An Innovative approach for seed sorting in small farm operations
With funding provided by AIMAP, Little Wing Oysters Ltd developed a mobile floating seed sorter and handling system. It involved the purchase, assembly, and testing of seed handling equipment comprised of a seed screening machine, a specialized working raft and solar powered generation equipment capable of supplying the machinery under normal use. A generator will be used as backup for periods of intense use.
This new system has produced an increase of 300% in productivity gains over manual screening. Seed screening is a vital stage in the production process of high-end quality oysters because it is here that they pick up the characteristics of shape and depth which are sought after by top quality domestic and international markets. Increasing frequent screening of oyster seed has been shown to improve quality and thus product value. Utilizing solar power will also reduce the farms’ environmental footprint. Establishing a portable system will enable economies of scale across several small farms.
Over the duration of this project an average of 38,000 oysters per hour was handled; we found that the handling of the oyster seed after screening took the most time. When screening only times were tallied, the values ranged from 125 000 to 565 000 seed per hour and averaged 375,000 oysters per hour. We estimate the cost of this system to be 50¢ per thousand including labour, maintenance and amortization.
The solar power generation system has been designed to supply the equipment for normal use. It includes a 1150 watt solar array, a 60 amp charge controller, a 4kw inverter, a 1725Ah battery bank for energy storage and all the breakers and disconnect required by the building code. The on sight generator only needs to be used as backup during periods of extended demand. Solar power provides a high quality power for the system and will be a long lasting benefit to the project. All the components have been selected for their energy efficiency, only 2 000 watts are needed to operate the screening equipment and the water pump simultaneously.
The 2011 costs for the main components were:
We would like to acknowledge the support and participation of Ed Bereziak and Bob Paquin to the project. Both have made significant contributions in time and resources towards it's successful completion.
Special thanks for the support of DFO's AIMAP program and in particular Sean Irvine. We would not have been as successful in bringing the right pieces together without them.
With funding provided by AIMAP, Little Wing Oysters Ltd developed a mobile floating seed sorter and handling system. It involved the purchase, assembly, and testing of seed handling equipment comprised of a seed screening machine, a specialized working raft and solar powered generation equipment capable of supplying the machinery under normal use. A generator will be used as backup for periods of intense use.
This new system has produced an increase of 300% in productivity gains over manual screening. Seed screening is a vital stage in the production process of high-end quality oysters because it is here that they pick up the characteristics of shape and depth which are sought after by top quality domestic and international markets. Increasing frequent screening of oyster seed has been shown to improve quality and thus product value. Utilizing solar power will also reduce the farms’ environmental footprint. Establishing a portable system will enable economies of scale across several small farms.
Over the duration of this project an average of 38,000 oysters per hour was handled; we found that the handling of the oyster seed after screening took the most time. When screening only times were tallied, the values ranged from 125 000 to 565 000 seed per hour and averaged 375,000 oysters per hour. We estimate the cost of this system to be 50¢ per thousand including labour, maintenance and amortization.
The solar power generation system has been designed to supply the equipment for normal use. It includes a 1150 watt solar array, a 60 amp charge controller, a 4kw inverter, a 1725Ah battery bank for energy storage and all the breakers and disconnect required by the building code. The on sight generator only needs to be used as backup during periods of extended demand. Solar power provides a high quality power for the system and will be a long lasting benefit to the project. All the components have been selected for their energy efficiency, only 2 000 watts are needed to operate the screening equipment and the water pump simultaneously.
The 2011 costs for the main components were:
- Barge - $8 000
- Screener - $26 000
- Solar - $16 000
- Backup Generator - $5 600
We would like to acknowledge the support and participation of Ed Bereziak and Bob Paquin to the project. Both have made significant contributions in time and resources towards it's successful completion.
Special thanks for the support of DFO's AIMAP program and in particular Sean Irvine. We would not have been as successful in bringing the right pieces together without them.
