How NewCore IoT is using Datacake IoT Platform to revolutionize Agriculture in Kenya.
In the vast agricultural landscape of Kenya, where farmers face numerous challenges ranging from water scarcity to expensive inputs, an innovative startup has emerged to revolutionise the industry. NewCore IoT, a young company with a passion for technology and a focus on microcontrollers, recognised the potential of IoT devices to address the unique problems of the agricultural sector. To bring their vision to life, they partnered with Datacake, a renowned IoT platform, to implement their groundbreaking solution.
About NewCore IoT
Pioneering IoT Solutions for Agriculture
NewCore IoT brought together a team of experienced professionals with a deep understanding of the IT sector. Initially focused on using microcontrollers for educational purposes, they soon realised the huge untapped potential of these technologies to address challenges in the agricultural sector.
Growth Opportunities in Driving Productivity and Sustainability
Kenya is the leading cut-flower producer on the African continent and third-largest producer of flowers globally. NewCore’s attention shifted towards providing solutions for commercial floriculture and horticulture, which were characterised by underserved farmers, high resource costs, and the need for accurate monitoring. By targeting these segments, NewCore positioned itself as a pioneer in delivering IoT-based solutions to this sector, aiming to enhance productivity, reduce costs, and mitigate the impact of climate change.
Challenges Faced by Farmers in Kenya
Overcoming Manual Data Collection
The farmers in Kenya’s agricultural sector faced numerous challenges that hindered their productivity and profitability. Among these challenges were expensive resources, particularly fertiliser, and labour costs. Additionally, farmers encountered difficulties in accurately monitoring crucial parameters such as soil moisture, electrical conductivity, temperature, humidity, and light intensity.
Manual data collection methods were prone to human error, inconsistency and delays in obtaining real-time information. This lack of accuracy and reliability affected farmers’ ability to optimise inputs and manage water resources efficiently. NewCore recognised that these challenges needed to be addressed through an innovative, technology-driven solution.
Empowering Farmers with Custom Sensor and Data Analytics
To provide farmers with real-time monitoring capabilities, NewCore installed a range of customised sensors in the fields and greenhouses. These sensors included soil moisture, soil temperature, electrical conductivity, pH, and macronutrient sensors for soil health monitoring.
Additionally, environmental sensors for air temperature, humidity, and light intensity were deployed to ensure optimal growing conditions for crops. NewCore integrated Datacake’s IoT platform as part of its solution to effortlessly visualise and analyse the collected data, offering farmers unrivalled and comprehensive insights into their farms’ conditions.
By listening to our clients, we often discover problems that we can easily solve ... all on the same platform.
Njiraini Nganga, Managing Director of NewCore IoT
Unleashing the Power of IoT for Precision Farming
With real-time accurate data and historical trends, farmers could now make informed decisions regarding irrigation, fertiliser usage, and environmental conditions. Farmers could analyse crop performance over time, identify patterns, and make informed choices regarding crop rotations, planting schedules, and investment decisions. The ability to set thresholds and receive alerts via SMS or email enabled farmers to proactively address issues such as water scarcity, nutrient imbalances, and suboptimal growing conditions.
Intuitive Dashboards for Seamless Data Visualisation
Farmers required user-friendly dashboards which Datacake’s platform enables. This allowed NewCore to customise the visualisation and analysis of the collected data, providing their clients with comprehensive insights into their farms’ conditions. Their customers were not interested in what was happening on the back end, they needed NewCore IoT to provide them with an end-to-end solution that just worked.
Datacake’s New Rule Engine
Empowered by its cutting-edge rule engine, Datacake enabled a transformative shift in NewCore’s data analysis capabilities. Harnessing the immense power of this advanced engine, NewCore’s engineers can effortlessly create custom rules for their IoT devices in batches, eliminating the need for individual rule configuration. These rules act as gatekeepers, allowing them to receive timely notifications via email or SMS when specific conditions are met. In addition, the new rule engine can trigger downlinks and seamlessly control third-party systems via webhooks, providing exceptional control and automation. With this ground-breaking feature, Datacake not only provides farmers with unparalleled insight into their farm conditions, but also a seamless means of optimising their operations with precise and automated actions.
Unleashing Potential to Offer Solutions and Innovate
During a discussion with one of their clients, NewCore recognised the significance of water availability for farms situated near rivers and relying on dam water for irrigation. So it was possible to innovate, and bring in a dam level sensor, transmitting on the same wireless LoRaWAN network that was already installed. One request led to another and NewCore was growing together with their customers’ needs.
“By listening to our client’s needs, we often discover problems that we can easily solve”, said Njiraini Nganga, Managing Director of NewCore IoT, “and the good thing with Datacake is the flexibility to do it all on the same platform.”
Driving Positive Change
By leveraging the power of data, NewCore’s clients have gained a competitive advantage and positioned themselves for long-term sustainability in a dynamic and challenging market.
The success of Datacake and NewCore’s collaboration in revolutionising the agricultural sector did not go unnoticed, receiving recognition and support from various stakeholders, including government agencies, agricultural cooperatives, and international organisations. This opened doors for scaling up the solution and expanding its reach to even more farmers across Kenya and potentially other regions facing similar challenges.
Forging Ahead to Enhance IoT
Looking ahead, Datacake and NewCore continue to innovate and refine their solution, incorporating feedback from farmers and leveraging emerging technologies. They aim to further enhance the capabilities of their platform, expanding the range of available sensors, and exploring advanced analytics and predictive modelling.
NewCore acknowledges that they cannot predict what their customers will ask for in the future. However, they are pleased that the platform they have built can accommodate any new solutions that may arise. Whether it’s venturing into other industries such as the energy sector, real estate or smart cities, NewCore – Datacake’s partner and distributor for the African Continent – can utilise the existing platform to innovate and meet the needs of diverse industries.
A Fruitful Collaboration
In a groundbreaking collaboration, Datacake and NewCore IoT have transformed the agricultural landscape in Kenya by harnessing the power of IoT and data. Through their innovative solution, farmers now have access to real-time monitoring, data-driven insights, and collaborative knowledge sharing. This success story is a shining example of how technology can drive positive change in traditional industries, empowering farmers, optimising resources, and contributing to sustainable agricultural practices.