Parallel Parlors - Some History
For some 20 years, from 1967 to 1987 milking in the U.S. made steady progress toward ever more efficient parlors In terms of cows milked per man hour and more Milker and Cow-friendly parlors. During this time the U.S. dairy equipment industry introduced Automatic TakeOffs, Automatic Indexing, Rapid Exit, Milk Meters, Automatic Cow ID, Automatic Backflushing of claws and teat cups and much more.
Parallels first appeared on the market in the U.S. in 1988 - setting the dairy industry back some 20 years.
Parallels garnered lots of attention. They presented a rather different way of milking and therefore attracted any number of 'consultants' only too willing to dispense advice and planning services in the name of lucrative consulting assignments.
Several Universities, particularly the Universities of Arizona, Kansas and Oregon, jumped on the bandwagon to provide legitimacy to Parallels and 'prove' they were more efficient than other styles of parlors. Their research raised questions at the time that still remain unanswered today.
None of the advantages put forth by the promoters of Parallels then and now are correct.
Myth: Parallels take less space:
Fact: Parallels need buildings that are only marginally smaller than HerringBones. See HB vs Parallel - A Smaller Space
Myth: There is less walking in a Parallel parlor.
Myth: Parallels are less expensive than other types of parlors.
Fact: They cost roughly the same as HerringBones with No-Arm TakeOffs. And they cost a darn site more than ParaBones with No-Arm TakeOffs. See HB vs Parallel - What Cost?
Myth: Parallels are safer than other parlors. True if you compare a poorly managed HerringBone to a poorly managed Parallel with lousy cow traffic in both parlors. Both parlors are equally safe if there's orderly cow traffic, as there will be very little kicking in either parlor.
Fact: That leaves the numerous disadvantages of the parallel no one ever talks about
Parallel Milking Parlors do not provide the quality or usability of HerringBone Parlors.
Copyright 2007 Technology For Agriculture LLC * All Rights Reserved
Site Design and SEO by S&J Enterprises - 2007
Technology For Agriculture LLC
1855-A West Davenport St., Rhinelander, WI 54501 | Rolf's Mobil 715-360-3660 * Fax 715-362-7595 | Email: Rolftfa@newnorth.net
Parlor Planning
Yet over the years a lot of Parallels were installed. All for the wrong reasons.
