Innovations to the fore at Millstreet
Clarke President), Mcsweeney (show (true Flanagan (ihfa Forest North), Friesian Feeney Pat Kiely Ce) Director), (axa), Ursula (axa), Doherty Dairy Diarmuid Club (cork Picture: National (nitrofert), Christy Denis Holstein Laurence Barry Show
A Wi-Fi connected gate operated automatically by a weather station was named overall winner of the Innovation Awards at this year's National Dairy Show.
True North Technologies' system integrates software with a weather station hosted on the farm and connected via the home Wi-Fi. It provides farmers with up-to-date local weather information, which is also available through the E-gate smartphone application. The weather data can trigger an automatic gate-opening event based on specific conditions, such as rain.
The tech was named Engineering category winner, as well as the top prize on the day.
Judges noted the feature would be particularly useful for farmers during spring, allowing them to graze cows overnight with confidence. If it begins to rain, the weather station communicates with the E-gate, opening the gate and activating a sound alert to guide livestock off the paddock, which has the potential to reduce paddock damage and improve grass utilization.
Moonsyst's calf rumen eBolus topped both the Technology and Sustainability categories.
A spokesperson for Moonsyst said: "Monitoring the health of young stock is difficult and time-consuming. There is a general lack of awareness of clinical disease cases in calves. Prolonged illnesses in heifer calves, such as Respiratory, will become more evident in first lactating cows, resulting in a below-average milk yield, with published studies suggesting a revenue loss of over €1,400/animal."
The calf bolus sensor is capable of monitoring temperature and activity and will alert for metabolic health conditions. The bolus is designed to last two years, and therefore can also be utilised for the first breeding season, through heat detection, heifer health and calving.
Biocel was announced as the winner of the Science category for its innovation in teatcare technology based on the scientificially-proven properties of naturally occurring citrus-based Polyphenols in conjunction with Glycolic Acid.
It claims its product NUVOSAN – TeatGard can aid the prevention of mastitis bacteria and teat skin condition in dairy cows.
Autocoupler won Best Start-up for its automatic hydraulic coupling system for tractors, loaders, shovels, and teleporters. It automatically connects the hydraulic system once an implement is picked up all at the touch of a button within four seconds.
Judges noted there was an impressive time-saving and safety advantage in using the Autocoupler, as the operator does not have to leave the cab to hook up the hydraulic lines to an implement when the implement is hooked up to the front of a loader. There is also no loss of oil by having to relieve oil pressure on an implement as the auto coupler connects under residual pressure.
