Precision irrigation builds confidence in water efficiency

By Jesse Sanchez. 

AvidWater’s Saul Medrano explains how data, automation and system understanding can help growers use water more efficiently. 

Smart irrigation technology can provide growers with greater insight into field conditions, but its effectiveness depends on the professionals who design, install and support those systems. As the Irrigation Association highlights the people advancing water efficiency, Saul Medrano, regional sales manager at AvidWater LLC, demonstrates how successful precision irrigation begins with giving growers practical tools they understand and trust. 

Saul has worked in the irrigation industry for seven years. He oversees sales along California’s Central Coast, from Santa Cruz County to Ventura County, as well as the Baja region in Mexico. His introduction to the field began through irrigation courses in the BioResource and Agricultural Engineering (BRAE) program at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. 

After graduating, he joined AvidWater, then known as Irrigation Design and Construction, as an automation technician. That hands-on experience helped establish the focus that continues to shape his career. 

“My career in irrigation has primarily consisted of precision irrigation projects and automation systems. My goal for each of these projects is to provide the grower with a system that they understand and can use as a tool for maximizing their efficiency in beneficial water usage.” 

As drought affects communities and agricultural regions, Saul sees smart irrigation as a way to support both water and energy conservation. Data-driven systems can help growers better understand what is happening in their fields while providing greater control over irrigation decisions. 

However, technology alone does not eliminate every barrier to adoption. When asked what he would change to accelerate the use of smarter irrigation systems, Saul identified one central concern: “Grower confidence in ROI.” 

Building that confidence requires systems that deliver useful information, support efficient operation and remain accessible to the people using them. Through precision irrigation and automation projects, Saul continues working to connect technology with practical water-management goals. 

Learn more about how smart irrigation professionals are advancing water efficiency through precision, automation and grower education!