Mid-Ulster Dairy Services provides a complete service to dairy farmers across Northern Ireland – including refurbishment, servicing / maintenance and installation of market-leading dairy farming equipment. We travelled to their base in Cookstown, County Tyrone to find out more about the range of products and services from company founder William Talbot.
Mid-Ulster Dairy Services is an independent supplier and installer of new Fullwood and Westfalia dairy farming equipment. As well as supplying and maintaining milking equipment, they also offer farmers ongoing back-up support, including servicing, upgrading or expansion of existing milking parlours and the provision of hygiene supplies (floor mats, meal augers, acids and alkalis, cleaners, teat dips, disinfectants etc.).
The team can install both brand-new systems and second-hand / refurbished units, including herd management software and peripheral equipment (such as the Fullwood Slurry Scraper automated cleaning system, M-brush and portable milkers).
Each individual farmer’s requirements are considered before installation. Depending on throughput required and optimal milking times of cattle, Mid-Ulster Dairy Services can install a system to maximise efficiency, from the parallel milking index 90 to rotating parlours.
Reflecting on the genesis of the business, William Talbot notes: “I started up on my own at the end of 2001, having worked in dairy equipment all my life. I worked for Fullwood and a few other companies, so I have been working with milking machines in one capacity or another since the late 1980s.”
In ’01, William started Mid-Ulster Dairy Services. It was a modest operation at the time and he has built it up over the years.
As well as the aforementioned Fullwood and Westfalia agencies, Mid-Ulster Dairy Services also holds the agency for Gascoigne milking parlours and equipment. “I worked for Fullwood as a rep so that one is historic in a way, while Gascoigne and Westfalia both approached me and I was happy to take on those agencies. With Gascoigne, we do repairs and maintenance and second-hand machines, while we supply new Fullwood and Westfalia machines. Fullwood and Westfalia are at the top end of the market – extremely reliable and well-built machines.”
No job is ever considered too big or too small. Mid-Ulster Dairy Services has extensive expertise in installing rotary milking parlours and rapid exits, with the ability to install, upgrade and repair even the most advanced systems.
For example, the MIone automatic milking system from Westfalia offers greater reliability, comfort and performance and is an excellent solution for delivering cost-effective expansion possibilities, excellent milk hygiene and quality, the best possible udder health and exceptional farm management capabilities in conjunction with maximum working comfort and system performance.
“It’s a multi-box system, where you can have up to five robots, with one robotic arm, and it’s more economical for larger herds. It favours the guided system, where cows have to go through to get to the feeding area,” says William.
“Westfalia have also developed an automated feedings system, which has become very popular in Europe, and which we can stock and supply if there is demand for it.”
Generally speaking, are more and more farmers in Mid Ulster leaning towards automated milking systems? “That’s the trend in dairy farming. It’s a labour-saving thing for the farmer and it makes sense. Conventional parlours are much more labour-intensive, while robotics and automation have changed things dramatically. Indeed, a good bit of our business is automating existing parlours.
“Having said that, we’re more than happy installing and servicing smaller parlours. If you have four of those, then that’s four customers and that means more work down the line with maintenance and repairs etc.”
The back-up provided in this line of work is absolutely critical and William provides his customers with a good service. “I’m not saying we are all things to all people but we do try to have somebody on call. We believe that if we provide somebody with a good service then they will come back and do business again. In this respect, small repairs are as important as bigger ones and we treat all our customers the same.
“We don’t make a lot out of selling new equipment but we like that guy to come back to us for his supplies, and that’s what keeps the staff here and keeps everything ticking over. We strive to build relationships with our customers so that we can all move forward together.”
Mid-Ulster Dairy Services provides gainful employment to a team of five full-time staff plus one self-employed worker.
Technology is playing an increasingly-important part in dairy farming and Mid-Ulster Dairy Services has embraced modern methods. How important has it been for William not to let technology pass him by? “We keep ourselves up to date. The companies we represent are very good at offering training and refresher courses and we make a point of fitting, installing, commissioning and supporting all the products ourselves, as well as providing the software support. We have a number of younger people on our books and they are up to speed with the latest technology.
“Things are changing all the time and you have to stay on top of it. Things are improving constantly – both in major ways and in smaller ways that’d you’d barely notice. At the end of the day, it’s all for the farmer’s benefit and you have to keep tabs on these changes to ensure that you are giving your customers the best possible service.”
Looking to the future, the proprietor of Mid-Ulster Dairy Services intends to continue offering the same excellent products and services for which his company is renowned: “We have plenty of work and we would be happy enough if the workload stays as it is,” he concludes. “The challenge facing everybody involved in dairy is milk price, which is putting pressure on everyone. As milk is a perishable commodity, the producer has to take the market price at any given time. It’s bad news for everybody in the sector when this drops, so hopefully that won’t be the case going forward.”
Mid-Ulster Dairy Services
21a Donaghrisk Road,
Tullyhogue,
Cookstown,
County Tyrone.
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 048 8676 5098
Mobile 0044 7802 757 495
midulsterdairyservices.co.uk
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 3 No 8, September 2015
