GEA Robots

[Howbadcanitget??]

We’ve been milking with the mione robot for 6 years now and it’s been a gradual disaster,especially from the last 2 years onwards.
Reliability being the biggest issue with an engineer being on farm upto 6 times a month.Although this is what GEA say is acceptable number of callouts a month for 4 boxes.
Milk yields have gradually fallen away.We are currently 8% lower yield/cow then when we started.
Cows not being milked out completely and units coming off randomly during the milking process have caused this milk drop.
The latest problem is milk somehow getting back into the robots water heaters causing the milk to curdle and turn into a cheese like substance,therefore jetters keep getting blocked up and the unit is unable to rinse the units between milkings and the 2 main washes/day are not possible either.
Overall a total disaster and I wished I never set eyes on these rather hopeless robots as in my option are not fit for purpose.

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

We’ve been milking with the mione robot for 6 years now and it’s been a gradual disaster,especially from the last 2 years onwards.
Reliability being the biggest issue with an engineer being on farm upto 6 times a month.Although this is what GEA say is acceptable number of callouts a month for 4 boxes.
Milk yields have gradually fallen away.We are currently 8% lower yield/cow then when we started.
Cows not being milked out completely and units coming off randomly during the milking process have caused this milk drop.
The latest problem is milk somehow getting back into the robots water heaters causing the milk to curdle and turn into a cheese like substance,therefore jetters keep getting blocked up and the unit is unable to rinse the units between milkings and the 2 main washes/day are not possible either.
Overall a total disaster and I wished I never set eyes on these rather hopeless robots as in my option are not fit for purpose.

 

[Will Blackburn]

Presumably after 6 years they've paid for themselves, so move on?

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

Finish paying for them in 8 months by which time we hope to take these robots out and replace with a rotary parlour

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

Presumably after 6 years they've paid for themselves, so move on?

Nowhere near paid for themselves,loss of production etc

 

[coomoo]

Finish paying for them in 8 months by which time we hope to take these robots out and replace with a rotary parlour

Nowhere near paid for themselves,loss of production etc

Confused??

 

[Milkcow365]

Confused??

The farm has subsided this disaster is what he means

 

[coomoo]

The farm has subsided this disaster is what he means

I know but rip out 4 robots and stick a rotary set up in? Be an interesting budget.

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

It’s install a rotary or get out completely,that’s my 2 options
Financially challenging yes

 

[DairyGrazing]

Confused??

Meaning that he will own them outright in eight months as apposed to having them has saved/earned the purchase price back?

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

Owned outright yes

 

[coomoo]

Was discussing robots last week and again gea came up and got a terrible summing up. Gea should be ashamed. Anyway as a positive you say yields dropped 8% so as litres where are you at it’ll mean you’ve some scope to increase production just through a parlour.

 

[Billydooker]

Change to lelys?

 

[mf7480]

Where abouts in the country are you? I'm sure I've heard a group of farmers in the south are putting a court case together against GEA for these. Disaster all round.

 

[Will Blackburn]

Finish paying for them in 8 months by which time we hope to take these robots out and replace with a rotary parlour

If they are financed then doesn't that open up the possibility of rejecting the goods as not fit for purpose?

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

We went into robots with an 9500 average,we are currently running at 8600
I do expect an increase if we went back to a parlour
Also these robots have no second hand value either.
That takes some stomaching

 

[pappuller]

Finish paying for them in 8 months by which time we hope to take these robots out and replace with a rotary parlour

What value would you consider that they will be worth ? Would gea do you a good px deal on them for a rotary ?

 

[Stinker]

Will loss of production, repairs etc be costing you more than outlaying several hundred thousand on a new rotary at least in the short and medium term. What about replacing the robots with some cheap second hand Lely ones. There were some going spare

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

Change to lelys?

I’ve no interest in putting Lelys in
Although they are far better,the cost of robotic milking generally is way too expensive

 

[Howbadcanitget??]

Where abouts in the country are you? I'm sure I've heard a group of farmers in the south are putting a court case together against GEA for these. Disaster all round.

I’m from Devon