Farmers who are planning to invest in new facilities are being advised to take advantage of a hi-tech way to ‘visit’ another farm for inspiration – without ever having to leave home.
According to Francis Quigley, Teagasc farm machinery and milking machine specialist, virtual farm tours give farmers the opportunity to see up close how the best planned farms are set up and how they use resources and space.
He said Teagasc first started developing a portfolio of virtual tours during the Covid-19 pandemic when restrictions prevented people visiting farms in person.
Quigley said the “value of these virtual tours rapidly became apparent” even after the pandemic was over, because he said that organising in-person visits “is not always that easy”.
Farm tours
There are now 20 different virtual tours available on the Teagasc website – from herringbone milking parlours to rotary and robotic milking parlours to sheep, beef and poultry buildings and a range of calf sheds.
It is estimated that they have now been accessed more than 35,000 times.
According to Quigley anyone who is considering a new investment project needs “to get out and visit other farms at an early stage”.
“You will get inspiration for your design and find out what might work on your farm and, equally important, what won’t.
“Most farmers will undertake a major building project such as a milking parlour once or maybe twice in a generation.
“Other buildings such as a calf house or cubicle shed might go 15 to 25 years before being replaced,” he added.
Quigley believes that many farmers potentially look at new building projects “in isolation rather than as part of the whole farm”
He said they may also decide on a design based solely on “the available piece of ground”.
“Gathering ideas from other designs and layouts is a very important part of the design process.
“It is vital to get out and visit other farms at an early stage. You will get inspiration for your design and find out what might work on your farm and, equally important, what won’t,” he advised.
According to Quigley each of the virtual tours includes a “fully dimensioned floor plan”.
“There are also videos and photos of key design elements included.
“I have a keen eye for detail, but I often find that I see design elements in the virtual tours that I missed on an actual farm visit,” he added.