Maassluis, 17 October 2012 – It was a great birthday party for the Lely Astronaut milking robot. The Worldwide Lely Open Farm Days held on August 31 - September 2 to celebrate 20 years of robotic milking were a resounding success. The results of this Lely jubilee event were overwhelming: more than 40,000 people visited 116 participating dairy farms in 24 countries.

Many customers played an active part throughout the preparations for the event, helping Lely to mark this milestone with a unique celebration. A contest was held to encourage customer participation. To compete, many farmers sent pictures, films, press articles, advertisements and other promotional materials to Lely, giving an impression of their results. The farmer who made the most of this celebration, Peter Dahl from Denmark, was rewarded with a family weekend trip to Disneyland in Paris. Lely Center w Wȩgrowie in Poland gave the best support to its customers and received a cheque for 2,500 euros to organise a party for its employees.

Long-standing appreciation
In 1992, Lely launched a trailblazing novelty in the dairy farming business: the Lely Astronaut milking robot. Dairy farmers around the world have acknowledged this as the most important invention of the twentieth century in their business. Since then, more than 15,000 Lely Astronaut milking robots have been sold.

During the Open Farm Days, dairy farmers in many countries opened their doors to share their long-standing appreciation of the milking robot with potential users. The visitors discussed the benefits of robotic milking with their colleagues and how working with the robot has changed their lives and the life of the cow. ‘A blessing for many cows and a high milk production as our reward,’ and ‘the best investment in years’, were among the quotes noted at the event.

Many dairy farmers not only highlighted their milking robots, they also took the opportunity to recommend other Lely products such as the Lely Juno automated feed pusher, the Lely Discovery mobile barn cleaner and the Lely Vector automated feeding system. In cooperation with Lely dealers, forage harvesting machines were also on display at this event.

About the Lely Group
Lely, founded in 1948, directs all its efforts towards creating a sustainable, profitable and enjoyable future in farming for its customers. Lely is the only company worldwide to supply the agricultural sector with a complete portfolio of products and services ranging from forage harvesting to automated feeding systems, barn cleaners and milking robots. Lely is also working on business concepts to ensure energy-neutral operations in the dairy sector. Since many years, Lely is the undisputed market leader in the sales and service of automated milking systems. The company has a strong position in forage harvesting products and with over 60 years acquired knowledge in the agricultural cycle Lely has an unrivalled position. The Lely Group is active in more than 60 countries and employs some 1,700 people. The annual turnover is around 500 million euros. More information: www.lely.com.

Editorial note
A selection of promotional materials has been published on the special 20YRS website. Please visit www.lely.com and click on the 20YRS action button to get an impression of how dairy farmers worldwide joined Lely in putting the Astronaut milking robot in its well-deserved spotlight.

For further information, please contact Els Versluis, Director Marketing and Communications Lely Group, eversluis@lely.com, + 31 (0)10 59 96 500.