The market of the equipment for milking robotic world continues to expand.
The factors that promote the adoption of this technology include the reduction of the cost of the labor, the inherent advantages of the automation of processes, increasing efficiency, productivity and accuracy by installing a new paradigm for the production of milk: cow's in charge.
Having started business in 1992 as a solution to ease the work and care in matters of family succession of small dairy farms in the Netherlands later spread through Europe, and the use accelerated significantly after 10 years, to understand that the technology was suitable also for large herds of dairy cows. In fact, the dairy operation with milking robot's largest planet is Agricultural Ancali, located in Chile, where 92 robots DeLaval distributed 6 freestalls with beds of sand are milked about 5,500 cows.
At a global level it is estimated that there are currently a total of 50,000 robots in operation milking around 3,000,000 cows around (35% in North America, 30% Europe, 25% in Asia Pacific and 10% in the Rest of the World). Brand LELY prevails with more than 50% of the market followed by DeLaval and GEA of between a dozen of other brands (BouMatic, DairyMaster, Fullwood, etc)
While there are projections of various kinds, in consultation with the actors in the sector is estimated that the sale of robots doubles every 5 years (about 10,000 robots/year). Or is that within 5 years, 2029, would have already have around 100,000 robots milking on the planet. This will mean, at the rate of 60 cows/robot, a figure of 6,000,000 cows, what would be the 5% of the dairy cows the world's total, or 15% of the cows of the major exporting countries. An exponential curve of technology adoption where the ability of the companies to sustain this pace of sales, installations and service technician could limit the evolution in the near future.
In Argentina it is also observed similar trend of growth with a doubling of the computers every 2-3 years (see the chart “Evolution of sales accumulated robots”). In 2015 we installed the first robot in the tambo del INTA Rafaela, the VMS DeLaval (the VMS goes by Voluntary Milking System acronym that means: system of milking, voluntary, and that was incorporated into the name of the equipment). After an early shy, sales began to take off and we already have about 280 robots nationalized (plus 75 others in ongoing projects). Most of the large projects in dance are sheds robotic and full construction is rising, one that could be the largest in the world once completed. The province of Buenos Aires leader in the installation of the milking robot with 58%, followed Cordoba with 28%, Santa Fe (12%), Salta (1.4%) and Between Rivers (1%).
The robots are installed are led by LELY with 55%, followed by DeLaval with 38% and further back GEA 6% and finally BouMatic that recently entered with 2 robots to the local statistics with 1%.
It is interesting to see the high participation of robotization in pastoral systems, but as we see in the graph below, the majority of the enterprises are in freestall, and 73% are drums confined in sheds addressing the issues of animal welfare.
We estimate that, with the arrival of financing bank at rates commensurate with the productive activity, we will see more projects of this type that will salt and pepper the stage tambero argentino. We suggest you read our note addressing some technical aspects of the drivers of the technology: Robotization in the drum-argentine II,.
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