Times Of Swaziland: RESCORP EMBRACING TECHNOLOGY

RESCORP EMBRACING TECHNOLOGY
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Nhlanganiso Mkhonta on 15/12/2024 15:57:00


MBABANE – RESCorp is one of the few companies in the country that have started
to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their production.
To mitigate the ongoing climate crisis and offset rising production costs, the
Royal Eswatini Sugar Corporation (RES Corp) developed technology that can
predict when optimal harvests will occur, boosting yields and profitability.
With agronomic data, real-time growth measurements and upcoming weather
forecasts, the new system allowed RES to pinpoint the optimal harvest day,
leading to a E91.4 million (€4.8 million) increase in yield – or a 5.96 per
cent improvement. Utilising SAP Intelligent Agriculture on SAP Business
Technology Platform (BTP), alongside satellite data, mapping and detailed crop
information, the solution harnesses the power of artificial intelligence (AI)
and machine learning to enable Royal Eswatini Sugar Corporation (RES Corp) to
develop customised interfaces for farmers.
Data-driven
SAP intelligent agriculture as an industry cloud solution is built on SAP
Business Technology Platform. It enables agribusinesses to implement data-driven
farming processes and service offerings for farmers based on a standard platform
and incorporate innovative partner extensions. According to a feature article
published in the SAP website, in turn, improving farming practices and
decision-making processes. Third-party RES farmers have also saved around E2.8
million (€150 000) per season because of enhanced planning, execution and
decision making.
RES Corp prediction of cane yields enabled informed decisions on capital and
operating expenses impacting E3 275 257 600 (€160 million) in cost per season.
Through the use of SAP Intelligent Agriculture solution, RES Corp has been able
to increase its forecast accuracy by at least 10 per cent. Improved decision
making around ripening is saving E63 363 202.31 (€ 3.1 million) for RES Corp
and the outgrowers per season.“We are driving sugar growth efficiencies for
RES and our (third-party farmers) with real-time field data combined with
external satellite and agronomic data,” said Coombe. “With help from SAP, we
have developed an innovative service platform which increases yields, reduces
costs, and improves sustainability.”