Milking: automatic systems, plant and new materials

Not only robots. Innovations for the milking parlour cover a multitude of plant parts and components, including materials. As a result there are energy savings, optimized productivity and especially greater welfare of the dairy cattle herd

The milking robot and the Automatic Feeding System (AFS) have undoubtedly become the keystone of innovations over the past few years for livestock raisers in the sector of dairy zootechnics. These installations, however, are not reasonable for all production conditions nor, from the financial point of view, can they be considered the best option. For example, a single robot advised for handling the milking of no more than about 70 cows in stalls of a substantial size requires the installation of more than one unit. Though this is certainly possible, controlling the equipment becomes quite a task. On the other hand, in small stalls it is absolutely necessary to carry on with traditional milking in the parlour.

In any case, technical advances have brought in significant advantages also for classic planning solutions, especially innovations in the applications of which can be generalized for dealing with the management of milking as well as the herd.

 

Vacuum pump with frequency inverter

This principle components of milking plant have been the focus of design in recent years for the purpose of increasing operational efficiency while reducing energy consumption. In very general terms, the job is to control the motor powering the pump to vary the rotation regime in relation to the level of the vacuum actually needed for the various phases of the milking routine.

To achieve this result, the inverter controls the frequency of the alternating current to power the motor to run the pumps at the lowest speed actually required. Other than lowering energy consumption, the collateral benefits are less wear resulting in extending the life of the machine and limiting maintenance intervals along with less noise, which helps ensure the welfare of the animals and, of course, the operator. In detail, the network frequency normally at 50 Hz can be lowered to 40 Hz to bring in energy savings of up to 60%. The main components of the device are a sensor in the vacuum, the CPU required and a display of the operational parameters.  

The frequency interver can be coupled with various types of vacuum pumps, pallet, lobe, liquid ring and the like. Moreover, more than one can be controlled when coupled in parallel or cascaded. Interpuls in Albinea, near Reggio Emilia, manufacturer the iDrive 100, a 380 V interver available for a wide range of power, from 1.5 to 40 Hp, which operates with or without a vacuum regulation valve and is equipped with a sensor capable to detecting minimum fluctuations, as small as only 0.1 kPa, to ensure a quick frequency variation reading and guarantee the stability of the vacuum level even in the case of a simultaneous drop of more than one vacuum tube group. 

On the same issue, DeLaval markets the Vacuum Pump DPVF powered by an electric motor in combined with a 3 phase induction motor and an integrated frequency converter for a pump capacity of 900 to 2,000 l/min.

Pulsators and milk metering per single quarter

Management per single quarter is now the consolidated milking procedure which ensures numerous advantages not only for the productivity of the herd but especially for the state of health of the cattle. In this connection, Milkline in Gariga di Podenzano, near Piacenza, produces the Milking cluster – Milpro Dynamic P4C capable of providing the best management of dairy cattle. The Milpro Dynamic P4C milking unit is equipped with a patented deflector which maintains the milk flows from each single quarter independent while neutralizing flow turbulence from the liners to the claw and simultaneously measuring conductibility via four dedicated sensors. Also in operation is the Servo Pulse P4C, an electronic pulsator with four independent channels which records and manages data for selecting the best milking for each individual quarter. In detail, the microprocessor commands milk flow-controlled pulsation with automatic stimulation function, stops milking per single quarter to drastically reduce the harmful overmilking effect and strongly ensures a mastitis alarm on detecting subclinical gland infection per single quarter to reduce expenses and improve the wellbeing of the herd.

 

Total control

Herd Navigator™ is the name
of an advanced system from DeLaval for controlling the state of production of a herd and the cattle’s’ stage of health through serial analyses of samples of the milk produced. In detail, reproductive condition, the state of udders and the congruence of feed are all monitored. For the first parameter, by measuring progesterone the time when the cow will go into heat can be precisely identified for advising the raiser on the best time for insemination 36 to 48 hours ahead of time, or for early detection of silent heat, pregnancy, abortion, folicurar and luteal cysts and prolonged anoestrus. Moreover, for the state of health of the udders, especially mastitis which influences the quality of the milk, analyses of  L-lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), an enzyme generated ahead of infection, makes subclinical detection for early identification of the problem by up to three or four days ahead of the appearance of clinical symptoms. And finally, the Herd Navigator™ is capable of reporting daily evaluations of the soundness of the feed rations for advice on the feasibility of changing feed through the detection of ketosis by measuring urea levels in the milk, an efficient indicator of the stability of the rumen flora which is especially at risk when the diet of the herd is changed.   

In practice, for consulting the archives kept for each cow, the Head Navigator™ optimizes the task of taking milk samples with installations in each of the milking stations and reporting the analyses fully independently of the raiser. All the raiser has to do is replace the sticks and the reagents  every day or two as needed for the analyses.

Analyses data on each of the samples are sent to the general system which, on the basis of the standard procedure programmed, then reports the probability of success for insemination, the mastitis risk level, ketosis, metabolic syndrome, ovary problems and the like.

All these procedures are obviously personalized in agreement with the raiser, the feed specialist and the veterinarian.  

Rubber or silicon?

The gloves worn by milkers play a predominant role in the transmission of pathogenic microorganisms to the udders. The gloves must be in good condition to reduce risks: a glove with a rough surface or cracks significantly increases the risk of contagion. In fact, gloves coming into contact with detergents, disinfectants, acids, liquid oxygen, heat and light are especially subjected to wear which is shown by microfissures on their surfaces where pathogenic microorganisms are hidden. In fact, the normal work of the milker, opening and closing the glove once per second, greatly speeds up their disintegration. The typical life of normal Nitrile rubber gloves is 2,500 milkings or six months if they are not in use that much. This is the case because added to wear is natural aging. As an alternative, silicon gloves have been on the market for some time. These allow more sensitive work with their remarkable elasticity and are more suitable for milking sheep and goats. Moreover, they feature excellent resistance to milks fats and can be sterilized at high temperatures. On the other hand, these gloves are more susceptible to the risk of cuts resulting from their proximity to components in stainless steel. According to their producers, their life is double that of rubber gloves, up to some 5,000 to 6,000 milkings. Also for these gloves, it is extremely important to clean and maintain them scrupulously.

Optimizing moves in the stalls

Among the various types of milking parlours the most common is still the herringbone  because this system is well suited also for herds which are not especially numerous. The technological evolution of this arrangement over the years concerns the angle between the single milking station and the pit, that is, the position of the cow in relation to the milking cluster. Starting with a 30° angle and attaching the cluster from the side of the animal, the angle has progressively increased to 50, 60 and even 70° which means moving the attachment of the cluster from behind the cow.

In practice, in this method, due to the length of the pit itself, a larger number of milking stations can be created to the advantage of the productivity of milking.

Among other points, the installation of this type of layout can be done without any special work on the walls or need of specific authorization on condition that the entry and exit space for the cows is large enough.