Ames Today

An Iowa farmer is breaking new ground with the use of a 3D printer, innovating the agricultural industry across the state and country.

Jim Poyzer, 68, is on the cutting edge of farming technology, improving his operation with garage-solution equipment updates, all while keeping an eye on soil health returns.

Guided by his bottom line, he isn’t afraid to take risks and change his plan accordingly around the new technology. 

“If it gains me profit and improves my farm, I’ll learn how to use it,” Poyzer told Ag Pro.

“3D printing, planter monitors, variable rate technology, soil moisture probes, electronic flow meters, RTK correction and more are all part of Poyzer’s self-made farm kit, but the Boone County, Iowa, producer is laser-focused on soil health, and insists his DIY activity s a means to boost soil fertility,” according to a recent interview in Ag Pro.

His focus over the recent years has been keyed on microbial activity because he believes it is the key to high yields over the next decade.

Relying on his background in physics and electrical engineering, Poyzer spent $300 in 2012 to build a monitor for a 1969 John Deere 7000 planter with adjustable corn meters.

“I’d seen Precision Planting’s 20/20 SeedSense and Ag Leader’s SeedCommand in the field. I knew the electronics on the planter; just a LED light with a receiver on the end sending a signal. I said, ‘I can do that myself,’” he said.

The Iowan first dove into the 3D printing world to connect electronic flow meters together years ago.

“I have liquid fertilizer on my planter, both in-furrow and 2x2x2,” Poyzer said. “I’m migrating it all to electronic monitoring. The flow meters hook on my planter and talk to a tablet with an app showing the flow so I can monitor exactly what is happening.”

Poyzer uses the Creality Ender 3 3D printer, which cost him roughly $200 – not bad considering how much he’s saved and earned in just a few years.

“With 3D CAD software I can make almost any shape and even put in threaded holes. I've watched YouTube videos on how to make things out of plastic, place them in a mold, and then remold them in aluminum. I can print objects as large as 9x9x10. This is no toy. This is a tool for me," he said.

He expects the 3D printing market to really take off throughout the agricultural world in the near future.

“It provides such utility and can apply to any project I work on because there are so many gadgets a DIY guy needs to build parts. I think 3D printing could most definitely explode in agriculture," he said.