ITS Campus, ITS News — Ishmatu Aulia Rizky Kirana , a student from the Department of Instrumentation Engineering at the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) , successfully won third place in the National Outstanding Student Selection (Pilmapres) at the Diploma level on Saturday (August 10th). He achieved this achievement after promoting the AutoDry Boost innovation, which provides an answer to a major challenge faced by tobacco farmers.
For your information, tobacco farmers in Sumberagung Village, Tuban, still rely on conventional drying methods that rely heavily on sunlight ( sun & curing ). To overcome this, the student, familiarly known as Aulia, was motivated to create an Autonomous Drying Acceleration System for Post-Harvest Processing, accompanied by Ir. Safira Firdaus Mujiyanti, ST, MT, as her supervisor.
Aulia explained that conventional weather-dependent drying methods tend to take around 6-12 days. This dependence on weather conditions leads to variability in tobacco quality and economic losses of up to 30 percent. “In fact, tobacco production in Indonesia is relatively high, reaching 238,800 tons in 2023, according to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS),” explained the Blitar native.
Aulia explained that AutoDry Boost utilizes hot air drying technology equipped with an integrated automatic control system. Aulia explained that the dryer is equipped with a blower heater to distribute hot air evenly. It also features a control panel and three exhaust fans.
In the process, fresh tobacco leaves are placed on trays with a total capacity of 100 kilograms in the drying chamber. The RTD PT-100 sensor monitors temperature stability within the optimum range of 69–71°C through a direct on-off control mechanism. “This tool integrates a load cell sensor to measure mass reduction in order to estimate the reduction in water content until it reaches optimal conditions,” explained the Outstanding Student (Mawapres) of the ITS Vocational Faculty.
This innovation offers various technical and economic advantages. Aulia explained that using AutoDry Boost can drastically reduce drying time to 2 to 3 hours per 100 kilograms. As an all-weather tool, the system is designed to be space-saving, affordable, and easy for farmers to operate.
Technically and economically, this tool can reduce operational costs by 54.8 percent. Furthermore, it can reduce rotting waste at each harvest by approximately 30 percent. Finally, Aulia’s innovation can increase total production capacity from 1.5 tons to 4 tons per season. “This impact is also expected to increase farmers’ net income and increase dried tobacco sales capacity,” said the 2025 ITS Ambassador finalist.
However, several obstacles remain, such as farmers’ limited adaptation to modern technology, initial investment capital, and dependence on fossil fuels. Therefore, Aulia offers solutions in the form of regular training and technical assistance on equipment operation.
In addition, a collaborative financing scheme with the village government was proposed. The East Java Mawapres representative at the Diploma level also planned to develop innovations toward the use of environmentally friendly energy sources. Aulia also helped develop a phased development roadmap.
In 2026, the focus will be on replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy and adding load cell sensors to each tray. Then, in 2027, the target will shift to adjusting water quality standards for other agricultural commodities. Finally, in 2028, the project aims for structured replication to expand its positive impact to other post-harvest centers.
Overall, AutoDry Boost has proven effective in improving post-harvest tobacco quality, supporting the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG point 8 on Decent Work and Economic Growth, and point 12 on Responsible Consumption and Production. (ITS Public Relations)
Reporter: Syifa Rahmadina