Farmer Stories

Robert Patton

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Inside a state-of-the-art £1m Lely robotic dairy set-up

X2 Lely A5 Astronauts

X1 Lely Vector

X1 Lely Discovery Collector C2

X1 Lely Cosmix out-of-parlour feeder.

“I went to Germany to look at other brands on different farms, but nothing stood out more than Lely. It is a leader in robotics, and they are constantly developing new technology.”

Robert Patton, Old Mill Dairies, Ballycarry, Co Antrim.

Fact file:

  • Farming 210 acres
  • Milking 114 Holsteins
  • Aiming for all-year-round calving (current autumn bias)
  • On target to produce 10,500kg at 4.45% butterfat and 3.56% protein from 3.1 milkings
  • Supplying Aurivo.

Benefits:

+ Greater flexibility

+ Faster detection of disease

+ Improved cow welfare.

County Antrim businessman Robert Patton invested £1m in a state-of-the-art dairy unit when he converted from beef to dairy. He says the move was ‘purely financially driven’ and saw him disperse his 80 head of Beef Shorthorns in favour of dairy in the hope of improving the farm’s profitability. Mr Patton, an ex-amateur jump jockey who established a successful online equestrian retail business, Old Mill Saddlery, spent a great deal of time researching robotic equipment before settling on Lely. He reflects: “We have nine robots in our warehouse to sort and pack orders, and because of this, robots didn’t scare us, and we saw the potential for them on the farm.

“I went to Germany to look at other brands on different farms, but nothing stood out more than Lely. It is a leader in robotics, and they are constantly developing new technology.”

Building design

Robert also spent many hours designing the shed layout with the support of project coordinator Josh Black from Lely Center Eglish.  The shed, which was completed in April, spans 44m by 30m and climbs 16ft to the eaves. It contains three rows of back-to-back cubicles totalling 126 cubicles and mattresses topped with sawdust. Robert opted for Heatguard transparent roof sheets from Greenhill Systems. These let in natural light, and their polycarbonate material limits heat build-up. The shed is fully automated. Cows are milked through two Lely A5 Astronaut robots and are fed using Lely’s Vector automated feeding system with a Lely Discovery Collector C2 used to keep the floor clean.

Milking

The robots are situated head-to-head, and cows have free access to both. Animals can be automatically drafted to a separation area that contains self-locking yokes for sick cows or those in heat.  A whole herd was purchased from a nearby farmer who was exiting the industry. Since they started milking inside the new shed earlier this year, cows are averaging 35.5kg at 4.45% butterfat and 3.56% protein from 3.1 milkings daily. The herdsperson, Chelsea Sloan, says the start-up was more straightforward than she thought it would be.

“I used to work at the farm where the cows originated, and they were milked twice daily through a parlour. We expected it to be much harder for the cows to transition to the robots, but after the first week, we didn’t have to fetch many cows,” she reflects.

The robotic technology has made Chelsea’s working day much more flexible. At her previous employment, she worked 5am until 7pm, but now, she typically starts work at 6.30am, finishes at 11am and returns to the farm at 3pm until 6pm. For Robert, the farm now fits around running the saddlery and spending time with his wife, Kerrie, and their sons, Thomas, 17, and William, 2.  Thomas is hands-on with both enterprises and has been impressed at the amount of data available using Lely’s Horizon app.

“The biggest learning curve since starting the dairy has been cow health. Milking cows are more sensitive than beef animals, but we are getting a lot of data which allows us to intervene early.

“The app is intuitive and hasn’t taken long to learn.” He adds: “The support and backup from Lely Eglish have been very good. Any time you need assistance, they are on the other end of the phone, and the remote access via Team View is great.”

Feeding

The Lely Vector Mixing Feeding Robot (MFR) is a firm favourite on the farm. It feeds milkers and dry cows ‘little and often’ between 11-12 times daily. Feeding accuracy, measured by the feed requested versus what is loaded, is hitting 96%, and waste is minimal.

“There’s never any cows balling or rushing to the feed fence. It works away, and it saves so much time. Before, I would spend two hours putting out silage each day. Now, I spend 20 minutes filling the feed kitchen every other day and the cows are constantly getting fresh feed,” comments Chelsea. Robert reckons the Vector will have paid for itself within five years. Cows are currently on track to produce 841kg of milk solids annually (10,500 litres), but the team at Old Mill Dairies is excited to see what the future holds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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