4,500 hours saved

BRODHEAD, Wis. — When faced with an aging foundation beneath a parlor burdened by inefficiency, the Wenger family carefully weighed their options. Ultimately, Zach, Mark, Mike and Sam Wenger decided the best route for their third-generation farm near Brodhead was to install a 40-stall rotary parlor to milk their 380-cow herd.

The first milking in their new rotary took place February 6, 2025, and over the last 14 months, the Wengers have saved over 4,500 hours in milking time. Cutting that time in the parlor has been crucial for a farm that also does cash cropping and custom work, as well as raising the fourth generation of Wengers on the farm.

“When we were looking at parlors, we knew we needed to be more efficient,” Zach Wenger said. “In our old parlor, it took us 8.5 hours to milk.
When someone would call out, it would completely alter your plans for the day. Now it takes about three hours; that’s a completely different day.”

The family considered robots, but the numbers did not pencil out.  For the same cost as the rotary, they could have put in four robots, but that would have given them capacity to only milk 240 cows, Wenger said. It did not make economic sense when their freestall barn holds 400.

At that point, the Wengers spoke with Tri-County Dairy Supply Inc. about replacing their deteriorating double-9 parabone parlor. The parlor was built in 2001 on the same foundation as the farm’s original parlor, which was destroyed by a barn fire two years prior.

“We had been working with Tri-County for a few years and had been considering the Dairymaster rotary,” Wenger said. “Rather than competing with an old-fashioned parlor, the rotary is very labor efficient. We priced everything out and looked at a few operations. We took our time to decide what we wanted.”

All the parts and components of the Dairymaster parlor are produced by Dairymaster itself, an element that was important to Wengers. All parts can be ordered or purchased through one company, in lieu of multiple companies with multiple parts, where inconsistencies can be found.

On April 30, 2024, the first dirt was shoveled as the team prepared for their new milking system. Individual contractors handled the plumbing, concrete and electrical work. The Wengers served as their own general contractors, putting up the walls, roof and tin.

“My dad and my cousin, Sam, are more engineering-minded,” Wenger said. “They did a lot as far as the general contracting of the building. We all helped, but they set us up. I’m really happy with the ability for us to do that. It saved a lot of money.”

The Wengers bought into the unique aesthetic that a rotary parlor can provide, shaping their new building in a round design. The new parlor features a black roof with red siding, in a rounded shape that gives the exterior a distinct, authentic look.

Inside, the Wengers installed the plywood in the utility room and the plastic that comprises the inside of the parlor on the walls and ceiling. All the tin on the exterior was also installed by the Wengers.

“Building the rounded parts was a little more challenging and interesting to put up,” Wenger said. “There were times when we were building in the fall that we thought, ‘Boy, this would have been a lot easier if we just went square,’ but I really like how it turned out.”

The crew from Dairymaster arrived in November 2024. With two semi-loads of parts, they worked every day for three weeks, and the bare cement structure was fully assembled. Tri-County Dairy Supply assisted with the efforts.

“Shane Olson of Tri-County was instrumental in lining up everything with Dairymaster,”  Wenger said. “Because they built that parlor in three weeks, they were on a tight schedule. He was here every day, just working on getting things laid out. He helped us out and continues to help us.”

Looking back, Wenger said he feels the project went really well.

“In the moment, there were days when you felt the stress of it,” he said. “Towards the end of the year, in the fall, with all the crop work, it was a push to get everything finished, but we got it done.”