The Avirtech Group (avirtech.co) is an agricultural technology company that provides intelligent solutions for plantation and farm management through a combination of unmanned vehicles, IoT sensors, and data analytics. The Indonesian company’s mission is to help agriculture businesses transition to Agriculture 4.0 by delivering practical tools for automation, monitoring, and decision-making. From aerial spraying and crop mapping to environmental sensing and risk detection, Avirtech empowers clients with actionable insights and efficient operational support.

Avirtech has selected the Quectel LC86G (PA) GNSS module for its F-16 IoT Knapsack Smart Sprayer (“F-16 Smart Sprayer”) to enable real-time geolocation logging, paired with an inertial sensor (HCM111Z) to provide movement tracking even in GPS-challenged plantation environments. This combination allows precise logging of spray operations for traceability and performance monitoring.

“Spraying operations in plantations are often conducted under tree canopies or near hilly terrain, leading to poor GNSS signal reception,” says Arnold Ong, General Manager of Sales, Avirtech. “The LC86G (PA)’s strong satellite acquisition performance and quick cold-start times helped ensure reliable positioning data even in partial coverage areas. The module’s compact form factor also allowed seamless integration into our lightweight device design.”

Avirtech currently sells the F-16 Smart Sprayer across Indonesia and the Southeast Asia region via its manufacturing partner PT Golden Agin Nusa. Avirtech aims to enable digital traceability of manual spraying operations, accurate recording of spray coverage and movement, better planning and reporting for supervisors, reduced chemical waste and missed coverage, and improved accountability and standard operating procedure (SOP) compliance. Customers include plantation agriculture firms, agrochemical service providers as well as government and NGO-supported agricultural modernization programs.

The F-16 Smart Sprayer gives managers visibility into field operations that was previously unavailable. They can confirm if the right areas have been sprayed, assess how thoroughly each worker covered their assigned zones, and monitor agrochemical usage. This not only helps reduce waste and cost but also supports traceability and sustainability efforts.

With the help of Quectel’s high-performance modules, Avirtech and PT Golden Agin Nusa have created a solution that supports plantation operations in a smarter and more transparent way. Although this is a new, innovative product, early trials and field demonstrations have shown strong potential for improving both efficiency and accountability, drawing strong interest from plantations.

The Quectel LC86G (PA) GNSS module supports concurrent reception of GPS, GLONASS, BDS, Galileo, and QZSS. The LC86G supports a wide range of applications, such as real-time tracking systems and sharing economy devices. It is particularly suitable for agriculture use cases due to its extremely low power consumption. The LC86G (PA) module provides low power consumption with a 1Hz update rate.

“Quectel’s GNSS technology was a key enabler in making our F-16 Smart Sprayer truly field-ready. We aim to enable more similar innovative products in the market,” says Terry Mulijana, CTO at Avirtech. “We were impressed by its performance in tough environments and the ease of integration. This success gives us confidence to expand our use of Quectel modules in other agricultural tools and monitoring devices.”

The module was selected for its excellent GNSS sensitivity, compact and power-efficient design, reliability in semi-obstructed environments, and proven performance in the agri-IoT sector. “The Quectel GNSS module helped us overcome signal issues in dense plantation areas and allowed us to design a lightweight, battery-powered device that could operate all day in the field,” adds Ong. “It enabled seamless geolocation tracking without increasing costs or complexity.

Avirtech was attracted by the Quectel LC86G (PA)’s reliable GNSS performance under canopies and marginal areas, as well as the strong accompanying documentation and technical support from Quectel. In addition, competitive pricing for field-deployable devices and Quectel’s trusted brand among IoT solution providers helped it to decide on Quectel.

“We’re delighted that Avirtech has chosen the Quectel LC86G (PA) for its F-16 IoT Knapsack Smart Sprayer,” says Yasu Okada, Senior Director Sales for APAC at Quectel Wireless Solutions. “Accurate location data is a vital enabler of precision agriculture, so the GNSS performance we can offer with LC86G offers compelling advantages while delivering low-power capabilities that are ideal for battery-powered devices that need to be in the field all day. We look forward to supporting Avirtech as it innovates and creates solutions for precision agriculture.”

The F-16 Smart Sprayer enables precision agriculture at the manual level, bringing traceability and analytics to basic knapsack spraying without needing drones or full automation. It offers real-time activity tracking in a rugged, portable format designed specifically for plantation workers. The F-16 Smart Sprayer allows plantation managers to review spraying performance per worker, analyze chemical usage trends and ensure field teams follow standard operating procedures.