Introduction to Harvest

The Harvest module allows you to plan expected yields, record actual scale weights, and analyze your harvest operation’s performance by lot, group, and period.

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The Harvest Challenge

Harvest is the critical moment when all year’s work materializes into value. However, many farms face:

• Yield uncertainty: Don’t know how much to expect until it’s over
• Hidden variability: Some lots yield less, but don’t know which ones
• Team issues: Harvest groups with different productivity
• Scattered data: Paper scale tickets that never get analyzed

The Cycles Approach

Arlo organizes harvest into Harvest Cycles - defined periods (typically 1-4 weeks) where:

1. You schedule expected yields by lot and group
2. You record actual scale weights day by day
3. You compare planned vs. actual with color codes
4. You adjust expectations and resources for the next cycle

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Key Concept: Planned vs. Actual

The module’s heart is the comparison between what you expected to harvest and what you actually harvested.

Harvest Schedule (Planned)

This is your ideal plan before work begins:

• Harvest date
• Lot to harvest
• Assigned harvest group
• Expected quantity and units
• Expected weight (calculated automatically)

Actual Harvest

This is reality captured at the scale:

• Weights recorded in harvest entries
• Automatically aggregated by date/lot/group
• Net weight calculated (gross weight - vehicle weight)

Performance Indicators

Color	Range	Interpretation
🟢 Green	95% - 105%	On target - expected yield
🟠 Amber	< 95%	Below target - investigate causes
🔵 Blue	> 105%	Above target - exceptional yield
⚪ Gray	No data	No plan or no entries

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Module Structure

Configuration

Component	Purpose
Vehicles	Register trucks/vehicles with empty weight
Harvest Units	Containers (baskets, crates) with capacities
Harvest Groups	Teams/crews that execute harvest

Operations

Component	Purpose
Harvest Cycles	Planning periods with defined dates
Scheduling	Yield plans by date/lot/group
Harvest Entries	Scale weight recording

Analysis

Component	Purpose
Cycle Dashboard	Real-time performance view
Reports	Exports and detailed analysis

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Harvest Cycles: The Harvest Sprint

Why short cycles?

Instead of planning the entire season at once, 1-4 week cycles allow:

• Continuous adjustment: Correct estimates based on actual results
• Clear accountability: Specific goals for bounded periods
• Early detection: Identify problems before they accumulate
• Resource management: Redistribute groups based on performance

Cycle constraints

• No overlap: You cannot have two cycles with overlapping dates
• Data protection: Cannot delete a cycle that already has schedules
• Unique code: Each cycle has a unique reference code

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Behind the Scenes

Net weight calculation

When you record a harvest entry:

net_weight = scale_weight - vehicle_empty_weight

Vehicle empty weight is obtained from:

1. The vehicle’s record (if configured)
2. The last entry from the same day for that vehicle (weight memory)

Weight memory

If a vehicle already weighed empty that day, the system remembers the weight and automatically applies it to subsequent entries for the same vehicle.

Actual harvest aggregation

The system maintains a unique record (HarvestActual) for each combination of:

• Date
• Lot
• Harvest group

When you add or modify entries, the system automatically recalculates totals for that combination.

Performance calculation

performance_percentage = (actual_weight / planned_weight) × 100

If 95% ≤ percentage ≤ 105% → On target (green)
If percentage < 95% → Below target (amber)
If percentage > 105% → Above target (blue)

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Next Steps

1. Register vehicles - With empty weights for automatic calculation
2. Define harvest units - Containers and their capacities
3. Create harvest groups - Teams that will execute work
4. Configure your first cycle - Start planning