College opens its hightech dairy

Brinsbury College has opened its new dairy, which will give studentsandthefarmbusiness a state-of-the-art facility.

The dairy, which has taken four months to build, has seen the milking parlour undergo a complete refit, with an array of new technology and equipment.

The parlour uses auto identification and milk yield monitoring, allowing individual cows to be fed and managedcorrectlyduetotheir stage of lactation

The cows have all been fitted with high-tech collars, which provide detailed live informationabouttheirhealth and oestrus

Alex Hollands, farm manager at Brinsbury, said: “We’re over the moon with the new dairy and milking parlour – it has dramatically improved conditions for our cowsandisafantasticworking environment for our students and staff.

“Through careful planning of the project, we were able to build and fit the new equipment over the original parlour.

“This meant we were able to minimise disruption and stress to the cows as there was no need to send them to another farm or milk through a bale.

“It means the dairy is now up-to-date with all of the latest industry standards and technology, ensuring our students are gaining the skills and experience they will need when they leave the college for employment.

“The cows have adapted well to the changes, and milk yieldhasimproved,producing overonemillionlitresperyear.”

Peter Sadler, director of ATL, which was awarded the contract to build the facility, saidthefirmwas‘thrilled’tobe supportingthenextgeneration of dairy farmers in the UK.