grower in Tuil, Netherlands. "We grow Madibas. These are small-flowered Santini Chrysanthemums which excel in colour, number of flowers and shelf-life. In this crop, crop protection technology is important in order to tackle diseases and pests as effectively as possible. In addition, the longitudinal growth of the crop is inhibited during cultivation, to ensure that each cut flower branch has perfect ornamental value. We use one machine for braking, spraying and biology spreading.”

​​​​- Kees de Jongh, mabida grower in Tuil​​​​

At Kees de Jongh flower nursery, the 'previous generation' Alumaster spraying robot was in need of replacement. It had been working at the nursery for no less than 18 years and was of the semi-automatic type. This means that after spraying a canopy, the spraying robot was moved manually to the next canopy via the mother trolley. Kees: "A fully automatic spraying robot was an important condition in the choice for a new spraying robot. For years we worked a lot of hours with a semi-automatic spraying robot. We now wanted to save as much labour as possible and were keen to make the step to a fully automatic machine. The new spraying robot also had to be durable. It had to distribute the pesticide and predatory mites in a uniform and perfect manner, without unnecessarily wasting material.”

The new Alumaster 2.0 has been in operation at Kees de Jongh since August 2020. The spray boom is equipped with the most modern techniques and is used for braking the Chrysanthemum crop, for spraying and biology spraying. In case of braking or spraying, use is made of the 18 nozzles on the spray boom of 9.60 m. The nozzles give an even spray pattern so that the crop is properly hit. The boom is fitted with a modern, self-correcting driving control system with cruise control so that the boom always drives at the same speed above the crop. The driving speed is adjustable and the nozzles rotatable. This enables the Alumaster 2.0 at the back of the hood to spray at an angle and deeper into the crop and to hit it well.

​​​​- Michael Visser, product specialist mechanisation​​​​

The Alumaster 2.0 spraying robot at Kees de Jongh is fully automatic. This means that after spraying one bar, the spraying robot is transported fully automatically to the next bar via the trolley. There, the spraying boom reconnects to the tubes in order to spray the next canopy. No human hand is needed anymore, which results in enormous labour savings. Programming the spraying robot is user-friendly and takes place via an IPad. After setting the programme, the robot goes to work. For Kees de Jongh, the sustainable employability of the Alumaster 2.0 is important. The sustainable solution of the Alumaster 2.0 is, among others, the storage vessel of 20 litres and the Dosatron on the spraying robot. The spraying robot takes the concentrated brake fluid or spray liquid with it. The grower no longer needs to work with spray carts containing prepared liquids. As a result, not a millilitre of spray liquid is wasted.

The spraying robot is easy to convert into a spreading robot. Erwin van Valburg, responsible for crop protection at Kees de Jongh flower farm: "We hang 6 bio-dispensers on the 9.60m spraying robot for scattering biology, one above each chrysanthemum bed. The UniMite Discs ensure that predatory mites and feeding mites are automatically scattered over the crop. It gives an even release and a uniform distribution. One Unimite Disc scatters the mites over a total working width of 1.60m. And that saves a lot of work. Controlling and programming this spreading machine is also done via the IPad. The Unimite Disc spreaders are integrated into the tablet. The storage bunkers for predatory mites and feed mites of the Unimite Disc are transparent. The spreading robot cannot operate 100% fully automatically because of the refilling of the bunkers. The grower cleverly and efficiently refills the biological material in the storage bunkers when the robot moves to the next lattice via the mother trolley. Conrad van Doorn, Royal Brinkman crop protection specialist: "Kees de Jongh's strategy is primarily aimed at a biological approach. A lot of attention is paid to combating thrips. We use the predatory mite montdorensis and the feeding mite Powerfood. By using the good scatter technique with the Unimite Disc on the Alumaster 2.0, we are seeing good results. If necessary, we expand the strategy by adjusting the chemical dosage. The great thing is that we can see that this approach is also working here and we are able to control more and more pests biologically.”

The fully automatic Alumaster 2.0 at Kees de Jongh provides a great improvement in the execution of crop protection treatments. Moreover, the Alumaster 2.0 is a universal sustainable machine; a spraying robot and a spreading robot. Kees de Jongh: "We are also very satisfied with our experiences with the Alumaster 2.0 as a spreading robot. At our nursery, the Alumaster 2.0 is already being used for more than half of the operating hours for biological crop protection. It really is a great system; with one machine we combine the best techniques for braking, biology and chemistry. With the Alumaster 2.0, we have the most modern technology to manage our crop protection. This allows us to deliver beautiful, high quality Madiba.”

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