On the Horizon: Lely unveils latest farm management app

A new farm management application, dubbed Lely Horizon, has been recently unveiled by Lely.

Revealed by the Dutch dairy robotics giant last week, the new application connects data from all relevant equipment and suppliers on the farm in one management system.

Horizon is described by Lely as a “decision-support platform, which analyses data, offers insights and gives proactive advice to make the farmer’s life easier, the herd healthier and the farm more profitable”.

The new application, which will replace the current Lely T4C management system, was introduced during the Lely Future Farm Days 2020.

The application was created with the help of more than 100 test farmers in seven countries, over a 24-month period. It involved the collaboration of more than 75 engineers, designers, farm management advisors, veterinarians and AI specialists, in order to make the concept smarter and more user-friendly, Lely claims.

Lely Horizon “elevates the data to forecast performances and offers the farmer clear choices”, the company says, noting that it indicates ketosis-suspected cows at an early stage.

“Knowing that about 40% of all dairy cows suffer from ketosis, early treatment directly prevents losses. Horizon also provides fact-based decision support on whether to inseminate or not,” Lely says.

The Horizon can also be linked up with other software solutions. This, the manufacturer says, “means that entering the same data in two separate systems will become a thing of the past”.

In addition, it is promised that “analysing individual data in different applications and reports is no longer necessary”.

Currently, connections with farming applications such as Dairy Comp, Uniform-Agri, CRV and Herde already enable farmers to synchronise information about calving and inseminations between applications.

The company’s ambition is to continue to connect more partners over time, in order to hand the farmer more and more smart data.

In terms of user interface, Lely says that customised dashboards are available “when and where you need them”, adding that customers “always have control over their own data, by personally managing the data exchange approvals”.

To ensure full support in the migration to Lely Horizon, existing Lely T4C customers will be contacted by their Lely Center before the end of 2020.

The migration is planned in a phased approach, from country to country, over the year 2021.