AUGUST 2018 | Hayley Manning

DORNAUF DAIRIES at Moltema has shown they are not afraid to ‘grab the bull by the horns’ when it comes to adopting cutting edge farm technology.

The third generation farmers installed Australia’s first DeLaval Rotary E100 and Teat Spray Robot (TSR) after extensive research in Germany and New Zealand with their Agri-Tech Consultant, Laurie Hooper. Laurie was involved in the design and set up of the $1.6 million system and will provide on-going support.

The TSR is an external piece of engineering mastery that has the main function of spraying teats using an advanced camera on a robotic arm that locates and sprays each teat - not the legs, tail or udder - with a measured application of disinfectant.

The ‘unobtrusive’ cleaning method reduces waste, minimises infection, improves udder health and features a safety system to prevent harm to the cow and staff.

Nick Dornauf said they decided on a 54 unit rotary dairy for its comfortable size and ease of management for one person from the ‘cockpit’ point of control for the vast majority of the year.

“The ergonomic design of the low profile bale and the functional platform appealed to us,” Nick said.

“The cows have plenty of time to consume grain as they stand on thick rubber matting for comfort and improved hoof care, while water saving jets spray the milking platform before and during milking to ensure a cleaner environment.”

Based on research they placed the tank and chemical room outside, giving the ‘light and airy’ milk shed approximately 4 meters of clear space around the perimeter.

“We built a dairy with good facilities, not just for ourselves and our staff but to attract young, long term workers into the industry.”

Nick thanked Sweden based DeLaval, the Agri-Tech team and local contractors Delquip Industrial Sales, Underlin Electrical, Chris Hughes Plumbing and builder Stephen Holmes.

Photo | Hayley Manning