Engineering (ARC-IAE) and others,
demonstrated how improvements
can be made to efficiently manage
water in South Africa.
Agricultural Engineering Research in South Africa
The establishment of the Division:
Agricultural Engineering in 1961
was an important milestone in the
history of agricultural engineering
in South Africa. This set the scene
for the consolidation of agricultural
engineering in the Department of
Agricultural Technical Services. In
later years people know it as the
Division Agricultural Engineering
Services, or as the Chief Directorate:
Agricultural Engineering and Water
Supply. Today the research component is known as the Institute for
Agricultural Engineering of the Agricultural Research Council (ARCIAE).
In the early years Agricultural Engineers of the Division appreciated
that irrigation was the area of activity that was likely to develop at a
rapid rate in the 1960s and 1970s.
A proactive approach was followed
as evidenced by participation in the
exhibits and demonstrations that
were organised during the first Water Year in the late 1960s. ARC-IAE
achieved the objective of being a
leader in this field in the years of
rapid expansion of irrigation that
followed. It was not only the area
under irrigation that expanded, but
also dramatic changes took place in
the methods and equipment that
were applied and in the scheduling
and management procedures that
were adopted. The organisation
was able to keep pace with the
changing needs of farmers and the
industries that served them, and
provided an invaluable role to the
irrigation industry.
In the private sector Agricultural
engineering companies was also
formed and apart from their mainly
consultative role they played, they
also contributed extensively to research in irrigated agriculture.
Improved flood irrigation approach
Increasing the efficiency of flood
irrigation has been intensively researched in South Africa since 1972
by engineers of the then Department of Agriculture-Division of Agricultural Engineering (now the Agricultural Research Council-Institute
for Agricultural Engineering) and
implemented as such. It was only in
the late eighties and early nineties
that through a WRC supported project that the upgrading of the layout, the manage ment and design of
the systems was addressed and a
model has been developed to simulate the hydraulics of flood irriga-
Performance testing of drippers in the ARC-IAE
laboratory
tion more accurately.
Performance testing of irrigation
equipment
A program for evaluating irrigation
equipment was established within
ARC-IAE to determine whether such
equipment is suited for South African conditions. The Institute is an
independent evaluation authority
on the performance of irrigation
equipment and systems. Both laboratory and field evaluations are carried out according to locally developed and internationally recognized
standards and procedures. In this
regard ARC-IAE also works together
with 10 other international laboratories to secure and exchange international standards.
Test results of the world class test
laboratories help the designer to
design an irrigation system that will
enable the farmer to make optimal
use of available water. The performance and quality of irrigation
equipment such as sprinklers, drippers, micro sprayers, filters and hydraulic valves are tested and evaluated. Reader friendly test reports
enable the designer to make an optimal choice between various products. Laboratory tests for the development of new products are also
conducted while advice is provided
on the technical operation of used
equipment.
Flood irrigation research