This project followed on from the proposal CSP98C ‘Development and field testing of micro-computer cotton management packages’ which aimed to support the development of CottonLOGIC and other computerised decision support systems (DSS); validate them in the field; and to provide training and support. It also complemented another project funded by the CRDC CSP106C ‘Enhancing development, support and evaluation of computerised decision support’ which aimed to provide additional programming and support capabilities and to evaluate the impact and nature of use of computerised decision support in the Australian Cotton Industry

Cotton growers are facing increasing pressures to manage resources more cost effectively and to be more accountable for the impact that their decisions make on the surrounding environment. Computer based decision support systems have been developed to provide cotton growers with the best information available from research to assist with their management decision making. CottonLOGIC is now available to assist growers and their advisers in pest management; crop nutrition; insect species identification; plant mapping; growth regulation; spray ordering and notification; and management of INGARD® cotton. Underlying these functions is a powerful database for storing crop management information and an end of season report generator.

At the start of this project the number of registered copies distributed to the industry had risen to over 900. CottonLOGIC had also become an industry benchmark for pest management and was recommended in the industry’s Best Management Practice guidelines. In addition to this the software had gained significant recognition for its quality and usefulness by winning prestigious awards for excellence in Australian agriculture software and technology transfer in the IT industry. This proposal was to build on the success of CottonLOGIC and develop new decision tools to meet the current and future needs of the industry.