The Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) has approved Alltech’s application for Sel-Plex 1000. This approval makes Sel-Plex 1000 the third product Alltech has listed with OMRI.

In the last column, I discussed batteries because they are the source of the electrical system. In this article we will continue our discussion on electrical systems, shifting focus from the battery to the starter. The battery cables are directly connected to the starter and the ground. Then you have neutral safety switches and some kind of starter switch, which could either be a key switch or a relay (mag) switch leading into the solenoid starter. These neutral switches prevent you from starting the engine while it is in gear, making it more of a safety switch.

In December 2009, Progressive Dairyman featured the Reed family in Jasper, Minnesota. The Reeds were forced out of dairying because they weren't able to overcome problems with stray voltage, despite their efforts to solve these issues with the help of Chuck Untiedt. Out of the more than 1,500 articles we published since then, the article, "The boogey man in the milking parlor" ranked as the third most read. As part of our year-end recap, we followed up with Untiedt to find out what he's learned since then about detecting stray voltage.

This article was #3 in PDmag's Top 5 most-well read New Technology articles in 2011. Summary: Cows at Grand View Dairy and D. Kulper Dairy in Arizona were some of the first to experience the FlipFan Dairy Cooling System. The design of the system allows the 36-inch fans to rotate 180 degrees to point outside of a shade structure. It also features control options that allow producers to adjust for time, temperature, humidity, milking and feeding times and, new to the industry, wind speed and direction. Because this article was so popular, we asked Schaefer Ventilation Equipment President and CEO Neil Crocker some follow-up questions: Q: What type of interest have you received? How do you quantify that interest? A: We have seen significant interest from dairymen and academics. In 2011, we installed a total of eight FlipFan dairy cooling systems in Texas, Arizona, California and Mexico.

When planning a dairy cattle freestall housing system, focus on the cow and the freestall where you expect her to spend half her work day, resting and making milk. The size of the resting and lunge areas of the stall and the type and condition of the resting surface are critical. The quality (temperature, moisture, dust) and quantity (flow rate and velocity) of the air surrounding the cow must also be considered in the design, construction and maintenance of the freestall component of the overall dairy system. The cow must be able to freely access other housing areas throughout her work day. This includes the alleys that service the freestalls, water stations and feed lines, and also allow the cow to travel to and from the milking parlor and special-needs areas.