Advancing autonomous farming solutions
Building on the success of their Hands Free Farm project, where they autonomously farmed 35 hectares of arable crops, our sister company, Farmscan AG is seeking to automate the farming fence construction process with their next collaborative venture, the Roto-Fence project. Funded by Innovate UK, this project aims to significantly reduce labour costs, simplify installation and improve the adoption of sustainable grazing practices through automation.
Rotational grazing: The better way to graze
Rotational grazing is preferred to improve grass quality, reduce fertiliser use, and protect waterways by dividing grassland into smaller paddocks. This grazing method requires significant capital and time investment through labour costs of manually building and installing fencing. Unfortunately, many farmers cannot afford to farm this way, so they use larger paddocks to cut costs and limit the effectiveness of rotational grazing.
John Harvey, Managing Director of Kidd Farm Machinery describes the objectives they hope to achieve:
“Kidd are pleased to help develop the next generation of post drivers. Our goals for the project are greater safety, labour reduction and increased speed of operation while confronting the challenges of automation.”
Automating the fence construction process
The Roto-Fence project goal is to lower fencing costs and streamline the building process for farmers to allow them more opportunities to utilise best farming practices. As demand for agricultural products continues to increase, the need for efficient and environmentally sustainable farming practices becomes paramount.
“Automation is a key step for the future of farming to ensure that technology can continue to directly benefit the farmer. We are excited to implement our range of precision controls and autonomous systems on this innovative project,” explains Callum Chalmers, Director at Farmscan AG.
Collaboration with industry leaders
Farmscan AG is proud to be working alongside Kidd Farm Machinery, a company with a rich 55-year history of building high-quality agricultural equipment designed to perform in challenging farming conditions. Their expertise, combined with Farmscan’s technological advancements and specialisation in ISOBUS and implementation control, will enable them to create a robust and reliable autonomous fencing system.
Harper Adams University (HAU) also returns as a key partner in this project with their engineering skillset in automating machinery and vehicles. Kit Franklin from HAU shares their enthusiasm for this collaborative effort:
“This novel project is allowing us to advance the autonomous technologies developed during the Hands Free Farm project and turn them to use in the livestock sector where we can improve rotational grassing methods and land regeneration through the division of grassing areas with autonomously positioned fencing.”
A turn-key solution
Farmscan AG’s goal is to develop a turn-key solution that is easily usable and readily available to farmers. By combining the strengths of each partner, they aim to deliver an autonomous fencing system that meets the demands of modern agriculture in terms of quality, operating costs, and environmental sustainability.
The Roto-Fence project marks a significant step forward in our joint mission to provide innovative and practical solutions for the agricultural industry. With the combined expertise of Farmscan AG, Kidd Farm Machinery, and Harper Adams University, we are confident that this project will set new standards in autonomous farming technology.

Stay tuned for more updates on the Roto-Fence project as we continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in agricultural automation.