Tracey Krahnen and her husband had recently purchased a new lifestyle block in Ashburton, Canterbury. As Tracey often works singlehandedly, they needed a yard that was safe and easy to operate. With no cattle yard onsite, they wanted a quick and quality process at an affordable rate.
Using an Excel spreadsheet, they compared the costs, features, and steel thickness against three other competitors. After weighing up different options and meeting with our team, Onefarm came out on top.
“The quality of steel was better, along with the shape and anti-rattle clamps. Both of us are not young people, so it was very much a safety-first kind of deal.”
The lifestyle block had near-perfect conditions, with a relatively flat site and minimal groundwork required. It also had a roadside location and good stock truck access. When we met with Tracey onsite, we visited the site and listened to what she had in mind. We discussed several options and offered rendered concepts of the yard so she could see it to scale. This is something we offer all of our clients as it enables you to visualise the yard and customize the design to your needs.
For Tracey, the thing that set Onefarm apart was the quality of the steel, along with the slam latches and anti-rattle clamps. While she originally looked at timber designs, she went for the Commercial 104 Head Yard due to its heavy-duty design and low maintenance. One of Tracey’s main hesitations was the noise often associated with steel cattle yards. She wanted minimal sound to ensure that the cattle were not frightened. Luckily, our clamp system has been developed to stop rattling and reduce noise.
“The forcing circle is absolutely fantastic. I love it to bits. The non-stock area makes things so much easier, so much safer, and so much more organised. It’s better for them and better for us.”
Tracey selected the Phoenix Pro crush with an anti-backing system and double-sided squeeze, along with our Commercial Loading Ramp for its versatile design. Having spent years in cattle yards, Tracey said that her new yards were really a pleasure to work in.
From enquiry to completion, the project took a total of 8 weeks. What started as a mob of 60 cows, has since turned into more than 100. Tracey said that the yard has completely transformed the efficiency of their block and they are very pleased with the results.
“We ended up with more animals in the yard than expected but it coped well with the additional capacity. The yard is working well and we can work them safely.”
Before choosing Onefarm, Tracey was one of our most analytical clients and rightly so. If you're looking for a new cattle yard, we’d encourage you to adopt the same due diligence. This way, you’ll get to see what other competitors are offering and what makes Onefarm stand out from the crowd.
For more information on how we can help, get in touch today.
