RED MEAT 2018 SPECIAL FEATURE Carwoola Station puts technology to the test Producers saw digital putting to the test for the next 18 monthsHowever, we’ve started to use some technology being used in a joint Carwoola-MLA initiative. of the data in our decision making, on-farm and heard talks Digital solutions installed include waterparticularly based on water monitoring by service providers when monitors for troughs, tanks and dams;data and data from the cattle tags. MLA hosted a Digital Forum as weather stations; monitors on diesel“When you put these systems in place, part of Red Meat 2018. tanks, silos, electric fences, gatesthere’s a lot, as a producer, to learn The forum included a tour enjoyed byand ramps and apiaries: soil probes; about how it all functions and what can sheep and cattle tags; digital mapping;go wrong or how you need to tweak 200 producers and stakeholders to smoke alarms and shed condition this or that. Carwoola Pastoral Company’s historicdevices; vehicle and asset tracking; farm Carwoola Station, east of Queanbeyan.management software; drone technology;“We’re going to try to tailor each and livestock handling systems. system with solution providers so the Carwoola Pastoral Company is owned dashboards and alerts are meaningful by Rob Purves and Bronwyn Darlington,“At the end of this project we’ll giveand useful to us and flexible to use. and managed by Darren Price. It a ‘health report’ on the technology We’d like to see the solution providers comprises four properties totalling and we, along with MLA, will give share data with each other and build an 6,000ha, running 1,000 Angus breederfeedback to providers with a view to overarching platform so we don’t have cows and 8,000 first-cross ewes. MLA developing a best practice guide,”to have a lot of different apps to gather MLAand Carwoolahav supportede Darren said. our data.” ■ various providers to install digital tools“It’s a little early to be able to put a value across the properties in the past threeon some of this technology and provideSean Starling, MLA months, which Darren and his team area complete digital value proposition. E: sstarling@mla.com.au 5