The Thomas Family On Their Robotic Milking Journey

For Alun Thomas and family, the decision to invest in robotic milking was driven by a desire to create a more sustainable future for both the farm and his family. Alun joined us on a Lely Holland Journey two years ago, and his parents, Dylan and Rhian joined us on the Lely Journey last year, the experience gave them the confidence to embrace automation and showed them what was possible when technology is integrated effectively into a dairy business.

Learning from Holland

“The Holland trip taught me a huge amount,” explains Alun. “What really stood out was seeing farmers who were working off-farm jobs while still successfully milking cows. It proved to me that automation can make that possible.”

Beyond the technology itself, Alun was impressed by the welfare standards he witnessed. “The environment for the cows was noticeably calmer and more comfortable than on many farms in the UK. It was great to see how robotic milking could contribute to a more relaxed atmosphere for both cows and farmers.”

As the owner of Clean Flock, a mobile sheep dipping business, flexibility is essential. Robotic milking has opened up opportunities to better balance both enterprises.

“Being able to complete the cow jobs in the morning and then go off to work is a massive advantage,” he says. “My dad is 62 and starting to slow down a little, so having robots means he can still play an important role on the farm without the pressure of having to milk twice a day.”

A Smooth Project from Start to Finish

Throughout the project, Alun worked closely with the Lely Center Midlands & Wales team and speaks highly of the support he received.

“Matt and Alistair have been brilliant,” he says. “Matt produced excellent drawings and gave us everything we needed to make sure the build went smoothly. Alistair’s knowledge is invaluable. He has a huge amount of experience, understands how to make installations work efficiently, and has been flexible throughout the entire process. Whenever we needed him, he was there.”

Advice for Farmers Considering Robots

Having been through the process himself, Alun has a few key pieces of advice for anyone considering robotic milking.

First and foremost, he recommends building a strong relationship with the service team from the very beginning.

“Speak with your local service technicians. Rhodri, Tom and Ifanwy have been fantastic. Being able to draw on their experience early on helped build trust and gave us confidence throughout the project.”

He also highlights the value of learning from other farmers.

“We’ve spoken to a lot of farmers from the very start of our project. It’s been invaluable to hear from people who are already making automation work on their farms and to learn from their experiences.”

And if there's one thing Alun would encourage every prospective robot farmer to do, it's joining a Holland Journey.

“Go to Holland. The trip is fantastically organised, and spending time with like-minded farmers is a brilliant experience. Seeing robotic milking in action on working farms gives you a real understanding of what’s possible.”

His final piece of advice is to keep things simple.

“Don’t overcomplicate your project if you don’t need to. We’ve been able to make the robots work within the footprint we wanted and within the budget wanted to spend. One of the great things about the Lely Center Midlands & Wales team is their experience. They’ve retrofitted so many robots that they’ll find a way to make the system work around your farm and your requirements.”

 The transition stage from adapting to a new system from the old has been quite smoothly with also the help of our local contractors with their experience and ideas who have done a wonderful job.  

Why Lely?

When it came to choosing a robotic milking system, Alun carried out extensive research before making his decision.

“We chose Lely because the dealership is local to us and we’d consistently heard positive reviews about both the products and the support.”

After comparing the options available on the market, Lely stood out for its simplicity and automation capabilities.

“I looked closely at both DeLaval and Lely. My conclusion was that Lely was further ahead in terms of automation. The installation process was also much simpler. With a Lely robot, you essentially need water and electricity, whereas other systems require additional infrastructure such as vacuum lines. That simplicity made a big difference to us.”

For Alun, robotic milking is not just about technology; it’s about creating a farming system that works for the family, supports cow welfare, and provides greater flexibility for the future. With the right team behind the project and a clear vision from the outset, the transition to automation has delivered exactly that.