If robots were the buzz last year, rotary parlours are the buzz this year.

It's a sign of the times when the main feature in the main milking parlour stands is rotary parlours.

Dairymaster

Dairymaster launched six new rotary parlours on Tuesday.

These new rotary parlours present more options for the dairy farmer that might want a rotary, but don't want all the bells and whistles.

The entry-level Dairymaster rotary is a 24-bail platform costing €158,000.

The higher-spec options will have stainless steel bails and more technology and automation.

DeLaval and Pearson

Over at the DeLaval and Pearson stands, rotary parlours were front and centre there too.

Interestingly, both manufacturers have two options when it comes to rotary parlours. They have a more basic bail design with narrower bails for block-calving grass-based cows and a wider bail with more technology and automation for higher-yielding herds.

Waikato

Also exhibiting rotary parlours at the Ploughing Championships was New Zealand-based company Waikato. They have made an impact on sales in Ireland with a number of new parlours in the pipeline.

The push on rotary parlours comes at a time when herd size is increasing and labour is becoming harder to source.

Most 44- or 50-bail rotary parlours are capable of milking over 300 cows per hour, with just one person attaching clusters.