Several factors influence the final design when considering constructing a new barn for your livestock. However, the most obvious part is that, like every farmer, you have a wish list.
A barn is an essential structure for any farmer and a success pillar for livestock keepers. Therefore, it would be best to build it with its specific purpose in mind. Thanks to modern technological advancement, you can achieve excellent results with little cost with a well-designed barn.
Many farmers design a barn to handle livestock and other purposes like storage. Whatever your goal might be, you need a structure that not only serves but serves longer and more efficiently.
The following are some technologies to design an efficient modern barn.
1. Heat Detection Features
Detecting which of your animals is on heat is helpful to any farmer. You can include a boar in the barn to detect which animal is on heat at any particular time. It would help to place the boar at a point where the animal can pass it several times in a day. The goal is to encourage animals in heat to display their curious behaviours naturally.
The computer system detects the animal that spends the most time near the boar and how long they hang around. In addition, it marks the suspected ones with paint. It selects them for central separation if that works best for your barn.
2. Barn Ventilation System
Ventilation is crucial for your animals’ health and well-being. Therefore, proper airflow and high air quality are necessary for your animals and employees in any barn. However, many farmers fail in this factor due to misinterpreting the climate of their geographical location.
However, working with an expert in your area can help you pick the best barn ventilation system for your since they understand the specific challenges in the area. You may not find a one-size-fits-all barn ventilation solution. Thus, it is advisable to weigh all your options for cooling and heating carefully.
Furthermore, it is much easier to make ventilation alterations in your barn before the structure is complete. Again, it would help to find a ventilation system that gives you computerized access to check and control the quality of air circulating in your barn. Experts recommend a barn exhaust fan for efficient air circulation even in hot climates.
3. Robotics and Automated Barn Machinery
Gone are the days of cumbersome human labour in barn management and animal care. Technology is the new cool. While farmers have relied only on GPRS for mapping and field planning since time immemorial, there are new technological advancements handling other sectors of the farm, like the barn.
You can now access autonomous machines and tractors for handling complex jobs like moving hay from the field to the storage. Additionally, Artificial Intelligence has autonomous robotics that can handle many barn tasks like controlling animal movement. They also help with security and remote barn management.
You can also install a technological monitoring system to detect and control the devices in your barn remotely. This helps you to reduce the number of workers working hours per worker and make barn work faster and more efficient. As a result, it reduces the cost of operation while increasing your profit margin from your animals.
4. Electronic Feeders with Forward Exit
Electronic feeders are indispensable in a modern barn, making feeding precise and effortless. They enable you to achieve the best from the animals in your barn. A feeding system with a forward exit allows your animals to remain peaceful and calm.
It also allows a smooth barn flow and delineates your livestock’s eating, sleeping, and dunging areas. Your animals become healthier when eating peacefully to their fill without banging into their hungry fellas.
5. Central Animal Separation
Central separation is essential when you need specialized treatment and care for some animals in your barn. Nevertheless, it is only possible and more manageable with an electronic feeding system. ESF allows you to select animals based on their tags and isolate them in a holding pen.
It makes it easier for your barn staff to conduct wellness checks, pregnancy checks, vaccinations, and moving animals to their designated areas. It is the best technology to help stop the spread of diseases among your animals during an outbreak.
6. Cloud-Based Barn Management
Barn management and animal data are among the significant challenges for many farmers. However, that is no longer a problem with the advanced technology and cloud-management systems.
Gone are the times of reactionary animal management. Suppose you are using the electronic feeding system in your barn. You may always have all your animals’ data at your fingertips through cloud-based software.
Management becomes easier when accessing this data without visiting your barn. With this real-time data, you can note animal welfare trends, make necessary adjustments, and make informed management decisions before any problems arise.
