Turnkey Subsurface irrigation Smart Pivot & Reel Hose Integration
In this mid-scale maize project, Metzer implemented a hybrid irrigation solution combining center pivots and reel hoses—optimized through a smart, fully automated water delivery system to ensure uniform coverage and efficient operation.
Location:
Cambodia
Project Size:
175 ha
Crop:
Corn
Irrigation Type:
Pivot
Challenge
The project required delivering uniform subsurface irrigation across eight irregularly shaped fields, totalling nearly 400 hectares. Key challenges included:
• Managing water transport over long distances, including a 1.4 km span to the most remote plots.
• Ensuring stable filtration and precise fertigation under demanding flow conditions.
• Installing a reliable pumping system drawing water from a shallow open reservoir with only 1.5 meters of depth.
• Achieving full automation in an open-field context, where such levels of control are typically confined to protected agriculture.
Resolution
Metzer delivered a turnkey solution integrating world-class technologies into a fully automated subsurface irrigation system. A central pumping station with five 75 kW pumps, controlled via frequency converters, ensures efficient water delivery. Filtration is handled by Amiad automatic mesh filters, with additional units installed near remote fields.
Fertigation is powered by automated plunger pumps and air-mixing systems, all managed from a single control room. The entire system—monitored by sensors, weather stations, and RTUs—is operated remotely via a Talgil controller and smartphone access. Water is distributed through PE pipes to ASSIF anti-siphon emitters dripline laterals, ensuring precise subsurface irrigation across all 398 hectares
