STRATEGIC SELECTION OF BEST FIT HEAVY EQUIPMENT FOR FOOD ESTATE DEVELOPMENT, BALANCING EFFICIENCY AND COST WITH EXCAVATORS AND FARMING DOZERS

Abstract

Indonesia's Food Estate initiative, aimed at enhancing national food security through large-scale agricultural development, has encountered recurring challenges due to inadequate planning, poor equipment selection, and inefficient implementation strategies. This research proposes a strategic framework for selecting the most suitable heavy equipment, specifically excavators and D21 farming dozers to optimize cost efficiency and operational effectiveness in Food Estate projects. By analysing both operational and lifecycle costs, this study aims to determine the best-fit machinery for varying soil conditions and agricultural tasks such as land clearing, soil preparation, and irrigation. Ultimately, this research contributes to improving the effectiveness and sustainability of Food Estate programs in Indonesia. The best model for land clearing application on paddy field is PC135F-10M0 with productivity 0,1 Ha/hr and fuel consumption 11,19L/hr, the mode used is Economy Mode. Levelling application the best unit is D21Pl-8 with productivity 0,66Ha/hr and fuel consumption 4,66L/hr. This study explores the optimization of heavy equipment configuration for land clearing in the agricultural sector. By comparing the existing setup (3 units of PC135F-10M0) with a best-fit configuration (2 units of PC135F-10M0 and 1 unit of D21PL-8), the results show a significant improvement in operational efficiency. The best-fit setup reduced the average cycle time per hectare by approximately 36% and fuel consumption by around 24%.