Cawte King Country

Clare Bayly

The range of technology George Cawte incorporated into his new herringbone dairy on the outskirts of Otorohanga positions it as one of the most innovative in the country. But that’s only one accolade; the important one for George is how it has transformed the entire milking experience.

The farm George and his wife Teresa purchased from his parents in 2009 had a 30-aside herringbone built in the 1970s.

“The old shed had served us well, my parents milking in it from the early 1990s when they moved here, but a lot of work was needed to bring it up to current standards,” says George. “That, and the fact that the tanker track went over a river and the tanker loop wasn’t big enough supported the decision to build new.

“We considered a rotary but the cost and maintenance of running the platform didn’t appeal and the fact that I could get all the technology bells and whistles of a rotary, in a herringbone, was the clincher.” George Cawte, Farm owner; Gary Feeney, Waikato Milking System’s regional manager sales and service; Jeremy Collett and Nick Heffer, Qubik.

George Cawte at the entrance to his state-of-theart herringbone. The collection yard can hold 400 cows.

tanker loop wasn’t big enough supported the “We considered a rotary but the cost and maintenance of running the platform didn’t

Fresh location

Building the new 40-aside dairy on a fresh location on the farm meant George and Teresa weren’t pushed to get the facility completed to a specifi c time frame.

“Groundwork for the new dairy started in February 2019 and, at the time, we thought it might have been possible to be in the new dairy for the start of the 2019/2020 season. The reality, however, was that it was a really busy season for building and renovating dairies in this district; our contractors were under pressure and, with the luxury of a still-functioning-shed, we were happy for our contractors to put others before us.”

The fi rst milking of the 320 cow herd in the new dairy took place on October 1, 2019.

“That timing coincided with peak milk, which isn’t an ideal time to introduce cows to a new environment and technology but the fact that the herd adapted smoothly speaks volumes for the design of the new dairy.”

The design of the new dairy and yards was developed by George in concert with Dairy Tech’s Peter Grey.

Dairy Tech is a dairy design and construction company based in Otorohanga, Waikato. The company has been providing quality design solutions and construction integrity for farm dairies since 1985.

reality, however, was that it was a really busy season for building and renovating dairies in this district; our contractors were under pressure and, with the luxury of

Sheds speak

Known to shun the limelight, Dairy Tech principal, Peter Grey, prefers his dairy sheds to speak for him and George says they certainly do that.

The Cawte building combines form and function in a low, streamlined building which houses the dairy’s milk, pump and store rooms, with a spacious light-fi lled milking environment and yards specially designed to optimise the dairy’s technology.

DAIRY TECH

DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND AUTOMATION SYSTEMS Race Wranglers $4,750 + GSTfrom

Pictured: Race Works $6,480 + GST

The low, streamlined dairy was constructed on a fresh site on the farm.

The pit in the light-fi lled dairy is 200mm wider than standard to accommodate the swing arms. The Landmore feed system provides a measured amount of feed to each cow. The Navigate ID system is positioned at the entrance to each row. The Waikato Milking Systems’ Supa 4 Mid-Line System ensures correct alignment of clusters.

“Right from the planning stages we had a clear view of what technology would be included in the new build enabling Dairy Tech to design the dairy and yards to accommodate it.”

The pit is 200mm wider than standard to accompany swing arms and manual exit gates are easily operated. The collection yard can hold 400 cows and the exit yard (leading into the drafter) holds an entire row - 40 cows - meaning that the cows calmly fi le through the drafter and into the race.

Must-haves

The exterior of the dairy is constructed of concrete slabs featuring a rough-cast fi nish which satisfi es two of George’s ‘must-haves’ – low maintenance and high permanence.

The interior of the dairy – walls and pit – feature Acrafl ex fl eck coating applied by Modern Coatings of Waiuku which specialises in the application of dairy and industrial wall coatings. George wanted a wall fi nish which would be attractive, hard wearing, easily maintained and long life and Acrafl ex Dairy Wall Coating meets all those requirements.

When it came to the heart of the dairy – its milking technology – George turned to a company and product he was familiar with and had confi dence in – Waikato Milking Systems installed by Te Awamutu’s Qubik.

Bail ID has been around in rotary dairies for the last fi ve to ten years but the Cawte dairy is the fi rst Waikato Milking Systems’ herringbone in New Zealand with individual Animal ID.

As the cows enter the row, the Waikato Milking Systems Bail Entrance ID identifi es the cow and her position in the row, enabling the Yield Indicator milk volume sensor which, combined with the dairy’s Navigate Dairy Management system, tracks each animal’s milking performance. Time saving

The dairy is equipped with SmartD-TECT (Mastitis detection) and ECR PLUS Swing Arm cup removers for improved cup alignment and reduced labour and milking times.

The exit yard holds one row, enabling the cows to quietly fl ow through the NaviGate Advance Drafting system which combines three-way drafting integrated with herd management. Any husbandry or planning interaction with the animal can be added to the herd’s records so, at a glance, George has oversight of production, calvings, heats, matings, health issues etc.

The dairy is equipped with Qubik Auto Plant Wash and Automatic Vat Wash systems. Milk chilling is provided by a Qubik 30kW Chilled Water System and 25,000L Concrete Tank (for improved insulation) plus a new Vat Refrigeration Unit.

George admits to “watching the drafter like a hawk in the fi rst few weeks of AB last year but it was fantastic, really reliable. I could set up a draft and sort out cows for mating or cull cows and didn’t even have to be at the shed to do it. “The more I used it, the better it was.

Milking Systems

Effluent Management

Refrigeration + Water Reticulation

Milk with confidence

Oubik are proud to have supplied and installed the new milking system, refrigeration and pre-cooling system for George Cawte.

The six million litre effl uent pond.

The Race Works Wrangler ‘does what it says it does’ says George Cawte.

The Landmore ‘Big Dutchman’ grain silos. Interior walls and pit feature Acrafl ex fl eck coating applied by Modern Coatings.

The spacious milk room. The exterior of the dairy features exposed aggregate, ensuring long life and low maintenance.

The Waikato Milking Systems Navigate drafter enables three way drafting.

Cows are fed a customised dry feed blend from GrainCorp Feeds. George says the feed contains a mineral mix which is varied to meet the cows’ nutritional requirements at different times of the year.

Accurate delivery

The grain is delivered to the dairy from a Landmore dairy feed system with two 16 tonne storage silos, 90mm delivery lines and individual dispensers. The system accurately delivers a specifi c amount of feed to each cow.

Pumpn supplied water and effl uent systems for the new dairy. A Grundfos variable speed wash down system ensures constant smooth pressure on demand for all hand-held hose. Washing of the round yard is done with green wash via a custom yard scraper. A second pump cleans the yard with no manual labour, saving fresh water and producing less effl uent.

Effl uent from the dairy is diverted via a twin weeping wall solids bunker with large custom stainless steel Vibe Panels to remove solids and sand. From there it gravity feeds to a six million litre lined pond. The pond is stirred by a Pumpn shore position pond stirrer to desludge and eliminate crust to improve effl uent concentrate.

Paddocks are irrigated by a multi-stage selfprimer pump via fl ow meters and a travelling cannon to achieve 12L per second pump rate and low application.

George Cawte says the Race Works Wrangler is invaluable. “The double belly straps hold and prevent the cow from going down so I can treat any lameness issues. I had one in the old shed and really wouldn’t try to manage without it. Wrangler does the job it’s supposed to do making what can be a diffi cult job, for operator and cow, simple, effective and quick.”

Happy ending

Twelve months on from the fi rst milking, George and his team Hohepa Hemara and Joe Dictaan, are very pleased with the new dairy.

“Teresa and I put a lot of planning into this new dairy. It’s a signifi cant investment and our expectations were very high. I’m pleased to say the dairy has lived up to them.

“The contractors behind the construction and fi t-out of the new dairy were fantastic – all committing to working together and delivering a quality product.

“The farm team – 2IC Hohepa Hemara and assistant Joe Dictaan – found the technology intuitive and easy to use right from the fi rst day. It adds a whole new dynamic to the milking routine making it a pleasure and not a chore. It is taking us just over an hour to milk 320 cows and we’re really enjoying milking.

“The technology I’ve incorporated is another set of eyes and hands which ensures that, no matter who is milking, the herd gets the same level of consistency and accuracy from every animal interaction.

“Any member of the team, if required, can easily operate the dairy on their own – milking, drafting and attending to animal health. It doesn’t get much better than that.”