Firm cracks the market with rubber rumps

A Hamilton start-up is finding a ready market for its Kiwi made silicon valleys.

The company’s anatomically correct cow and pig mannequins are now being artificially inseminated around the world.

The success has surprised designer Mike Williams, who had no experience with farm animals before building his first cow five years ago.

Holsim moulds the detailed rumps, reproductive organs and other appendages out of silicon in a central Hamilton office building.

The body parts are attached to a fibreglass half of an animal, along with hardware to simulate bodily functions.

The final product is heat controlled for realism, has muscles which contract and can fart out clear, odourless poo.

‘‘If the trainer thinks you’re taking too long, he pushes the fart button.

‘‘We went to a perfumist and said, ‘Can you make us a cow sh** smell?’ But that was considered just a little too much realism.’’

Silicon calves, complete with aluminium bones, are made for birthing cow mannequins. Dogs are made for practising blood tests and X-rays using augmented reality.

Williams began making cow mannequins for Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC) five years ago, which now exports a container-load of the fake animals every six to eight weeks.

The mannequins boost a trainee’s confidence, and reduce the risk of harming an animal.

After the first produced cows were delivered to LIC, a 60 to 65 per cent training success rate jumped to 85 to 90 per cent.

‘‘Veterinarians and technicians need to practise and get the technique down before you get to the live animal.

‘‘It’s becoming less acceptable to use live animals to train on … we’re not replacing nature, we’re enabling people to train.’’

The mannequins have since entirely replaced training with live animals in Poland and Ukraine, Williams said.

Holsim is one of nine New Zealand start-ups in the Sprout Agritech Accelerator, which Williams says will help attract investment for the 30-odd projects they are developing.

‘‘There’s so much to do. All the horse, equine stuff. We want to be able to do caesareans on cows.’’

PHOTOS: MARK TAYLOR/STUFF Holsim director Mike Williams began producing cow mannequins for Livestock Improvement Corporation five years ago and has been producing the fibreglass and silicon animals for countries as far away as Poland and Ukraine.

The mannequins are temperature controlled, have contractable muscles and can fart out simulated poo.

Pictured is the rear of a pig mannequin, with organs attached.