Concept of robotic milking

The milking robot supplies cow-related information unobtainable in a conventional situation, thereby making it possible to manage animals at an individual level in today’s situation. Management by exception is the new challenge. The idea is that management should spend its valuable time concentrating on the cow's requiring attention. Furthermore, the concept of the ‘Licence to produce’ is introduced, focussing on sustainable dairy farming with respect to people, planet and profit. With the milking robot, it is possible to supply an individual cow with her needs for an optimal health, production and well-being, without the extra labour. The basis of successful dairy farming is the healthy and happy individual cow.

Startup procedure

Before the transition from conventional to robotic milking, it is very important to thoroughly consider what this will mean for your farm management. The robot will take a central place in the new situation and management should be adapted to this. 

Preparation

In the preparation phase it is recommended to visit several farms of the same size and with the same type of barn, to get a good picture of the way robotic milking works and what it involves in terms of farm management. The experience of fellow dairy farmers is an important help in introducing the milking robot successfully into the farming processes. A well thought out (written) strategy is essential in the entire preparation phase: it should consist of a housing plan, a detailed plan on daily, weekly and monthly work routines, cow routines, and cow and farmer routings. The entire project should fit into a long-term strategy, so every step should be thoroughly evaluated: where will you treat cows, dry off cows, etc. 

In this phase, we recommend paying attention also to the following aspects: 

• Formulate and write down goals for introducing the robots, and to look back at them in the months after the introduction. 
• Consider the feeding strategy (please refer to Chapter 3). In many cases the crops and pellets need to be prepared to be fed in the robot, especially in places where until now only Total Mixed Ration (TMR) is used. 
• Suitability for cows to be milked in the robot: singeing udders, cutting long hairs from the tail, optimizing claw health etc. 
• Breed cows in such a way that you get less crossed teats or outstanding front teats. 
• Prepare and understand the management program on-time, to prevent stress.

Barn layout

The location of the Astronaut milking robots must be carefully planned for appropriate cow routing in the barn. The robot room must always have a clean entrance. The robots should be clearly visible and easily accessible for all cows. This means plenty of space around the robot and a clear, straight routing to and from the robots. It is important, particularly in a barn with more robots, that incoming and outgoing cows do not cross one another’s path. More information on barn construction can be found in the brochure ‘Barn design for robotic milking’ or by contacting your local Lely Center.

Start up

When starting with robotic milking, it is recommended to start with 50-60 cows per robot and to divide the group into two subgroups. For the first three days, the cows are enticed into the robot three times a day. This should be done in a very calm and patient manner, to prevent the cows from having a negative association with the robot. Within these three days, 75% of the cows will typically go to the robots on their own, after which the routing gates can be removed. Set the cows free (free cow traffic) and collect the cows that have a milking interval of more than 10 hours, four times a day. The number of times the cows are fetched is gradually reduced to twice a day, fetching only the cows with a milking interval of more than 12 hours (or more than 10 kg (22 lbs) of milk). Appendix 1 lists an instruction card, describing the procedure of the first days of the startup. 

This start-up procedure decreases waiting times and assures proper intake of dry matter (DM) and water. Collecting too many cows too soon results in low-ranking cows waiting until they are collected. These cows will consider the robot as a crowded and dangerous place. Hence, they will wait until they are collected by the farmer. This stresses the importance of remaining calm and patient the first weeks and to follow the instructions on collecting cows. 

Lely recommends for the first few days a minimum of two people to be available per robot to guide the cows and to control the X-link. After two or three days, it is sufficient to have one person per robot. 

Organising the time schedule 

The farmer’s daily time schedule changes when the robots are in use on the farm. The farmer no longer needs to milk the cows two or three times per day. This changes the routines that have become fixed in the daily business of farming. The milking robot gives farmers the opportunity to observe the cows in their own environment. Monitoring is simplified and any abnormal behaviour of animals is easily noticed. 

Changes in the time scheduling: 

• Different, flexible working times because fixed milking times are history. 

• More flexible working schedule. 

• Shorter working times thanks to efficient management. 

• Peaks in daily tasks are easily handled due to the freedom gained from milking by the robot. 

• Time gained can be used outside the farm and/or for the management of individual animals.

Free cow traffic 

With free cow traffic, the cows are free to move around the barn, from the feed fence to the robot, the cubicles and water troughs without hindrance from fencing or selection gates. Experiences and observations of many farms all over the world show that free cow traffic is the basis for successful robotic milking. It helps to increase profitability through an optimal production by healthy cows.  

Visit behaviour 

For good visit behaviour of the cows, the robot must be easily accessible. First, this means that there should be sufficient free time on the robot (at least 10%) so a cow can enter the robot whenever she wants. Free time means the time that the robot is freely accessible (the door is open). When there is less free time, especially low-ranking timid animals will not be milked enough, simply because they do not have the opportunity, or they are afraid to do so. Animals that are not milked at least two times/day have an increased risk of udder health problems. 

Secondly, space in front and around the robot is critical to achieve sufficient visits to the robot. This area is the busiest part of the barn, so any obstructions will disrupt cow traffic and reduce visits to the robot. On a farm with 120 cows on two robots with 3 milkings and 1 refusal per day, this means 120x4 = 480 cow passages in front of the robots. For a good accessibility, the robot must be visible and easy to reach from anywhere in the barn.