76 | nzdairy DAIRY SERVICES » Moa Rotary Platforms Moa Rotary Platforms: over 2 decades of growth Sue Russell Matt Churchill, Manager and Senior Service Engineer of the Inglewood branch, of Moa Rotary Platforms, says the company is kept comfortably busy all year round. Moa Rotary is in the business of installing and servicing Waikato Milking Systems rotary platforms. With branches in both Matamata and Inglewood they have clients throughout the entire North Island as well as overseas. Nathan Hitchcock established Moa Milking and Pumping over twenty years ago and has been servicing the dairy industry to a high standard since. Moa Milking and Pumpings clients come to them for innovative dairy solutions in all aspects of farming. In 2009 Moa opened a branch in Matamata specifically to install Waikato Milking Rotary Platforms and service and repair all brands of platforms. In 2021 the demand for Rotary specific work warranted dividing the platform division off into it’s own company and so Moa Rotary Platforms was born. Matt has been managing the Inglewood branch since. He leads a team of four skilled installation and servicing technicians. When the opportunity presented itself to buy into the company three years ago he leapt at the chance to join Moa’s success story. Shane Arthur manages the Matamata branch, their team of five service the top of the North Island, while the Inglewood branch service the bottom of the North Island. Demand for their services has increased, particularly from overseas countries, such as the United States, Europe, Vietnam and Zambia to name a few, where massive dairy farms operate. “I think one of the reasons why these large 24/7 dairy farms engage us, is that Waikato Milking Systems designs and develops very solid milking systems that can be relied on to perform. An example is our work on one farm based in Texas where we installed two 110-bale rotaries, side by side. The platforms must be reliable and simple to service,” Matt says. “We undertake six-monthly or annual servicing for our clients, depending on their needs, to ensure the plant is operating well and trouble-shooting any issues that may present.” During the months when cows are dried off, is a particularly busy time and Matt says with the work overseas, he enjoys the challenges that come. “Because it is a New Zealand designed and In the Dalat province of Vietnam. Moa have built four 80 bails now for a company called TH Milk. Two 80s side by side on 2 different farms. One farm is in southern Vietnam and two 80s in northern Vietnam. engineered product, when rotaries are sold to customers overseas, they want an experienced installer to do the work. This side of the business has increased in scale through the year.” Next year will be another busy one with an 80-bale install in Texas to undertake, a 40-bale in Argentina, a 60-bale in Tasmania, a 100-bale goat rotary in England and an 80 bail goat rotary in England. It’s not uncommon for a cowshed overseas to operate 24 hours, given the scale of these farms. Matt says choosing Waikato Milking Systems is a no-brainer in these situations. “The last thing a large busy dairy enterprise wants is any issues and this is why our routine servicing following installations is critical. We understand the systems well and know what to look out for when we undertake routine inspections and maintenance work.” Rotary platforms have proven to be the most efficient system when it comes to milking large herds, where typically milking time is reduced by 25%, while often reducing the number of milkers required to operate the plant. Matt says he enjoys seeing the benefits dairy farmers gain from choosing Waikato Milking Systems products. Along with installing and maintaining rotary milking equipment, Moa’s team supply spare parts and all the main running gear of the rotary platforms to ensure once the busy milking season is underway, dairy farmers can rely on their platform to keep turning. “We’ve built a strong reputation on delivering rotary platforms to our farmers since the company established. Waikato Milking Systems are continually innovating and bringing new solutions to the industry,” says Matt. He’s looking forward to the new builds next year and delivering to their loyal customers the best possible service.
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