Cables crushed in gates, chewed by rodents or damaged by stock are a thing of the past with Gallagher’s new Wireless Load Bars. This innovative new tool is providing farmers with a completely wireless solution for weighing animals. The Wireless Load Bars are the first of their kind in the market, eliminating the most common failure point of livestock weighing systems - their cables.
Gallagher Weighing and EID Product Manager Brian Rose says the Wireless Load Bars remove the need for cables and can also turn farmers’ phones into a digital livestock weighing system.
“At Gallagher, we have always prided ourselves on developing products that are driven by farmer demand. And the Wireless Load Bars are no exception. Farmers told us they wanted load bars without the annoying cables, which often failed due damage caused by things outside their control. Many also said that the cables were a potential trip hazard. Farmers also told us they struggled with moving weighing platforms from farm to farm to weigh stock on different properties because the cables were an absolute nuisance,” says Brian.
So, the Gallagher team got to work. They spent hundreds of hours perfecting the product’s design and functionality to give farmers a tool that could add real value to their business and make their lives a whole lot easier. “Farmers are pretty savvy now with Bluetooth and Wireless EID readers. They asked us to get rid of the cables on our load bars, so we did!” says Brian. “Our biggest challenge was developing a product with battery power that could last the distance out in the field. We addressed that by incorporating a new low-power battery design, for careful power management. The result is a long-life battery that will last up to ten years before it needs replacing.”
The Wireless Load Bars’ clever design also means that when the battery needs to be replaced, the farmer is notified via their weigh scale or phone app, and it can simply be unclipped and a new one plugged in. The Wireless Load Bars form part of Gallagher’s broader weighing and EID range. When coupled with Gallagher’s Animal Performance mobile app, it gives farmers a digital herd weighing system in the palm of their hand.
“The Wireless Load Bars are a simple tool for farmers wanting hassle-free weighing and data transferred straight to their phones,” says Brian. “They work well as an entry level tool for farmers on smaller blocks, but they can also be coupled with our Touch Screen Weigh Scales for a more complete professional weighing solution.”
Market research has told Gallagher that in larger operations with big herds, farmers don’t always want to have their phones sitting out in the yards. In that situation, farmers can use Gallagher’s TW or TWR Weigh Scale range together with the Wireless Load Bars. They then transfer the data to Gallagher's Animal Performance web and mobile app at the end of a weighing session.
“Gallagher is an early developer of this technology, and we are excited about the benefits it will deliver to farmers,” says Brian. “We know wireless and digital are the future of farming as our primary industries rely more and more on data to make timely and more informed decisions. At Gallagher, we call it ‘precision farming’ and we are committed to being a leader in that space.”
It is a big ask for a weigh system to be adaptable enough to manage three different stock types, with three different data outcomes.
Katherine and Philip McCallum fromRockley Angus Studrun three different business entities on their 319-hectare property near Balfour, New Zealand, comprising dairy heifer grazing, the Angus stud and 1400 breeding ewes including hoggets.
They needed a weigh scale system that could be easily moved for use in the paddock as well their cattle yards and sheep drafting set up.
“It had to be adaptable, but we also wanted something that was fast and simple to use,” says Katherine.
They chose aGallagher TW-3 Weigh Scale & Data Collectorand with several months use behind them it has delivered on all fronts, helping the couple and their clients get a better picture of how their livestock are performing.
The TW-3’s screen was a key focus in developing the new system, and Gallagher worked hard to make it as intuitive and “smartphone” like as possible.
For Kath the greatest appeal lies in how well it copes with bright, high glare days when most scale screens disappear in the light.
“Our previous scales had to be adjusted for brightness in those conditions but the TW-3 copes really well without needing any adjusting and stays very easy to see.”
She also appreciates the lack of any lag when using the touchscreen, and a very simple to understand interface that she believes is easy enough for her kids to use.
“We also enjoy the fact it starts up very quickly, it would be only about 30 seconds and then it’s ready to go.”
The Angus stud totals 63 breeding cows, so the pressure is on every cow to perform to her optimum, while data recording is also vital for the stud’s Breedplan information.
This spring Kath has incorporated the TW-3 into a new portable in-paddock weighing system to weigh newborn calves, providing valuable birthweight data for their records.
“We can assign birth weights to every calf tag number born from day 1.
“We can also load in the calf’s NAIT tag number and come weaning time when we weigh we’ll get a weight gain figure, giving us a good indication of its Dam’s performance.”
She also appreciates the wireless Wi-Fi connectivity to her laptop that enables the weighing data to be downloaded directly to her computer which she can then load into Breedplan.
For the dairy heifer business when the couple are regularly weighing the heifers the data can be downloaded directly to MINDA, enabling clients to have complete transparency about how their stock are performing.
“We can also easily identify any stock that are not performing and decide what we will do about them sooner than later. You can easily see if you are heading in the right direction or need a bit of a wakeup call.”
When it comes to weighing lambs, the TW-3 slots easily into the couple’s three-way drafting system, while its colour coded drafting programme keeps the job simple. It makes the critical pre-Christmas draft far quicker, and then again in late January-February when they are trying to get the lambs away.
Kath also appreciates the TW3’s rugged, heavy-duty canvas carry bag which they leave with the scales in it between jobs, charged up and ready to go.
“For us the TW-3 is more than paying its way, my only wish is that it had come out sooner!
It is easy to use, practical piece of equipment that helps with our management and day to day decisions.”
Monitor livestock weights to gain insights into how your stock are performing. With simple installation, easy to use design and Bluetooth connectivity to the Gallagher Animal Performance mobile app the W-0 Weigh Scale is the ideal solution for farmers wanting to start monitoring their livestock weights.
Record livestock weights from your W-0 Weigh Scale straight to your Animal Performance mobile app in real time. You can also add a Gallagher Handheld EID reader* to scan animal ID numbers straight to the app, linking them to animal weights to track an individual animal’s performance over its lifetime.
*Animal Performance Plus subscription required for EID scanning
Entry-level, EID-compatible weigh scale with WiFi connectivity to sync your animal data straight to your Animal Performance web and mobile app
Record weights against an animal tag number to manage weight gain and maximize your livestock performance. Weighing with animal ID’s allows you to make more informed decisions and monitor your animal's performance over its lifetime. Weights are automatically matched to the animal's ID number so you can record animal data and monitor growth over multiple sessions. Built-in WiFi connectivity allows you to sync your data straight to Animal Performance web and mobile app, so your animal information is always up to date and available on your mobile app, P.C, and other weighing hardware.
Our top-of-the-line weigh scale reader. The TWR-5 has all the smarts to help you turn livestock performance into profit.
Simple to operate with market-leading touchscreen weigh scale. The TWR-5 makes weighing, data collection and data management easier than ever before. The simple navigation and easy-to-use interface was designed in partnership with farmers. The convenience of a full QWERTY keyboard makes data entry faster and easier.
In-yard data collection is just the beginning. Use the TWR-5 Weigh Scale with Animal Performance Plus and take full advantage of the entire Gallagher ecosystem: store your animal records securely in the Cloud, create and use pre-defined drafts lists, use powerful filters for deeper analysis of your livestock performance.
Use with a Hand Held Reader or go hands-free by simply connecting to an EID Antenna Panel.
Simple to operate with market-leading touchscreen readable even under direct sun. Use with a Hand Held Reader or go hands-free by simply connecting to an EID Antenna Panel.
The touch screen weigh scale range makes weighing and data management easier than ever before with simple navigation and easy to use interface that was designed in partnership with farmers. View, manage and analyse your animal data, all within the weigh scale or connect to WiFi and sync your data with your Animal Performance web & mobile app for seamless data management and analysis tools across all your devices.
Simple to operate, market-leading touch screen weigh scale with the added ability to record animal life data and traits. Ideally suited to farmers wanting to record and review more information than simply weight, the TW-3 can record up to 3 traits per session.
The touch screen weigh scale range makes weighing and data management easier than ever before with simple navigation and easy to use interface that was designed in partnership with farmers. The TW-3 has the added convenience of a full QWERTY keyboard to make data entry faster and easier.
View, manage and analyse your animal data, all within the weigh scale or connect to WiFi and sync your data with your Animal Performance web & mobile app for seamless data management and analysis tools across all your devices.
Find out more about the option to boost your TW-3’s data recording and drafting capabilities here.
Suspension Load Cell is designed to replace mechanical weighing, converting mechanical weighing solutions for hanging crates.
With options for 250kg and 500kg weight capacities, this load cell is ideal for weighing suspended loads. Typically used for hanging weigh crates for weighing fleece or deer velvet. Install your Suspension Load Cell, connect to a digital weigh scale, zero out the scale and add your load to the weighing create.