The dairy shed is a hive of activity during milking, with cows lowing, and machinery whirring. It’s an area where stress levels can be elevated and noise is constant, so health and safety is paramount.
In the wake of a tragic accident in a Morrinsville milking shed in July last year, two Waikato farmers have installed a slide pulsator safeguard to make milking sheds safer for their staff and encourage other farmers to follow suit.
Slide pulsators are a standard feature in milking sheds, mimicking the suckling pattern of a calf and regulating the vacuum pressure in milking systems.
Sharemilkers Jenny Buckley and Dave Van Den Beuken milk 370 cows near Cambridge. Conscious of the potential dangers of slide pulsators, the couple decided to look into ways to install safeguards to prevent access to moving parts.
The couple approached Professional Farm Services and were told Reid Slides was developing a cover for the rotating cam shafts of the pulsators for milking sheds. Professional Farm Services then installed the covers as soon as they were available, as well as an emergency stop.
“It was a real team approach. Dave and I instigated this process and followed through to ensure they were installed so that we and our staff are kept safe. Our friend Sandra White1 actually suggested a safety cut-off pull cord, which we thought was a fantastic idea and we put it in,” Jenny says.
“We are fortunate that our farm owner, Trish Jones, paid for the covers, as many would be hesitant.
"It was not a hugely expensive process. The important thing is farmers are aware of the hazard, and they need to do everything practically possible to keep everyone safe,” says Co-op farmer Jenny Buckley.
For more information on health and safety on-farm, contact your local TSR or visit a Farm Source store.
1 - Health, Safety & Environmental Business Partner from Aurecon.