Technology and farming have collided at Dornauf Dairy, with the Elizabeth Town-based dairy operation transforming its business with the help of eight milking robots.
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The well-known dairy has transitioned its Gala Farm to the latest generation of voluntary miking technology and has installed eight DeLaval VMS V300 milking robots to assist with production.
Farm owners Nick and Rebekah Dornauf said the robots are well suited to their pasture-based system, and fit with their on-going commitment to adopt proven technology that will help ensure the future health of the Australian dairy industry.
"We've been robotic farming for the best part of ten years now and we've been impressed with the significant recent advances in robotic technology, so this is the next step forward for us," Mr Dornauf said.
In other news:
Gala Farm has a herd of 600 cows grazing on pasture year-round.
The farm relies on voluntary cow movement from grazing paddocks into the dairy, where cows are milked according to individual schedules.
"The V300 robots are really well suited to pasture-based dairy farming with high levels of grazed pasture as part of the diet," Mr Dornauf said.
"It's obvious they've been designed with cow comfort in mind and it's been amazing to watch how readily our cows have adapted."
Gala Farm herd calves seasonally, meaning up to 25 new cows and heifers need to be trained into the milking robots each day post-calving.
It's a job that workers at Gala Farm can now do remotely thanks to Insight Vision system for highly accurate cup attachment.
"Introducing fresh cows to the robot can be easily done by someone with an iPhone managing five or so cows at a time.
Robotic milking isn't a ticket to dairy utopia, but it gives you an amazing tool to change how you operate as a dairy farmer.
- Nick Dornauf
"Robotic milking isn't a ticket to dairy utopia, but it gives you an amazing tool to change how you operate as a dairy farmer," Mr Dornauf said.
Farm manager Rebekah Dornauf said the impact over time of a voluntary milking system on cow health is measurable.
"We can compare our cows that live on the robot farm to our conventional farm, and I have an older average herd age on the robotic system," she said.
"We've got some 11-year-old cows here that have been robot cows for most of their milking life so it definitely increases their life span, with how relaxed they are, how happy they are," she said.
The Dornaufs are no stranger to robotic milking, with the pair first establishing robots on their farm in 2011.
Gala Farm is one of five owned by the family and is based in the Meander Valley at Elizabeth Town.
