AgriChain Logistic: Field Logistics Under The Microscope

Any logistics activity is based on the “7R” rule (right product, right quality, right quantity, right time, right place, right customer, right cost): uninterrupted delivery of appropriate products (field – warehouse, elevator – consumer) of the required quality and quantity to the agreed place in the appropriate time with the appropriate level of logistics service. But this is if the process is described in broad strokes. But IT company AgriChain offers to look at field logistics under a microscope.

The goal of logistics automation is the formation of a single automated system from the “field” to the “buyer” to achieve business goals and obtain a positive effect in increasing the efficiency of operational activities thanks to the optimization, automation, and regulation of logistics processes. Creation of a complete automated logistics and operation process in a single information field.

The AgriChain IT company offers to look at logistics processes under a microscope and understand exactly where losses occur in the chain, where the “white spots” of the logistics process are, which areas should be covered by control, and how the AgriChain Logistic application can help with this.

This application will help create a single automated system from “field” to “buyer” based on AgriChain software products and internal developments of Astarta’s IT department.

When automating logistics, it is important to plan the location of the future harvest. With such, without exaggeration, large-scale planning, it is necessary to take into account the size of sown areas, planned yield indicators, storage capacity, availability of alternative storage options for products, receiving and shipping capacity, etc. And all this must be done in advance, so that at the peak of the harvesting campaign, a long line of grain trucks does not line up under the elevator, and it is not crowded at the same time.

Therefore, already at the beginning of the new marketing year, it is necessary to have an idea of where and what products are planned to be placed, as well as whether there are potential risks and how they can be avoided. AgriChain developers have designed the AgriChain Logistic application in such a way that the user receives an ideal plan for the placement of harvested grain. This analysis is done based on various factors: taking into account the distance, the cost of reception and storage at the elevators, capacity, etc.

“This is the so-called scenario approach, which makes it possible to change conditions and simulate possible scenarios. For example, if the capacity of our elevators does not allow us to place all the products and requires the use of additional third-party elevators, the system will offer an alternative option, and the system will also offer the storage of part of the grain in sleeves (silo runs) – explains Victoria Kharchenko, manager of strategic projects of AgriChain.

An integral component in product placement planning is the mid-term shipment plan, which enables logistics management to analyze the terms of forwarding contracts and other sales details for effective planning of the required amount of rolling stock. When developing this functionality, forward contracts for the new harvest are taken as a basis, under which the system plans the approximate filling of the contract. In the next stage, the system independently models the quantity of this or that product, and in what period it is necessary to sell it, to prevent overcrowding of elevators and ensure liquidity.

“The release of the aforementioned functionality is planned to be carried out by September 1 of the current year for the ASTARTA company,” adds Viktoriya Kharchenko, “so that it can be qualitatively tested when harvesting the late group of grains.”

Season calculator

Before starting tender procedures, auto-logistics specialists must calculate the necessary amount of transport to ensure a continuous process of harvesting. With the help of the seasonal calculator, it is possible to make this preliminary calculation of the needs for cars and combines for the season.

So, based on AgriChain Plan data, based on a scenario approach, the company’s specialists developed a seasonal calculator in the AgriChain Logistic application. In it, you can change yield parameters, harvester production rate, number of harvesting days, etc., and understand how certain parameter changes will affect, for example, the required number of harvesters

“This “calculator” makes a calculation, taking into account how many of its combines and trucks the company has, and also takes into account the class of the vehicle: whether it is a Kamaz or a Euro grain truck. Taking into account these parameters, it automatically calculates how many cars and harvesters need to be “tendered” for the season and calculates the approximate budget (expenditure plan),” says Viktoria Kharchenko.

Forming a specification for transport

After determining the counterparties for the transportation of products from the fields, it is important to carry out control, fixation of vehicles (weight and dimensions control), and drivers who will work under the relevant contract, the counterparty.

According to Viktoria Kharchenko, now the specialist only needs to download the file and then the system will independently check whether the indicated vehicles are in the 1C directory “Vehicles” and the “Models” directory, or highlight those elements or details that are missing or irrelevant and give an opportunity automatically create a standard application for research and development and monitor the status of the Application.

The aforementioned functionality was developed last year, but this year it was refined and improved.

Operational calculator

The basis for creating the Operational Calculator is seasonal, but it is used already during the harvesting campaign, when, based on the data of the agronomic service, it is necessary to plan vehicles for the next day in the event of a possible change of certain parameters.

“Therefore, after the system has calculated a certain number of vehicles to work on a particular field, we can change the proposed ‘scenarios’, for example, the loading rate, to analyze the effect of this parameter on the required number of vehicles. In the next step, in one click, we have the opportunity to create an “Outfit Plan” for the volume of products indicated for transportation on the next day. In this way, we automatically create a schedule into which, in addition to data on harvesting, information on vehicles and drivers for each current contract is also imported,” – explains Victoria Kharchenko.

The “Specification” document forms a list of vehicles that have been verified and prepared by us for the transportation of products. After selecting the trucks, we create a “plan outlet”, which is automatically sent to the driver’s chatbot, in which the loading point, the unloading point, and the constructed optimal transportation route are indicated.

Calculation of the approximate budget for transportation

When planning “for tomorrow”, the logistician has the opportunity to analyze future transportation costs, as the system calculates the planned budget of costs based on current prices for the season and the collection plan. The final stage of car planning is the possibility of a plan-and-fact analysis of the execution of orders, analysis of harvesting, and transportation.

Queue control at the elevator

Control of the queue at the elevator makes it possible to reduce the risk of a queue by promptly making a decision on the movement of transport based on up-to-date information on the available number and location of cars. In addition, there is information about the products that are in the body, as well as this functionality makes it possible to automatically call the driver and control his movement within the elevator. And the system allows you to make a call to the driver directly from the 1C program to guide him to which pits he should move to.

“After the harvested crop has arrived at the elevator, the stage of quantitative and qualitative accounting of products begins. Currently, the IT department of ASTARTA is finalizing reports, in particular, in the Power BI system. Currently, control of the quantity and quality of products by silos is implemented. In this way, merchants or logisticians, opening the report, can see specifically for each silo what quantity of products and of what weighted average quality is in the silo. After revisions, specialists will have access to comprehensive analytics on how much grain was planned to be delivered to a specific elevator, how much arrived and under which contracts the shipment was made, and what unreserved product balance is available for sale,” says Viktoriya Kharchenko.

Operational shipment planning.

This update concerns the automation of processes for commercial logistics workers regarding the planning, actual implementation, and control of shipments under contracts.

“Now this work is done in Word. In the course of project implementation, it is planned to implement a product reservation mechanism at the elevator. By viewing the balances on the elevator, the specialist will have information on how many products are already reserved and what volume is available for sale. – comments Victoria Kharchenko

A logistician’s desktop for shipment planning and control

This revision is planned to be implemented by the end of the year. “Logist’s desktop” will completely “close” the need to use Excel tables, because all the necessary information will be in one application.

“Logisticians will be able to easily calculate how many wagons are needed for a specific shipment, what is the status of contract execution, what is the shipment plan by day, and ARMs on Ukrzaliznytsia. That is, the application will fully display the process of conducting a contract by a commercial logistics specialist, where he will be able to see and control the risks of non-fulfillment of the contract. In the office, it will be possible to check whether the company has enough vehicles for shipment, what are the alternative options for carriers, and what are their rates. Also, specialists will be able to easily obtain analytics regarding the plan-fact of the execution of the contract,” adds Viktoriya Kharchenko.

AgriChain team specialists will continue to work on improving the AgriChain Logistic application. And they already have a list of revisions until the end of the current year and for the next year. We will inform you about their plans and successes in the following materials.