Types of Milk Collection Equipment

Evidence of dairy farming goes as far back as 8000 B.C., when farmers collected milk by hand. Modern dairy farming includes many different types of equipment and processes, including milk fat testing, cream separators, analyzers, centrifuges, cooling and collection. There are several main kinds of equipment, components and systems specific to the process of collecting milk for consumer consumption.

  1. Milking Machines

    • Before the advent of milking machines, people collected milk manually, by hand, one bucket at a time. The dairy industry developed milking machines when this became too inefficient or labor intensive to meet the growing consumer demand. Milking machines share the same basic layout: a pump to remove air from the vacuum pipeline, a vacuum regulator and a container for collecting milk. The vacuum harvests milk from the end of a cow's teat. Milking machines keep milk in an enclosed container that is safe from contamination.

    Milk Collection Components

    • The design of machine milking ensures efficient milk flow while maintaining the overall health of the udder and comfort of the cow. Claws with teatcups attach to the teat and provide gentle milking action. To prevent pain or damage to the teat by continuous application of the vacuum, pulsators apply a periodic squeeze to the whole of the teat to maintain blood circulation.

    Portable Milk Collection

    • Used for small herds or for the milking of show or sick animals, portable milking systems provide comfort, ease of use and flexibility. They contain all the required components of a milk collection system: the base pump assembly, the milking claw pulsator assembly and collection bucket.

    Milk Collection Configurations

    • Different configurations of the milk collection systems optimize output and efficiency. For example, automatic systems are computer-controlled and collect milk with robotic arms. With a rotary configuration, each cow has her own stall on a circular platform and is brought to the operator.