Monitoring parlor performance

Sometimes, a simple tweak in the parlor can make a big difference in performance. Curtis Horsens knows this to be true from personal experience operating a high-producing herd in northeastern Wisconsin.

In a webinar Dec. 4 entitled, “Leveraging Milk Monitoring and Parlor Performance Information to Boost Employee Compliance,” Horsens shared tips for evaluating parlor performance via reports generated by a milk monitoring system.

Horsens is the North American senior training and development specialist for Merck Animal Health’s SenseHub Dairy portfolio and has experience managing high-producing herds.

An adjustment was needed in the parlor at the farm Horsens was managing when it became evident some of their first-lactation cows did not enjoy being milked.

“There were a lot of cow-assisted takeoffs and a lot of dancing and flinching,” Horsens said.

Their veterinarian evaluated the problem and made two small, low-cost recommendations: use a different inflation and slightly reduce the system vacuum.

“Within weeks or months, all fresh heifers that calved in had a much more pleasant milking experience, which made the workers’ days easier,” Horsens said.

Establishing trustworthy identification and reliable milk weights through a milk monitoring solution is the first step in improving parlor performance, Horsens said. From there, information produced by the system in customizable graphs and reports can be used to make decisions for improving a dairy’s efficiency.

Horsens began by touching on key performance indicators, such as milk per stall per hour.

“For many years, 150 pounds per stall was the target,” he said. “Today, we see farms approaching 200 pounds per stall per hour.”

To achieve that number, excellent preparation, which includes good tactile stimulation of each teat, is critical. Proper timing of unit attachment is also important.

“Waiting 60-90 seconds after good stimulation gives the pituitary gland time to release oxytocin and make its way to the udder … to get that milk secreted,” Horsens said. “Then we can have that good letdown and minimal unit on-time.”

Milk flow rate during the first 15 seconds should be greater than 2.2 pounds. At 30 seconds, flow rate should be 5 pounds or more, and at 60 seconds, 7 pounds or higher is desired.

“Some farms might be closer to 3.8 or 4.2 at 30 seconds, but as long as you don’t have bi-modal letdowns, it’s not the worst of things to come up short,” Horsens said. “But, we do see a lot of farms hitting these targets.”

The percent of milk produced in the first two minutes should be 55% or more.

“That’s a good indication of employee routine, milkability of cows and their experience and comfort level in the parlor,” Horsens said.

Time in low flow, defined as less than 2 pounds per minute, should be less than 20 seconds per shift or less than 60 seconds per day, Horsens said. The peak milk flow rate should be greater than 8 pounds per minute.

“We’re going to see farms that blow this out of the water, but this is a good number to start setting your sights on,” he said.

The frequency of reattachments should be under 2%, and the frequency of manual mode should be less than 2%. Horsens said a distrust of the automatic takeoff is likely the motivation for an employee putting a cow in manual mode.

“They think cows aren’t completely milked out and don’t understand that a little residual milk is OK and actually a good thing by design,” he said.

A poor preparation routine could also be to blame, which leads to bi-modal letdowns where milk is coming out of the teat cistern but not yet out of the udder.

“Teaching and training workers and setting standards that are measurable and insightful is a great way to understand trends on your dairy and start moving things in the right direction,” Horsens said.

Reattachments can be caused by a bad pulsator or a split liner that results in a quarter or two not being milked out correctly. Furthermore, debris such as a rag in the vacuum line can create lower claw vacuum on end stalls.

“Reattachments are an important metric to understand if it’s happening at a particular stall or for particular shifts of workers,” Horsens said.

When evaluating metrics and making changes to improve efficiency, the number of kickoffs is a good metric to analyze, Horsens said. Adjusting the system vacuum or changing inflation might be the answer to creating a more positive milking experience for cows.

In an evaluation of flow rates over time of attachment, Horsens shared examples of a farm doing particularly well and a farm with room for improvement. The farm doing well reached peak milk by one minute and 20 seconds.

“There is no hint of bi-modal letdowns,” Horsens said. “They’re doing an excellent job with preparation. The people, machines and environment are working together to create a good milking experience for these cattle.”

The second farm exhibited bi-modal letdown. Cows were getting milked out in the first 15-30 seconds, but then a high proportion of cows did not reach peak milk flow until about 2.5 minutes after attachment.

“That bumps out average unit on-time and probably reduces milk production overall,” Horsens said. “We can zero in and find out if this is happening on a particular milking shift or happening across the board.”

Flow rate at removal is another area Horsens focused on. A high flow rate indicates premature takeoffs, and in one example, 616 out of 5,303 or 12% of cows had removal with a flow rate greater than 3 pounds per minute. To be more efficient in a rotary parlor in this situation Horsens said cows could be grouped by milking speed to align takeoff more appropriately.

“Some groups will have average on-time of 3.5 minutes, while the two slower groups will be on 5.5 minutes,” he said. “You can spin the rotary at a different rate for those two slow groups and maximize efficiency.”

In a second example, 36 out of 2,087 or 1.7% of cows had removal with a flow rate greater than 3 pounds per minute. He said anything under 5% is considered acceptable.

Information garnered from the milk monitoring system can help farm managers and owners view employee performance in measurable and objective ways. Horsens recommends creating a fun competition among shifts to improve milking performance by picking a few easy-to-understand key performance indicators to focus on. Examples include percent of milk in the first two minutes, bi-modal letdowns, seconds of on-time and low flow.

“Teach and train your farm staff on a few metrics, quietly post those in the break room or parlor at the end of each shift and highlight what they should look at on that report,” Horsens said. “See if some friendly competition can enhance the output of your particular shifts. It’s a lot better than griping and saying, ‘We have to do better.’”

Horsens recommends setting aside a routine time each week to evaluate parlor performance metrics.

“This allows you to reinforce successes and provide actionable improvements for the weak spots,” he said. “Once you have this information, you have a benchmark you can start to improve upon.”