DOST funds USEP-Tetra Consulting Company R&D partnership for innovative poultry farm monitoring system under CRADLE program

A system that will closely monitor potential outbreaks of infectious diseases for poultry production will be developed through the collaborative R&D project between the University of Southeastern Philippines (USEP) and Tetra Consulting Company, with funding support from Department of Science and Technology (DOST) amounting to Php 4,978,427.44 under the Collaborative Research and Development to Leverage Philippine Economy (CRADLE) Program.

The research project entitled" ChicIoT: An IoT-Based Smart Poultry Building Environment and Growth and Health Status Monitoring and Modelling" is a system that collects data through Internet of Things (IoT) and Wireless sensor network covering thermal, environmental, video and gas level data. IoT refers to a system of interrelated, internet-connected objects or devices that can collect and transfer data over a wireless network without human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction.

"The data gathered are utilized through image analysis and application of computer vision techniques and algorithms in the cloud. The results of analysis are then communicated to the stakeholders informing them of weight estimates, feed conversion ratio and forecasted environmental conditions for ventilation and heating", said ChicIot project leader, Engr. Franch Maverick Arellano Lorilla.Engr. Lorilla, who is also the Technology Business Incubator (TBI) manager of the University of Southeastern Philippines (USeP) AgiLab, said that their project started as Kabaw.io, an IoT-based crop heat stress monitoring system, pitched during Higher education Institution Readiness for Innovation & Technopreneurship (HeIRIT) program of DOST. During the pitch, one of the invited industries like Tetra Consulting Company, a company that specializes in generating solutions and technical advice in the field of poultry production, is also searching for technologies to fund for solving their problem.

Tetra Consulting Company has all the right tools and professional expertise especially on animal health and they combine time-tested processes and modern technical know-how to help poultry farmers boost profit margins. However, the data inside the poultry building are not fully utilized while unfavorable environmental conditions inside the poultry facilities may cause production losses and impair bird growth due to disease outbreaks. With this identified industry problem, the research team from USEP led by Engr. Lorilla proposed for a technology solution that will grow more protein per square meter of space without the worry of spreading the disease.

"This poultry farm management problem can be addressed through a strategic academe- industry R&D partnership between USEP and Tetra Consulting Company. What came first as an industry-academe consultation progressed into collaborative project development, which fortunately was approved for funding by the DOST under the CRADLE program", Engr. Lorilla added.

With the help of ChicIot, the behavior of the poultry animals, specifically broilers, will be monitored thus maximizing production by preventing spread of diseases and indirectly reducing the losses. Monitoring and maintenance will ensure the quality of the meat that will be served to the consumers, consequently meeting the demand on the meat production. It will greatly benefit the company because increase in meat production means increased in revenues. Data driven decisions will also be available for the management.

Under the CRADLE Program, a higher education institution (HEI) or research and development institution (RDI) in partnership with a Filipino company undertakes the R&D to solve the problem and improve the company's products, processes, and services to become more competitive in their respective industries. Beneficiary-companies under CRADLE program must provide at least 20% counterpart funding and must commit to the adoption of the technology that will be developed. DOST XI S&T Information and Promotion

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