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Robotic milkers tend the cows

By Joseph Szadkowski
August 16, 2007

Technology usually makes a person's life easier, but at Hope Acres farm in Brogue, Pa., bovines benefit from computers and lasers.

A third-generation dairy farm, the 1,600-acre facility owned by the Heindel family has invested in robotic milking stations that give the cows in the herd of more than 200 control over their milking schedule.

Hope Acres conducts 75-minute tours of the facility. Guide Kelly Fisanich-Waby pulled up a milking stool between sessions to discuss the magic behind robotic milking.

Why does each animal wear a necklace or collar? Each animal has a collar, and it is an individualized radio frequency for that cow, and the computer picks up that information.

Basic information — number, name, date of birth and when she milks; it keeps track of her data down to amount of milk, bacteria count, how much each quarter of her udder is giving, total number of lactation dates. Pretty much everything we need.

How does the farm balance the cost of the $165,000 robotic milkers? I would definitely say it must work its way out because we have been successful. We have two robotic milkers that we just upgraded in February, and we have purchased a third. The herd is getting bigger, and we get almost three milkings per day. In the big picture, it is a more economical way of farming.

In addition, we only need two full-time, 24/7 farmers for the entire herd. If we were to have hands milking the cows, it would take four to six persons working full time, and we would not be able to get the same volume of milk.

The cows are very good at waiting their turn. How are they trained to enter the milkers? We have a two-week training program where the cow gets her collar and works with the farmer. The farmer will, twice a day for two weeks, physically walk the new cow to the milker, through the one-way gate, and she waits in line for her turn.

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