Do farmers have too much machinery?
One safety training manager believes that the more machinery you have, the more likely you are to have a farm accident.
In the last 10 years, there have been 57 farm deaths as a result of machinery, Friday’s National Conference on Farm Safety and Health heard.
Speaking at the conference was JJ Dockery, safety training manager with FRS, who said that there is a real need for more machinery training for farmers.
“It is essential. In other work sectors across the country, training is absolutely essential. Training works.
“To me, there’s a need for a state-recognised mandatory training programme around safety, excluding the Certificate in Farming (the Green Cert).
“I would suggest that many farmers have too much machinery.”
Dockery outlined his own situation: “I have an agitator. I agitate one evening a year, so I probably use it for four hours in the year, that’s all, and I’ve my own vacuum tanker.
“Does it justify me having that? Probably not. I should be getting someone else in to do it. There’s lots of situations like that.”
So, should we start looking at machinery needs analysis – do you really need to buy that machine?
“Is grant-aid for machinery increasing the number of non-required machines? If there was no grant there, would you buy it?
“Are farmers buying machines that they don’t really need because of the grant? It’s a question worth considering. It seems to be a factor.
“I think the more machinery you have, the more likely you are to have an accident.”
Dockery also said that at a recent TAMS II course in Roscrea, he took a straw poll of the 19 farmers present.
While not scientific in the slightest, it did highlight a number of things to him, he said.
Of the 19 farmers, 10 were beef or sheep farmers, five were dairy farmers and four were tillage farmers.
Each farmer was asked how many tractors they had, how many machines they had and how many of them had received training for the machines.
Tractors per farmer
Beef and sheep = 21 tractors, an average of 2.1 per farmer.Tillage = nine tractors, an average of 2.25 per farmer.Dairy = 21 tractors, an average of 4.1 per farmer.Commenting on these figures, Dockery said that the Farm Tractor and Machinery Trade Association (FTMTA) will tell you that the people who are buying tractors at the moment are dairy farmers.
“The question is, are we over-mechanised or is the dairy farmer right in having that much machinery around the yard?” he asked.
Number of machines in total, PTO, hydraulic or other.
Beef and sheep = 80 machines, an average of eight per farmer.Tillage = 53 machines, an average of 10.6 per farmer.Dairy = 68 machines, an average of 13.6 per farmer.Next, Dockery said he asked each farmer if they received training from the dealers of their machinery. Just three farmers replied that they had – one had diet feeder training, one had sprayer training and one didn’t specify.
“So, for 201 machines [between 19 farmers], only three people were trained on three machines.”
When asked why they believed accidents were happening, Dockery said that a number of replies came back. These included: pressure, time, lack of help, older age, deadlines, lack of judgement, closing dates, weather.
“Nobody mentioned themselves or a lack of training, so nobody felt that they were part of the cause of farm accidents, that it was something else out there [causing accidents].”
Read more
‘I ended up at the bottom of a slurry tank… everything weighs you down’
‘Farmers are under increased work pressure’
Do farmers have too much machinery?
One safety training manager believes that the more machinery you have, the more likely you are to have a farm accident.
In the last 10 years, there have been 57 farm deaths as a result of machinery, Friday’s National Conference on Farm Safety and Health heard.
Speaking at the conference was JJ Dockery, safety training manager with FRS, who said that there is a real need for more machinery training for farmers.
“It is essential. In other work sectors across the country, training is absolutely essential. Training works.
“To me, there’s a need for a state-recognised mandatory training programme around safety, excluding the Certificate in Farming (the Green Cert).
“I would suggest that many farmers have too much machinery.”
Dockery outlined his own situation: “I have an agitator. I agitate one evening a year, so I probably use it for four hours in the year, that’s all, and I’ve my own vacuum tanker.
“Does it justify me having that? Probably not. I should be getting someone else in to do it. There’s lots of situations like that.”
So, should we start looking at machinery needs analysis – do you really need to buy that machine?
“Is grant-aid for machinery increasing the number of non-required machines? If there was no grant there, would you buy it?
“Are farmers buying machines that they don’t really need because of the grant? It’s a question worth considering. It seems to be a factor.
“I think the more machinery you have, the more likely you are to have an accident.”
Dockery also said that at a recent TAMS II course in Roscrea, he took a straw poll of the 19 farmers present.
While not scientific in the slightest, it did highlight a number of things to him, he said.
Of the 19 farmers, 10 were beef or sheep farmers, five were dairy farmers and four were tillage farmers.
Each farmer was asked how many tractors they had, how many machines they had and how many of them had received training for the machines.
Tractors per farmer
Beef and sheep = 21 tractors, an average of 2.1 per farmer.Tillage = nine tractors, an average of 2.25 per farmer.Dairy = 21 tractors, an average of 4.1 per farmer.Commenting on these figures, Dockery said that the Farm Tractor and Machinery Trade Association (FTMTA) will tell you that the people who are buying tractors at the moment are dairy farmers.
“The question is, are we over-mechanised or is the dairy farmer right in having that much machinery around the yard?” he asked.
Number of machines in total, PTO, hydraulic or other.
Beef and sheep = 80 machines, an average of eight per farmer.Tillage = 53 machines, an average of 10.6 per farmer.Dairy = 68 machines, an average of 13.6 per farmer.Next, Dockery said he asked each farmer if they received training from the dealers of their machinery. Just three farmers replied that they had – one had diet feeder training, one had sprayer training and one didn’t specify.
“So, for 201 machines [between 19 farmers], only three people were trained on three machines.”
When asked why they believed accidents were happening, Dockery said that a number of replies came back. These included: pressure, time, lack of help, older age, deadlines, lack of judgement, closing dates, weather.
“Nobody mentioned themselves or a lack of training, so nobody felt that they were part of the cause of farm accidents, that it was something else out there [causing accidents].”
Read more
‘I ended up at the bottom of a slurry tank… everything weighs you down’
‘Farmers are under increased work pressure’
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