The Challenge:

Outdated Shed Overwhelms Labour

This was an older herringbone milking shed which required two or more people to operate at any time. This more traditional milking system was labour intensive and prone to over milking.

The Morrison Agri Solutions:

Morrison Agri Modernises Herringbone

Morrison Agri set about finding ways to incorporate new in-line milking technologies within the older herringbone shed. To make the adaptation successful they:

Installed Waikato brand ‘S’ electronic cup removers throughout which are an easy to use and dependable in-line system with features and functions which reduce labour.
Installed the Autostart feature which allows the milker to simply lift the claw and then apply the cups. In a normal milking situation with autostart, there are no buttons to push or flick. The manual switch is still fitted to the droppers to allow for the manual milking option (red cows, kicking cows, colostrum cows) and wash mode.
Due to the age of the shed, no consideration was given during its build for future automation to be installed. This created limitations as to how the equipment could be installed. Due to the lower roof height, the main cup remover ram arms were installed successfully on an angle so they could work effectively.

The Outcomes:

Increased Efficiency, Reduced Overmilking

The shed requires less labour to oversee and the staff can concentrate on cupping the opposite row as the cup removers finish on the other side. The automated tech system improved efficiencies and allows for additional work to be completed elsewhere on the farm. The farm staff has already noticed an improvement in teat condition with no over milking no occurring.

Although initially hesitant to trust the tech-driven automation, the owners soon

adapted and were thrilled with the improvements it made to the overall shed and farm operation.