Make a plan to prevent disruption and costly irrigator damage

The spring winds of 2021 brought with them $3.5 million in settled irrigator claims and weeks of valuable production time lost, much of which could have been prevented with a good plan.

WORDS PROVIDED BY FMG

FMG’s Manager of Advice Services, Angela Hogg, says winter is the time to be making that plan to minimise disruption and avoid those expensive repairs. “Also, with the strains on global supply chains, parts could be hard to source and mean potentially months of disruption,” says Angela. There are four main areas of consideration when putting together your plan:

Prediction

growers are increasingly turning to online tools and mobile apps to help them get ahead of bad weather. Some of our clients have had great success using platforms such as MetService and Yr as well as apps such as PredictWind and Windy which allow you to set parameters for wind speed alerts. For example, if the wind speed parameter was set to 90 km/hr an alert would be received if the winds were to exceed that speed, allowing you time to plan accordingly. This lead-in time for high wind helps you make better planning decisions.

Authority

There needs to be a clear understanding of who is responsible for monitoring winds and making the final decision to proceed with the action plan. Lines of authority should include more than one person as the person who normally makes the decision may not be onfarm at the time. As well as understanding who is responsible for what part of the business, include the person who is responsible for: • Monitoring the weather; • Making the decision to take action; • Getting the irrigators back in action.

Action

It’s important that all staff understand what the agreed farm plan is if strong winds are on the way. This could include the method of ‘Point, Park and Anchor’. Everyone should understand their responsibilities and the process. This should also include what happens after the winds have passed and getting back to irrigating.

Practice

Winter is a good time to practice the plan, especially for new staff members who are not familiar with it. Just like fire-fighters, the events may be spasmodic, so ‘on the job’ practice is limited. Therefore, time needs to be put aside to practice the plan. This is also a good time to flesh out any issues within the plan, including any Health and Safety risks. “Wind damage to irrigators remains the top loss cause in our claims, accounting for 34% of claims,” says Angela. “Over half of all wind damage claims occur in spring and there’s real benefit from the ‘Point, Park and Anchor’ advice.” FMG will be holding workshops in conjunction with Irrigation New Zealand in the coming months. Keep an eye out for a location near you. Head to www.fmg.co.nz/advice/Irrigators/ for more information, including access to the free Irrigation Guide to help protect your irrigators.