Lely Center Eglish Vector Open Day

Situated in Richhill, Stuart and Paul Lyness continue to farm the site which Stuart's grandfather bought back in 1971. The farm's focus shifted from a beef and sheep enterprise to dairy in 2017 when they installed a Lely A4 Astronaut. Shortly after, another A4 robot was added to expand the farm further. Fast forward to February 2023, the introduction of the Lely Vector system truly revolutionised their operation. This advanced technology not only transformed their livestock management but also redefined their daily routines for the better.

• 'In winter time we were probably around 3 hours feeding a day, now we are down to around 2 and a half hours a week. We weren't tied to milking because of the robots, but we were tied to feeding. Cows had to be fed for 8 o'clock every morning. Now we sleep in, there's no issue with that'
• 'The cows went up roughly just over a kilo of dry matter intake since the vector was installed... So far we're roughly running 200 kilos a cow less per year. Heifers got a big lift of milk as they were getting 9, 10 feeds a day and they were never getting bullied. We've never had heifers milk as well before. Feeding's every two hours, we've seen a big benefit for the heifers'
• 'Look at it as if you've an extra labour unit coming on to the farm. Not only that, you've got no mishaps of feeding, which in turn is your most expensive part of your running costs. There's no human error'