Agricultural Engineering Division (AED)

The Bureau of Plant Industry since 1932 had been applying engineering concepts in crop production and advocated farm mechanization aimed at expanding production areas. The recognition of the importance of agricultural engineering research and development was officially formalized in the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) in 1957 with the establishment of the Farm Operations Division which later in 1972, became the Agricultural Engineering Division. Through the years, BPI had undergone various organizational changes to adapt to the needs of the times and along with these reorganizations, the mandate of the Agricultural Engineering Division changed:

  • 1957 Reorganization Plan No. 30-A
 Mandate – Plan and Program Research on Utilization and Assignment of Farm Machinery, Introduce Effective Crop Practices, and Provide Assistance in Efficient  Management of the Bureau farms
  • 1972 Integrated Reorganizational Plan, Reorganization of the Executive Board of the National Government (Chapter III)
  Mandate – Research and Development on Irrigation and Drainage, Simple and Low-cost Farm Implements  and Machinery, Post-production Techniques and Harnessing Possible Energy Sources in the Farm
  •  1987 (E.O. 116 Reorganization of 1987)
Mandate – Development and Improvement of Farm Equipment and Other Related Structures to the Plant Industry and with the Bureau of Plant Industry shift from a line bureau to a staff  bureau and the establishments of additional agencies within DA whose functions also is in the field of agricultural engineering like PhilMech, AMTEC and BioMech as well as commodity focus agencies like SRA, PCA and PhilRice among others, the AED’s mandate today is to:
  • 2013 (Rationalization Program of 2013)
 Mandate – Conduct Agricultural Engineering Research and Services in Support to the Bureau of Plant  Industry’s primary mandate – Protection of the Plant Industry (plant quarantine, and crop protection); Seed System (availability of quality seed and planting materials and crop research) and Food Safety

-Determining the mechanization and infrastructure needs of the Bureau’s research and development centers and offices.
-Designing and developing mechanization plans and machinery to meet the identified needs and the possibility of operating the machinery using alternative sources of energy.

Today, in close cooperation with the Crop Research, Development and Production Support Division, specifically in Mushroom Industry Development Program, the AED is working on the engineering side of the program both in infrastructure (mushroom house and Greenhouse) and machinery (pasteurizer) design and development. Further, the division assists interested parties through provision of these designs should they wish to fabricate or put-up themselves.

Further at present, BPI has no extension mandate since this is specific to ATI, and the AED mandate is focused on Research and Development in support of BPI’s primary mandate. Given the established legacy of the BPI when it is still a line bureau and the strategic advantage of BPI Central Office located in Manila, the AED still offers technical assistance to those who inquires at the office either as walk-in or through correspondence (letter, e-mails, and forwarded mails).

AED Technical Assistance are the following:

1. Answers and suggest simple engineering solutions for simple specific farm problems (farm plans/layouts, irrigation solutions, mechanization solutions).

2. Provide links to agencies that are more adept to answer the inquiry.

3. Provide links with cooperators (fabricators and suppliers of equipment or agricultural supplies and infra structures e.g. protective structure (greenhouses, pressurized irrigation supplies like pumps, pipes, emit ters, others).

4. Provide working drawings for AED develop equipment that are no longer produced by our cooperators and unavailable in the market.