Machinery costs on tillage farms and the development of decision support systems for machinery investments/use on farms.

Abstract

Costs and benefits associated with the use of farm machinery are difficult to calculate. A research programme was established to highlight the area of machinery costs and to provide information on which to base mechanisation decisions. A machinery cost survey was the central part of the programme which collected detailed machinery cost information from 40 arable farms over a period of three years. Costing methods were developed to provide an annual per-hectare cost for each machine over its ownership period. An average annual machinery cost figure of £194/ha, excluding labour, was recorded. Costs varied from £93/ha to £340/ha between farms. Depreciation and interest accounted for almost 60% of the total costs figure. Larger farms (>160 ha) had lower costs and less cost variation than smaller- and medium-sized farms. They were more machinery efficient, with lower levels of machinery investment per hectare. Smaller- and medium-sized farms had much greater cost variation with many farms being over-mechanised, resulting in excessive machinery costs. The importance of selecting an appropriate mechanisation policy for individual farm situations was evident. Using information from the survey to select appropriate costing methodology from other research, a simple cost-prediction computer program was developed. This allows costs for an individual machine at any use level to be estimated. This program was used to evaluate various mechanisation options on 40, 100 and 240 ha farms. The program was then redeveloped for use by the advisory service. It is a decisionsupport type program which requires input from a trained operator with experience of mechanisation. It should prove useful in determining farm mechanisation policies against a background of changing mechanisation technology, farm labour supply and potential price-support reductions.