DLM proves to be dynamite  

Located in the heart of Ayrshire, Scotland - The Hodge family manage a herd of 280 Holstein cows on a 430-acre farm, 180 of which is rented. Alistair and Sandra, along with their three children, Sarah (22), Emily (19) and Craig (16) own West Scoutts Farm.

In 1996, the husband-wife duo moved into West Scoutts, twenty-six years on, the business is going from strength to strength with the added assistance of dairy automation.

In 2001, the Hodge Family began to milk cows at West Scoutts, prior to this it was solely a youngstock rearing unit. Initially, milking was undertaken through a conventional parlour but with numbers of cows increasing and staff reliability decreasing, something had to change.

This was time for the door to open and dairy automation installed at West Scoutts Farm. After around 4 months of research and a visit to Holland with Lely Center Kilmarnock, it was decided that Lely was the brand to be purchased.  In 2011, two Lely A4 robotic milking systems were installed along with a Lely Discovery. With the conventional parlour still in use alongside the robots, 100 hi-yielders were being milked through the robots and 100 low-yielders through the parlour.

Alongside the A4’s, the Lely Discovery was installed and is still going strong at West Scoutts. It ensures the barn passages are scraped 24/7 and leaves them clean for the cows, reducing lameness and udder health issues with the bedding being cleaner. The Hodge family added, “It is a piece of equipment we wouldn’t like to be without, saves so much time on labour”.

Seven years later, in 2018, Alistair & Sandra were faced with a tough decision. Staff cover was becoming more difficult, and their children were still young, with Craig only being 13 at this stage. With the parlour and the robots still working side by side, they were also having to swap cows every fortnight, which again was time consuming. They were faced with the challenge of invest further into dairy automation for the future of their family, scale right back or give up?

However, in true Hodge style, they didn’t give up. They invested for the future and installed 4 of the A5 Lely Robotic Milking Systems, replacing the two A4’s that they had. At this stage they were the first customer in Scotland to install the A5 model through Lely Center Kilmarnock. Sandra added, “We have noticed a quieter & quicker attachment with the A5 model, which is extremely beneficial with newly calved heifers”. In addition, they installed a second Lely Discovery to their setup.

Since moving to dairy automation, Alistair and Sandra have noticed significant changes in their herd. Their averages have gone from 28/30 litre in parlour to 38 litre average on the robots. They added; We have better herd management with the robots although we don’t use it to the full potential as we use RMS with Genus”. “However, the management system is quicker at noticing health issues such as mastitis”.

The Hodge Family also installed the DLM, ‘Dynamic Linear Feeding’ programme onto their T4C management system back in April 2021. This was a first mover farm trial for them, and they haven’t looked back. The only increase in the diet is the kgs of silage fed, the TMR amounts similar to previous. From March 2021, we have calculated a saving £123 per day, £3715 per month, which, if continues for a full 12-month period, the Hodge family will be saving of concentrate in the robots of £44,000 per year. In addition to this, fourteen additional cows being milked and the feed in the robot is still less, but the milk output has increased.

In an industry in which feed, fertiliser and fuel costs are rising quicker than the milk price, it is essential more than ever to be producing cost efficient milk. “This is where the DLM really comes into play”, added Sandra.

Since making the move and using the DLM, the Hodge family have noticed that their herd fertility is slightly better, this may be linked to better ventilation in the shed after the new install of fans in the shed. Overall, they feel the cow health has significantly improved.

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At West Scoutts, they will shortly be moving to the Horizon software and very much looking forward to this after seeing the training. With Craig now on-board full time on the farm, he will be taking a more active role on over-seeing the cows and managing the Horizon software from his phone.

Since installing Lely robots, the Hodge Family have been able to manage their time on the farm easier. They can spend time on jobs for longer without having to hurry to finish for milking time.

They added; “We are able to spend more time with the cows, improving the health and breeding decisions”. In the summer the family can be off farm more, during busier times such as silage and being able to share machinery.

Alistair and Sandra would have no hesitation in recommending Lely for dairy automation requirements, they are really pleased with the first-class service they receive from Lely Center Kilmarnock and it gives them a positive vibe for the future. Sandra added; ‘Dairy automation is the future for dairy farming, especially with staffing issues increasing and being able to find reliable staff’.