A Computer Simulation Model for Peanut Machinery Management

A computer simulation model was developed to aid peanut producers in selecting machinery complements to achieve preferred operation schedules and increase profit margins. The model incorporates the PNUTGRO crop growth simulation model to determine crop maturity date, average yield on maturity date, and daily soil water content for user-supplied agronomic and weather conditions. The model simulates field operations from land preparation to combining using equipment capacities. Field operation delays due to high soil water conditions have been included in the model. A relationship was developed based on peanut crop yield data from field experiments to adjust the crop yield for early or late harvesting. Fixed costs of each machinery unit are calculated using the user-supplied purchase price and fractional use of the machinery unit for peanut production. The model also calculates operation hours of each machinery unit to determine variable costs. The model outputs include operation schedules, harvested yield, machinery costs, and net returns above machinery costs.