Local company realizes fantastic
growth rate serving farmers
Technological Innovation boosts farming in all states
Special to the DBJ

The Delta Business Journal recently posed questions to four individuals who are responsible for one of the fastest growing businesses in the South. The Cleveland-based company, InTime, began in 2002 as a joint Demonstration Project between a research organization called ITD (Institute for Technology Development) and local Delta farmer Kenneth Hood. In 2003, Mr. Hood bought a controlling interest in InTime with the goal of further expansion. This year InTime has grown to serve farmers in 11 states (MS, AL, LA, AR, MO, TN, CA, TX, NC, GA, KS). This expansion reflects an amazing growth rate of between 400-500% in the company’s client base. They have recently moved into a larger headquarters facility in Cleveland and currently have 3 satellite offices in CA, TX, and AL.

Chairman and owner, Kenneth Hood; President/CEO, Mike Seal; Director of Marketing, Kelly DuPont; and Director of Information Systems, Patrick Jackson were kind enough to share with the DBJ many of the details of InTime’s operation and the goals of this thriving new Delta company.

Mr. Hood, a former Chairman of the National Cotton Council and also former President of the Delta Council addressed the following questions:
Q: What are some elements about this technology that encouraged you to become involved in the research and eventually buy a controlling interest?
A: I always envisioned a way to see more of what was happening in the field desired more visibility into the behavior there, and the big eye in the sky was the better way to do it. It lets you see things much sooner than the naked eye.

As for what prompted me to invest myself in this company, the motivation was seeing a need to deliver our product to a farmer in a short period of time at an economic cost.

Q: How do you see this technology impacting farmers in the Delta?
A: It will be the key to keeping the American farmer competitive in the world market. Because with the variable rate technology, we have the ability to lower our cost of inputs and apply those inputs only where they’re needed in the amount they’re needed. Not only does this make us economically more efficient, but more environmentally friendly.

Q: Any word on the relationship between precision agriculture and government legislation?
A: With variable rate technology, this will be one of the most important steps in being able to qualify for conservation programs. A farmer now will have an “as-applied” map to validate the applications as they’re being made which can be submitted to the proper agencies for his farm plan.

Q: How are other ag industries impacted by InTime?
A: In short, Variable Rate Technology helps ensure that farmers survive, and continue to remain in an economically viable position to promote related industries.

Michael Seal then responded to the following:
Q: Why did you choose the Delta to begin your project and as your base of operations?
A: Cleveland was central to a large market of cotton producers (the Delta), and a market analysis determined cotton to be a strong crop to begin with. Also, Cleveland was a strong choice because it has the necessary technological infrastructure, it has Delta State University generally, a good source for a workforce, plus, Delta State has the aviation school with the airport in Cleveland, so we had a unique pool of pilots and planes available for our aerial imaging fleet.

Q: You started almost exclusively in cotton, what is your market now?
A: We are constantly working with new crops. Currently, we are working in 12 crops, primarily in cotton, rice, corn, and soybean. We also work in several fruits such as tomatoes and watermelon, as well as groves of pistachio and almonds. Basically, any crop that experiences variable growth, and that producers would like to vary their inputs are our market.

Q: You’ve experienced phenomenal growth over the last year. Can you comment on this?? How do you plan to maintain your client base with such rapid expansion?
A: We’ve had excellent response from our marketing efforts. Once a potential client understands the benefits, the service really sells itself. Because we are a relatively small entity with a new idea, it was part of our goal to penetrate the market rapidly.

Of course the first way we are managing the growth is by directly adding staff. Although key components of the operation are automated, there is some overhead in processing imagery and other data necessary to generate products. We also put heavy resources into individually servicing of our client, getting to know them personally, and making sure they are able to make use of our service.

We have 15 full-time employees in Cleveland, plus 3 in the satellite offices. Add to that another 12 part-time technicians and 8 pilots, that’s over 35 employees. This year, we purchased an 8,000 square foot facility to support that staff. The facility includes a computing lab with state-of-the-art processing facilities.

We have trimmed our overhead by bringing most of our image acquisition in-house. We now operate a fleet of 4-6 planes with several pilots on call for each. We have 4 digital imaging systems housed on those planes, so they’re ready to go at a moment’s notice.

Q: Any plans to expand your product and service base?
A: Absolutely. Besides traditional agricultural applications, we are researching several other “crops” such as forestry and turf grass. Also, since we have our planes and camera systems, we can use those platforms to provide imagery to non-agricultural customers for applications such as real-estate and job-site applications, disaster management, etc.

Kelly Dupont then described some of the marketing aspects that have made InTime so successful:
Q: What is InTime, and what do you do?
A: InTime operates in the field of precision agriculture, or more specifically, variable rate technology. We take an aerial image today, and by tomorrow (always within 24 hours) we turn that into a digital map that is used to automatically control variable rate application of agricultural [chemical] inputs and provide improved visibility into the state of a growing crop.

Q: How would you define your product or service?
A: This year we provide three basic information products.
The first is the unprocessed infrared aerial image. The chlorophyll in plants reflects strongly in infrared, and that is how we can detect differences in biomass in the field. This imagery is archived and ultimately is owned by the producer to do with as he sees fit.

The second is the scout map. This is created by processing the imagery with our computer system in such a way that the user can see variations in biomass in the field. The information is divided into several classes that indicate the respective levels of growth in the field.

The third is the spray prescription. The producer or his consultant uses our web site torequest the prescription product. He enters the rates he wishes to spray on each class indicated in the scout map. A computer file is then generated that is downloaded and transferred to a GPS-equipped controller on the sprayer. The controller uses the map to decide how much chemical to spray at each point in the field.

As for the service we provide, this is where InTime really stands out. We are dedicated to seeing this technology used in the field, and helping our clients reap the benefits of it. We go to great lengths to work with our clients from insuring that the related hardware on their sprayers works properly, to training them on the use of our web site, and helping to interpret the Scout Maps.

Q: Do you provide consulting services yourselves? Do you create the spray prescriptions for your clients?
A: We do not tell or suggest to the farmer what to spray on his field, we’re not in that business. We provide a powerful tool for those that make these decisions, and allow them to apply the chemicals of their choice with a precision that might otherwise be unavailable.

Q: Does this technology save producers money?
A: Producers that have used this technology generally report back to me savings on chemicals of around 30%, but regardless of direct cost savings, they tell me that it is the improved uniformity of the crop that is the stronger incentive.

Q: How would you define your market?
A: Our market consists of farmers whose crops experience non-uniform growth.

Q: What role do agricultural consultants play in the variable rate process? Does it reduce the need for the consultant on the farm?
A: Certainly not, this is a tool in their belt to help them make better decisions that ultimately can make the farmer more profitable. This technology doesn’t work without footsteps in the field. Our maps show variability in biomass, it’s up to the consultant to scout what he sees as interesting features, and interpret the cause of behaviors in the crop. Our scout maps allow the consultant a vastly improved insight to the field by imaging it as a whole. He is able to identify areas needing his attention that would otherwise be missed by looking from the edge of the field or at random.

Q: How much does your service cost?
A: Much less than most folks think. We have a tailor-made program that allows the farmer to pick and choose his specific wants and needs within his operating budget.? Our experience has been that the chemical savings achieved will more than pay for the cost of InTime’s pictures.

Patrick Jackson responded to questions about the technology used at InTime.
Q: What impact has InTime’s Image Processing System had on the viability of the company?
A: InTime’s Processing System has been instrumental in making this company commercially viable. With it, we have taken two of the most difficult and expensive parts of our process effectively out of the economic picture: generating information products, and allowing the client access to this tool and their products 24-7.

Without our level of automation in generating information products, we would be faced with trying to generate those products by hand. Our process usually takes only a few seconds.
Because the system has a web-based interface, it is always available to clients to create and download their products as well as derive information about the status of their imagery. In general, the system was designed to be completely scalable, which means that we can expand service to virtually as many clients as we want with very little capital.

Q: With all of this automation, does InTime miss out on the human element of your business?
A: No, just the opposite. We automate those elements that would normally cripple us financially if they were performed by humans. Our business model and the mission of my department is to reduce overhead through use of technology, and allow the focus of our human resources to go where they’re most needed: working personally with our clients. DBJ