Robotic Milking??

Farfield

These new robotic milkers are going in all around me at present- all different makes and trying to graze as well- all seem pretty pleased with them once all settled down and cows learned pretty quick. Do many on here have them or are seriously considering one for say 70 cows??

exercise is the antidote

New robotic milking machine? Is there a new version out?..

MickeyShtyles

Theres a new one being developed for release in about 5~Years time.
It's being based on the NZ versions of a rotary machine afaik

Farfield

Maybe not new but loads of different makes, gea, boumatic, lely, de Laval etc.

darragh_haven

MickeyShtyles wrote: »

Theres a new one being developed for release in about 5~Years time.
It's being based on the NZ versions of a rotary machine afaik

When I was chatting to a guy in GEA last week he reckoned the robotic rotary wpuld be on commercial release in 2 years

mahoney_j

Within 3,years,insider info

Farfield

Yes but with rotary robotic the cows are still herded in and you have to be there at set times.

darragh_haven

Farfield wrote: »

Yes but with rotary robotic the cows are still herded in and you have to be there at set times.

Quo
A better option for a grazing system in my opinion. And what I would go for if I was going back to dairying

jaymla627

Farfield wrote: »

Yes but with rotary robotic the cows are still herded in and you have to be there at set times.

If your putting 300 plus cows through it your going to have to be around anyways, essentially it would replace the milker, that being said having milked in alot of different rotarys i have yet to see one our do a milking in one where a cow doesnt do something stupid like wrap the acr around herself our get stuck in her bail, along with the fact a backing gate would have to be used at all times which could in itself lead to lameness issues

Timmaay

Once the rotary robot can do everything a normal robot can do, like know which cows are which, separate milk to be held, feed to yield and all that, then the person doing the herding only needs to be a basic labourer, you don't need a trained milker. If you wanted the weekends off during the summer you could probably pay a neighbour or someone to herd the cows in.
Hmmm I'd say you could go as far as use a batt-latch with trained cows, and have them come up themselves to be milked, the machine would start itself and all that once the cows are up, have a 2nd paddock for them to go to after the milking! It would allow you to escape for say one full milking!

sheebadog

Timmaay wrote: »

Once the rotary robot can do everything a normal robot can do, like know which cows are which, separate milk to be held, feed to yield and all that, then the person doing the herding only needs to be a basic labourer, you don't need a trained milker. If you wanted the weekends off during the summer you could probably pay a neighbour or someone to herd the cows in.
Hmmm I'd say you could go as far as use a batt-latch with trained cows, and have them come up themselves to be milked, the machine would start itself and all that once the cows are up, have a 2nd paddock for them to go to after the milking! It would allow you to escape for say one full milking!

Dream on!

exercise is the antidote

Just looking at a lely video on YouTube. They Never mentioned anything about training in heifers though .. Or is there away around this?

Viewtodiefor

Timmaay wrote: »

Once the rotary robot can do everything a normal robot can do, like know which cows are which, separate milk to be held, feed to yield and all that, then the person doing the herding only needs to be a basic labourer, you don't need a trained milker. If you wanted the weekends off during the summer you could probably pay a neighbour or someone to herd the cows in.
Hmmm I'd say you could go as far as use a batt-latch with trained cows, and have them come up themselves to be milked, the machine would start itself and all that once the cows are up, have a 2nd paddock for them to go to after the milking! It would allow you to escape for say one full milking!

Tim I have a good dog who would help you with the Herding :-)

Hang on if the cows were used to a dog I'm sure you could engineer a mini dog who could travel around the paddocks etc and bark at the right time etc to gather them up! Surely worth ten grand a pop???

Greengrass1

exercise is the antidote wrote: »

Just looking at a lely video on YouTube. They Never mentioned anything about training in heifers though .. Or is there away around this?

You can ask my neighbour about this. One heifrmer broke the arm in bits.

exercise is the antidote

Greengrass1 wrote: »

You can ask my neighbour about this. One heifrmer broke the arm in bits.

ShiiiiT! Was thinking they be dangerous....Did the damage cost much to fix do you know??

Greengrass1

exercise is the antidote wrote: »

ShiiiiT! Was thinking they be dangerous....Did the damage cost much to fix do you know??

Not sure never asked but I'd say to repair the arms ain't cheap

Farfield

Neighbours of mine say training heifers is easy, but they use the pacifier probe which seem to work well for a few milkings

jaymla627

exercise is the antidote wrote: »

Just looking at a lely video on YouTube. They Never mentioned anything about training in heifers though .. Or is there away around this?

Did they mention anything about 3 spinners, our is it a case of just culling them/selling on

Base price

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

Tim I have a good dog who would help you with the Herding :-)

Farfield wrote: »

Neighbours of mine say training heifers is easy, but they use the pacifier probe which seem to work well for a few milkings

Maybe a robotic dog would come in useful

I thought that pacifier probes and such like are illegal in Ireland.

Farmer Pudsey

Base price wrote: »

Maybe a robotic dog would come in useful

I thought that pacifier probes and such like are illegal in Ireland.

I taught so too.

Not so sure about this robotic milker it is 60K I think for a single one. One based on a rotary parlour will be fairly expensive. It will not be a cheap option to escape a few milkings.

st1979

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

I taught so too.

Not so sure about this robotic milker it is 60K I think for a single one. One based on a rotary parlour will be fairly expensive. It will not be a cheap option to escape a few milkings.

Where do you get a new robot for 60k. I taught a lely was 120-140 for first one and 100 for second roughly. Never priced one but they are the figures i remember hearing

awaywithyou

st1979 wrote: »

Where do you get a new robot for 60k. I taught a lely was 120-140 for first one and 100 for second roughly. Never priced one but they are the figures i remember hearing

2 delaval robots went in near me before Xmas.... Working very well... Cows yields went up... Some cows coming to be milked 4 times a day..... A 3rd robot was installed last week.....

RightTurnClyde

st1979 wrote: »

Where do you get a new robot for 60k. I taught a lely was 120-140 for first one and 100 for second roughly. Never priced one but they are the figures i remember hearing

It's about 70-80 for a single, 120-140 for a pair.

Farmer Pudsey

RightTurnClyde wrote: »

It's about 70-80 for a single, 120-140 for a pair.

Had my figure slightly wrong, however if it 70K+ for a single one based on a rotart concept will cost big bucks. I imagine that these would be only for large herds 200+. It might be just as efficent to hire in labour to milk.

RobertKK

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

Tim I have a good dog who would help you with the Herding :-)

Hang on if the cows were used to a dog I'm sure you could engineer a mini dog who could travel around the paddocks etc and bark at the right time etc to gather them up! Surely worth ten grand a pop???

You could get a Google robotic dog whenever (if) released...

RightTurnClyde

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

Had my figure slightly wrong, however if it 70K+ for a single one based on a rotart concept will cost big bucks. I imagine that these would be only for large herds 200+. It might be just as efficent to hire in labour to milk.

Oh I agree. Add 200k for a rotary on to 60 or 70 for a robot, plus the big building to put it all in, there wouldn't be much change out of 300k. Can't see too many going into the typical Irish dairy farm.
I can't see the advantage of the rotary robot. You're still going to have to drive in the cows twice a day and you're back to being tided to the Parlour at milking times.

exercise is the antidote

awaywithyou wrote: »

2 delaval robots went in near me before Xmas.... Working very well... Cows yields went up... Some cows coming to be milked 4 times a day..... A 3rd robot was installed last week.....

Must be working well for him/her. How many cows is he/she working? I thought once cows got there daily meal allowance the robots would just let them back out.... If cow was coming in 4 times/day would that mean 4meal feeds?

exercise is the antidote

jaymla627 wrote: »

Did they mention anything about 3 spinners, our is it a case of just culling them/selling on

Never mentioned that either jaymla I'd say it just works away on the 3teats though...

Viewtodiefor

RobertKK wrote: »

You could get a Google robotic dog whenever (if) released...

That's the job!

Timmaay

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

That's the job!

Can it outrun the bull?

Farfield

I have seen them working and yes they will milk 3 spinners no bother at all.
Is that man with the one unit robot in grazing as well??

paudy67

maybe i am a luddiet and i could be easyly be proved wrong but i cant see how a robot would work well on a maxuim grazing systum

frazzledhome

RightTurnClyde wrote: »

Oh I agree. Add 200k for a rotary on to 60 or 70 for a robot, plus the big building to put it all in, there wouldn't be much change out of 300k. Can't see too many going into the typical Irish dairy farm.
I can't see the advantage of the rotary robot. You're still going to have to drive in the cows twice a day and you're back to being tided to the Parlour at milking times.

I agree 300k for a parlour for 300 cows is expensive. I know of many parlours costing 120k for 80-100 cows.

Don't underestimate the determination of a dairy farmer to waste money on gadgets that a salesman tells him will put more milk in the tank or improve his lifestyle.

yellow50HX

paudy67 wrote: »

maybe i am a luddiet and i could be easyly be proved wrong but i cant see how a robot would work well on a maxuim grazing systum

Have looked into the possibility of getting one. TBH if I was to get back into milking it would make the most sense for me as I work full time off the farm. I would not have the time to milk morning and evening as well as the job plus manage the farm. If I was to employ a milker I would need to over the wages 1st before I could think of a pay off.

Going down the road of a robot would only make sense for farmers that ware prepared to use the info that can be got from the system. A lower cost/lower output or more basic system would not be suitable really. To get the most put of the robot you need to be able use it to the max and that's not just cow throughput but actually using the info it can gather to improve your herd.

As for the grazing systems you would need to have excellant grassland management to make the 12hr rotation work but that is something that is needed anyway for top class dairying. So you will need excellant paddocks and infrastructure to make that work. For many farms that use the robot the "trick" to get the cows in is feeding ration to them while these 12 hr grazing use the promise of new grass to intice the cows to the parlour. I'm not sure this is ideal as it relies on have paddocks that only last a few hours while this is ok in dry weather I would say the possibility of poaching would be an issue when the weather turns as you would have a lot of cows ina small area.

The robot system is not for everyone but I think they do have place in the irish system. If you are dairy farming full time then I think the convential herring bone would make more sense, but for partime of mixed farming systems they could be a better option.

I reckon I could carry 60-65 cows here at home which would be then min to justify a robot. I would most likely have to contract rear heifers and sell the calves young to avoid have to rent extra land. Rather then use the 12 hour grazing I would actually take the water troughs out of the fields and put them into the shed, that way the cows would have to come through the parlour to get water.

Milked out

frazzledhome wrote: »

I agree 300k for a parlour for 300 cows is expensive. I know of many parlours costing 120k for 80-100 cows.

Don't underestimate the determination of a dairy farmer to waste money on gadgets that a salesman tells him will put more milk in the tank or improve his lifestyle.

I'd agree that some can go over the top however each situation has to be taken into account as well, If someone is milking 300cows the likelyhood is that there will be staff there anyway so spending big money on a parlour may be false economy when the labour is there to milk thru whatever parlour is in place. on the otherhand when you are a one man show a decent parlour can improve things greatly in terms of efficiency,etc. At the moment I'm spending 5-6 hours a day milking 13 rows of cows, if I had the opportunity to put up a new parlour I would put in as much as I could afford to make it as fast and effective a unit as one man can handle, The 2/3 hours a day saved would mean cows grazing for longer and me using my time a hell of a lot better. Currently working on plans other than a parlour but if they don't come to fruition a decent parlour will be the next plan so i can be ready for any other opportunity that arises

Milked out

yellow50HX wrote: »

Have looked into the possibility of getting one. TBH if I was to get back into milking it would make the most sense for me as I work full time off the farm. I would not have the time to milk morning and evening as well as the job plus manage the farm. If I was to employ a milker I would need to over the wages 1st before I could think of a pay off.

Going down the road of a robot would only make sense for farmers that ware prepared to use the info that can be got from the system. A lower cost/lower output or more basic system would not be suitable really. To get the most put of the robot you need to be able use it to the max and that's not just cow throughput but actually using the info it can gather to improve your herd.

As for the grazing systems you would need to have excellant grassland management to make the 12hr rotation work but that is something that is needed anyway for top class dairying. So you will need excellant paddocks and infrastructure to make that work. For many farms that use the robot the "trick" to get the cows in is feeding ration to them while these 12 hr grazing use the promise of new grass to intice the cows to the parlour. I'm not sure this is ideal as it relies on have paddocks that only last a few hours while this is ok in dry weather I would say the possibility of poaching would be an issue when the weather turns as you would have a lot of cows ina small area.

The robot system is not for everyone but I think they do have place in the irish system. If you are dairy farming full time then I think the convential herring bone would make more sense, but for partime of mixed farming systems they could be a better option.

I reckon I could carry 60-65 cows here at home which would be then min to justify a robot. I would most likely have to contract rear heifers and sell the calves young to avoid have to rent extra land. Rather then use the 12 hour grazing I would actually take the water troughs out of the fields and put them into the shed, that way the cows would have to come through the parlour to get water.

I've seen that some have put water acess in the shed, wouldn't be too keen on that, you'd be surprised at how not having sufficent water acess in the paddocks can hit yields

yellow50HX

Milked out wrote: »

I've seen that some have put water acess in the shed, wouldn't be too keen on that, you'd be surprised at how not having sufficent water acess in the paddocks can hit yields

Yeah your right but with the smaller number of cows and the land close to the yard they wouldn't need to come that far. Yard is fairly central so distance should be an issue. Wouldn't work with a bigger herd and longer walk.

This kinda caught my eye.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PoWpxWBlMpg&list=PL6075ADD863A6EC82

mahoney_j

frazzledhome wrote: »

I agree 300k for a parlour for 300 cows is expensive. I know of many parlours costing 120k for 80-100 cows.

Don't underestimate the determination of a dairy farmer to waste money on gadgets that a salesman tells him will put more milk in the tank or improve his lifestyle.

Do you really think a grand a cow is expensive for a 300 cow herd to put in a robotic rotary.i know a guy who put a 60 point rotary in with a lot of technology for 500 k.just cause a guy spends a lot of money on a parlour with so called gadgets which can get more volume and solids from his cows dosnt make him/her bonkers .speaking as someone with limited land base post quotas and with a bells and whistles parlour I need to maximise every hectare on my milk block and get every litre and kg of milk solids from my cows without working crazy long hours.i have to say it was one of my best investments so far and I love going to milk in it every day seeing cows content and milking to their potential.

Viewtodiefor

mahoney_j wrote: »

Do you really think a grand a cow is expensive for a 300 cow herd to put in a robotic rotary.i know a guy who put a 60 point rotary in with a lot of technology for 500 k.just cause a guy spends a lot of money on a parlour with so called gadgets which can get more volume and solids from his cows dosnt make him/her bonkers .speaking as someone with limited land base post quotas and with a bells and whistles parlour I need to maximise every hectare on my milk block and get every litre and kg of milk solids from my cows without working crazy long hours.i have to say it was one of my best investments so far and I love going to milk in it every day seeing cows content and milking to their potential.

Oh Jesus here we go!

mahoney_j

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

Oh Jesus here we go!

Just got fookin soaked out lookin at heifers,not tryin to start a war just making a point.id love to be milking a few hindered cows on a few hundered acres but I have what I have and land around me is unlikely to come up,any that dose in my area is making up to 350 an acre ,madness

Viewtodiefor

mahoney_j wrote: »

Just got fookin soaked out lookin at heifers,not tryin to start a war just making a point.id love to be milking a few hindered cows on a few hundered acres but I have what I have and land around me is unlikely to come up,any that dose in my area is making up to 350 an acre ,madness

Have a vasectimised lad running with them only check them in the morning at 9 to see has he painted any! Working well so far!
Sorry about the soaking! I was more aiming my comment at frazzle than you mahony! I like gadgets too!

Viewtodiefor

mahoney_j wrote: »

Just got fookin soaked out lookin at heifers,not tryin to start a war just making a point.id love to be milking a few hindered cows on a few hundered acres but I have what I have and land around me is unlikely to come up,any that dose in my area is making up to 350 an acre ,madness

Ps I think he's jealous he hasn't got one yet!

Greengrass1

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

Have a vasectimised lad running with them only check them in the morning at 9 to see has he painted any! Working well so far!
Sorry about the soaking! I was more aiming my comment at frazzle than you mahony! I like gadgets too!

My feckin tractor has as much gadgets as Mahoney's parlour I'd say. I'm going basic with mine when its put in and then in a few years I'll either go to 20 if more land comes up or put acrs on the 12.

mahoney_j

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

Have a vasectimised lad running with them only check them in the morning at 9 to see has he painted any! Working well so far!
Sorry about the soaking! I was more aiming my comment at frazzle than you mahony! I like gadgets too!

No bother chief,not trying to be a wise ass either frazz if your lurking around!!

frazzledhome

mahoney_j wrote: »

Just got fookin soaked out lookin at heifers,not tryin to start a war just making a point.id love to be milking a few hindered cows on a few hundered acres but I have what I have and land around me is unlikely to come up,any that dose in my area is making up to 350 an acre ,madness

Mahoney, just because gadgets get mentioned doesn't mean it's aimed at you. You clearly make really good use of yours.

So many out these is at a large cost and do not use to full potential. Only recently a poster here who was only recently championing a heat detection system was offering it for sale!!!

I had a guy meet me last week to discuss his plans for dairy start up. One of his biggest concerns was if he'd put in ACRs or not.

A 16 unit parlour with batch feeding and good drafting is sufficient for most of the herds in the country. The best gadget they could invest in would be a pen and paper to monitor grass, heats and finance

Viewtodiefor

Greengrass1 wrote: »

My feckin tractor has as much gadgets as Mahoney's parlour I'd say. I'm going basic with mine when its put in and then in a few years I'll either go to 20 if more land comes up or put acrs on the 12.

Imagine how much more time you could spen in that new tractor if ya had a few extra gadgets in the parlour gg!

Viewtodiefor

frazzledhome wrote: »

Mahoney, just because gadgets get mentioned doesn't mean it's aimed at you. You clearly make really good use of yours.

So many out these is at a large cost and do not use to full potential. Only recently a poster here who was only recently championing a heat detection system was offering it for sale!!!

I had a guy meet me last week to discuss his plans for dairy start up. One of his biggest concerns was if he'd put in ACRs or not.

A 16 unit parlour with batch feeding and good drafting is sufficient for most of the herds in the country. The best gadget they could invest in would be a pen and paper to monitor grass, heats and finance

Frazz your points are so eloquently put they would make sense to a child!

frazzledhome

Greengrass1 wrote: »

My feckin tractor has as much gadgets as Mahoney's parlour I'd say. I'm going basic with mine when its put in and then in a few years I'll either go to 20 if more land comes up or put acrs on the 12.

20 if more land comes or ACRs on the 12 you have? Have you completely lost it? You'd add 8 to your 12 got the price of the ACRs. You can add ACRs later

Greengrass1

Viewtodiefor wrote: »

Imagine how much more time you could spen in that new tractor if ya had a few extra gadgets in the parlour gg!

Ah feck it though ye get pissed off repairing tractors so I hope to be seen right for next ten yrs. Even though its on a lease and I can change it next year if I ewant. On my block at the minute I'd hold 140 cows at 3.4. But I need land eslwere for silage so might never happen. 12 units will be fine for 90-100 cows

mahoney_j

frazzledhome wrote: »

Mahoney, just because gadgets get mentioned doesn't mean it's aimed at you. You clearly make really good use of yours.

So many out these is at a large cost and do not use to full potential. Only recently a poster here who was only recently championing a heat detection system was offering it for sale!!!

I had a guy meet me last week to discuss his plans for dairy start up. One of his biggest concerns was if he'd put in ACRs or not.

A 16 unit parlour with batch feeding and good drafting is sufficient for most of the herds in the country. The best gadget they could invest in would be a pen and paper to monitor grass, heats and finance

Yeadh id agree with that ,didn't take that personalky or anything , thick skinned me I am !!!

Greengrass1

frazzledhome wrote: »

20 if more land comes or ACRs on the 12 you have? Have you completely lost it? You'd add 8 to your 12 got the price of the ACRs. You can add ACRs later

I only have 6 I'm saying I'll put in a basic 12 and then 10 yr down the line when I've my yard in order and land I'll either put on acrs on the 12 or bring it to 20 and leave it basic depending on what numbers I'm milking