U.S. Sugar deploys autonomous John Deere tractor fleet
Tractors operate 24 hours a day; employees to be trained for new jobs
U.S. Sugar, Autonomous Solutions and Everglades Equipment Group announced the largest commercial deployment of autonomous tractors in the American sugar industry, introducing a fleet of uncrewed John Deere tractors across U.S. Sugar’s 255,000 acres of farmland in South Florida.
The fleet includes five John Deere tractors equipped with Autonomous Solutions (ASI)’s Vehicle Automation Kit and managed through the company’s Mobius autonomous fleet platform, according to today’s U.S. Sugar release. The tractors can operate 24 hours a day under remote supervision.
The technology is expected to improve efficiency, productivity, sustainability and reliability in land preparation and cultivation. The company tested the system during an 18-month research and development phase before expanding its deployment commercially.
The company plans to retrain employees for new technology-focused roles tied to autonomous operations and intends to expand the technology into additional crop operations. ASI developed and customized the autonomous system for U.S. Sugar’s operations, while Everglades Equipment Group supplied and supported the John Deere equipment used in the deployment.
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