Executive summary¶
Hub: Planning framework
What this is¶
A wiki-native, phased business plan for an East Tennessee two-site operation: ~5 acres = home + control center (smart house, workshop/lab, telemetry spine); ~120 acres = primary production, ~35 minutes away. Objective order: profit → low labor → resilience. Horizon: 10 years from side income toward possible salary replacement—not guaranteed.
Operational honesty: A filled wiki is not an operating farm. Telemetry does not automatically reduce labor—it may reduce trips while triage and upkeep consume hours (Instrumentation ROI, Automation stop rules). Phase 2 still means large, hard-to-reverse bets if G1 evidence is wrong—not a “modest next step.”
Doctrine binding (2026-04): County/site intelligence, off-grid/WAN-optional rules, sensor architecture, platform backup/DR, and observability trust bar are now explicitly wired into chapter pages—see Business plan integration revision audit (2026-04).
Strategic choice (strategy family)¶
Phased mixed enterprise with grazing-led beef as primary 120-acre engine, optional lease/contract stabilizers, and deferred high-labor or long-payback enterprises until validated. Rationale and branching logic: Recommended enterprise strategy. Full scenario matrix: Enterprise options analysis.
Operating model (one paragraph)¶
Batch field work at 120 around a weekly rhythm; use homestead for planning, records, broker, spares, and development. Telemetry targets water, power, and gates first to reduce panic trips—not cameras everywhere on day one.
Phases (snapshot)¶
| Phase | Essence |
|---|---|
| 0 | No-regret groundwork, stop rules, access clarity |
| 1 | Land intelligence, market probe, pilot sensor |
| 2 | First real grazing business + records |
| 3 | Scale or second stream under labor cap |
| 4 | Salary-replacement architecture if metrics hold |
Detail: 10-year roadmap.
Economics (qualitative)¶
- Short-term: supplemental income (lease, small sales ) while off-farm cash dominates.
- Long-term: operating margin + disciplined scale toward household cash target (fill number in revenue page ).
Top risks (see full register)¶
- Price / weather margin squeeze
- Debt vs thin margin
- Labor surge without coverage
- Telemetry false confidence / alert fatigue
- Liability / zoning surprises
What must be true before heavy CAPEX¶
G1 gate: land + water + legal use clarified; no full herd before validation backlog minimums.
Production posture: For irreversible Phase 2 CAPEX, also satisfy the EG production composite in Execution gates — Phase 0–1 (East Tennessee two-site) (or written waive per validation backlog note)—not checklist theater alone.
Document map¶
| Topic | Page |
|---|---|
| Vision, objectives, stop rules | Vision |
| Two-site model + control center | Two-site operating context (ET); ops model 5 ac / 120 ac |
| Strategy family + rationale | Recommended enterprise strategy — phased East Tennessee path |
| Smart tech + automation discipline | Smart technology and telemetry strategy — control center on 5 acres |
| Labor + weekly rhythm | Labor model and weekly operating rhythm |
| Capital + infrastructure sequence | Capital plan and infrastructure sequencing |
| Revenue + milestones | Revenue model and milestones |
| Risks | Risk register and mitigation strategy |
| 10-year phases | Roadmap |
| Validation tasks | Validation backlog and decision gates |
| Phase 0–1 execution gates (pilot vs production) | Execution gates — Phase 0–1 (East Tennessee two-site) |
Operational artifacts (fillable; execution layer)¶
| Artifact | Page |
|---|---|
| Two-site ops — 5 ac home / 120 ac production | Two-site operating model — 5-acre home base and 120-acre farm |
| Family labor + coverage matrix | Family labor and coverage matrix |
| Instrumentation priority matrix | Instrumentation priority matrix |
| Capital phasing 0–10 years | Capital phasing table |
| Revenue milestone ladder | Revenue milestone model |
| Business risk register (review matrix) | Business risk register — two-site smart farm |
| Manual fallback + degraded modes | Manual fallback — critical operations |
| Validation before major spend | Validation backlog — before major spend |
Known facts¶
| ID | Fact |
|---|---|
| K1 | Structure and intent as stated in hub |
Assumptions¶
| ID | Assumption |
|---|---|
| A1 | Readers will fill numeric targets locally |
Open questions¶
| ID | Question |
|---|---|
| Q1 | Household salary replacement $ ? |
| Q2 | Go / no-go date for Phase 2 ? |