DeLaval agents Francis Dunn Farm Supplies & Machinery of County Down offer milking solutions tailored precisely to their customers needs and have 34 years of satisfied customers to prove it.

DeLaval is a world leader in the dairy farming industry, providing integrated milking solutions designed to improve dairy farmers’ production, animal welfare and overall quality of life.

DeLaval offers automatic and conventional milking systems, cooling and feeding systems, effluent & housing systems and farm management support systems.

DeLaval customers can also choose from a wide range of services and consumables which are grouped in four portfolios: liners & tubes, farm supplies, services & original parts, and milk quality & animal health.

Every day millions of dairy animals are milked, fed and maintained by DeLaval solutions in more than 100 countries worldwide.

In County Down, Francis Dunn Farm Supplies & Machinery is the place to go to to find out all you need to know about DeLaval’s extensive portfolio of products and how they can contribute to the smooth running of your dairy operation.

Father and son duo, Francis and Andy Dunn share the workload along with their four employees. Established in 1982 by Francis, Andy bought into the dealership 16 years ago and, since then, they have developed a reputation which is the envy of many of their competitors.

“The work that is put into the equipment is incredible, it’s definitely rated as first class and that’s why I would never hear of anybody saying anything bad about it,” replied Andy when asked ‘why should  people choose the DeLaval brand for all their milking requirements?’.

“They are a worldwide company and they are number one for a reason,” he added.

“My father, Francis worked for DeLaval’s predecessor so he knew what he was getting himself into when he set up the business 34 years ago. Experience is also something that we have on our side. We specialise in the milking machinery end of the market but we also do a lot of kitting out of buildings from scratch.”

Maintaining milk yield during a cow’s lactation period typically requires a cow to be milked twice a day – with maximum time spacing between milking.

This means that all of a farmer’s activities must be scheduled around the milking process on the farm. These milking routines put restrictions on time management and also the personal life of the individual farmer, as he is committed to milking in the early morning and in the evening seven days a week – regardless of personal health, family responsibilities or social schedule.

By choosing automated processes, including robotic milking arms and voluntary milking, the farmer frees up time from the tedious and tightly scheduled task of milking and is able to concentrate on other areas of his business, like field work, taking care of equipment, reproduction, calving, handling sick cows or simply spending more time with family.

On larger dairy farms, the quantity of hired labour and their management is reduced and on the family farms, robotic milking brings flexibility and increased quality of life.

In addition, farmers state that milking high yield cows more often (in a voluntary milking system) and on a regular basis improves udder health and lifetime production and thereby impacts farm profitability.

At Francis Dunn Farm Supplies & Machinery, their priority is the customer. It’s about building long lasting relationships that live on long after you’ve left their premises.

They appreciate your farm and are fully aware of the trust their customers place in them. Their after-sales service will ensure that your confidence in them is repaid.

“We are committed to providing a quality service to our customers at all times,” Andy said. “We are always trying to better ourselves, all the time, and we pride ourselves on the first class job we do – but we also make sure that the back up there.

“That’s the biggest thing as far as I would be concerned. Where breakdown is concerned, we’re on call 365 days of the year, 24 hours.”

On a negative note, global milk prices have fallen by nearly 40 per cent since 2014 on the back of a glut in production, a fall-off in Chinese demand and the Russian trade ban. The slump has wiped more than €800 million off the value of Ireland’s dairy sector seen average incomes drop by up to €35,000.

As a result, Francis Dunn Farm Supplies & Machinery are also feeling the pinch but, nevertheless, Andy retains an optimistic outlook when talk turned to the future of the business.

“Business could be better at the moment, there’s not doubt about. When farmers suffer, we suffer. They don’t have it and there has been a decline in business since Christmas. It’s a waiting game but we’ve been here before and I’m sure we will get out of it. It’s just a question of when.”

Francis Dunn Farm Supplies & Machinery
84 Newtownards Road
Donaghadee
County Down
BT21 0PT

Tel: 028 9188 3243

Fax: 028 9188 8483

Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 4 No 4, April/May 2016

Dunn, Francis, Machinery, Supplies