Data Analysis Made Simple with FBN and MyJohnDeere

Wayne Bierlein, of Reese, Michigan, joined Farmers Business Network early on, and was one of the first farmers in his area to take advantage of our data integration with MyJohnDeere through JDLink™. Today, he’s taking a few minutes to tell us more about how the integration has changed the way he looks at his farm.

What do you like most about the FBN integration with MyJohnDeere?

Wayne: I like FBN for the ease of recording all my data, looking at my data and analyzing it. I love that my information is going from my My John Deere account into FBN. It saves me a lot of time and a lot of effort. And then I really like reports available through FBN. It does the analyzing for me instead of me spending way too much time at my computer trying to analyze my stuff, and even then, I still only have my information.

This way, I can benchmark my information, varieties I’m working with, compared to varieties my neighbors are planting. And it’s anonymous, I don’t know anybody else’s, but I get to compare to it, and it eliminates the coffee shop talk of what guys say their stuff is yielding. As long as they are submitting their information, I know it’s right.

What’s the process of getting data from your field to your FBN account where you can use that data?

Wayne: I have a system on my combine that will do a cellular connection upload, on the fly, to my MyJohnDeere account and from there it flows into my FBN account seamlessly. At the end of the year, if I want to manually clean anything up I can always download into a USB drive from the monitor, and then upload it directly to FBN. 

Do you feel like it’s easier to utilize your data now that it has that seamless integration from MyJohnDeere to FBN? Do you find yourself looking at it more?

Wayne: I look at it more mainly because there is so much more analysis along with it. On MyJohnDeere, I can look at my data and maps. I can look at my information and see soil types, varieties, drainage issues, that type of thing. But FBN helps me use the data to see how I’m doing compared to others—it helps me answer, “What am I missing?” Am I doing things well, or did I miss 10 bushels per acre? If I did miss something, did it miss it compared to my neighbors? Maybe I’m comfortable with my yields compared to the neighbors, because I know where the rain hit. So I’m asking myself, “Is it a moisture issue? Is it a rain issue? Is it weather? Is it planting timing? Harvest timing?” There’s just so much more information available to me. Before, I was also using another tool with MyJohnDeere before, but it was quite cumbersome.

How have you seen the FBN network grow in your area and more members joining?

Wayne: It’s been huge. There have been a lot of guys in my area who have signed up in the last couple years. Hearing how many farmers in Michigan are signing up, and the areas that it represents, is really good. With more data and more farms joining, we can all submit and share [anonymously] even more data from each other that is that much more valuable to us.

JOHN DEERE and JDlink are trademarks of DEERE & COMPANY.