Decisions, decisions, decisions… Somewhere in Ireland right now there is a farmer with a very important decision to make; Which milking parlour do I invest in for the next 20 plus years? Which parlour will make the most financial sense by reducing labour, increasing efficiency and provide the necessary backup and support needed?
Increasing Herd Size
As herds are increasing in size the need for efficiency in milking has grown ever more important. Dairymaster Swiftflo Revolver Rotary Parlours milk more cows, in less time, with less labour by getting the basics right.
From A Farmer’s Viewpoint
An ever-increasing number of farmers are turning to Dairymaster, the market leader in Ireland and the UK, for their rotary parlour solutions.
Pat and David Trant, Rook Farm Dairy, in Co. Kerry, installed their 60-point Dairymaster Swiftflo Revolver Rotary milking parlour in June this year. Why did they decide to go with a Dairymaster rotary milking parlour? David explained:
“Milking was torture before. The way I used to describe it to people – if I asked you to drive from Kerry to Dublin every morning, do a full day’s work and travel back down again every day, seven days a week – how long could you do that for?” “No one could maintain that and that is how we felt about milking, so something had to change. In the old parlour we were milking 4.5-5 hours morning and evening; that’s up in 10 hours milking alone, not to mind all the other jobs that needed to be done. Now we can be milked in two hours each milking; that’s four hours a day – there is no comparison.” “We now have the extra hours to work on other farm jobs or we can spend time with our families.”
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What Type Of Parlour Is The Most Efficient?
Does parlour type make a difference to business performance? A DairyCo report published in the UK revealed that choosing a rotary parlour as opposed to automatic milking systems (AMS) can have as much as 7.8c/L difference. Take a farm with a herd of 200 cows with an average yield of 6,000L – this can make a difference of €93,600 in margin alone.
Unbelievable Throughput
The Dairymaster Swiftflo Revolver Rotary milking parlour gives the farmer unrivaled throughput. David commented: “The cow flow is something else. In the first week or so, if Pat was milking, I would stand back and watch the cows and there is constantly one exiting – the throughput is unreal. You would actually have to see it to believe it.” Overall, you are increasing output while reducing labour which in the long run makes farming a lot more profitable.
Automation You Can Rely On
For farmers who want to go the automation route, Dairymaster’s intelligent technology boosts efficiency by controlling all functions from milking to feeding to drafting and even seamlessly integrates with its health and fertility monitoring system – MooMonitor+. Pat said: “It’s the technology that sets Dairymaster apart from the others. The total package from the way you have so much information at hand with the Commanders, through to the diversion line, the retention and motivator and then to the drafting – it all ties in so well together that it makes it very comfortable for both the cow and the person milking.”
“We also invested in the MooMonitor+; the health side of these is brilliant. Everything comes up on our phones. There are so many animals there now, it’s hard to see and check all of them every day. This will send a message to my phone if there is something wrong with one of them, allowing us to individually monitor each animal in the 550 herd,” David commented.
Built To Last
“The finish with the stainless steel and the build quality is top class,” said Pat. The entire range of Dairymaster rotary parlours are of a very sound structure with strength where it matters, meaning it is built to last and this is evident when you look at rotary parlours installed by Dairymaster. For example, Tom and Simon Browne, Greenhills dairy, installed the first generation Dairymaster Swiftflo Revolver 19 years ago and it is currently milking over 1,000 cows a day.
Advice
Dairymaster asked the Trants ‘if they were to offer advice to others contemplating a rotary, what are the most important things to think about?’
“There are two pieces of advice we would give to anyone thinking of putting in a rotary. The first is to be sure to milk a few times in several different types of rotary parlours. We took the time to visit and milk in a good few different parlour makes. We milked in parlours of all makes and this made our decision easy in the end.”
The second piece of advice is with an investment like this, “you get one shot at doing it, so be sure to do it right. One might pull back €10,000-15,000 on something but in the grand scheme of things, this isn’t an awful lot if it meant getting something to 100%.”
From the first contact with Dairymaster you will receive expert advice and parlour plans. The company is world renowned for its incredibly efficient installation. Its experienced and dynamic team are on hand to provide advice and guidance where needed. Many farmers have commented that choosing Dairymaster gives them peace of mind due to the top-class support and service.
With the overwhelming benefits of a Dairymaster rotary parlour, it’s easy to see why it’s such an attractive way of milking for not only this generation but also the next generation of young farmers, securing your future investment to producing milk efficiently.
For further information on the Dairymaster rotary, check out: https://www.dairymaster.com/ie/products/milking/cow-rotary/
Test Drive A Rotary
If you want to take the Dairymaster rotary for a spin, call Mary today on: 087-9328832 to arrange a milking demo.
