There’s an app for that… (Feb 26)
- CowManagement
- 11 hours ago
- 4 min read
We find out more about a producer-focused app that’s been developed to reduce paperwork and dig deeper into dairy costs
TEXT BEN PIKE
Mention the term ‘efficiency’ and most producers will relate it to feed intake, energy use, or getting the most value from other key inputs
But the same mindset rarely applies when it comes to the daily running of dairy businesses, particularly the back-office admin that occupies so much of producers’ headspace.
At a time when the milk market is softening, two farming cousins from Scotland are urging producers to adopt technology that enables them to get a better handle on costs, while also consigning paper-based records relating to staff hours, holiday records, and contracting work, to the bin.
John and James Fairlie’s Yokit app replaces hand-written timesheets, holiday forms and vital invoicing information with one simple system that the whole team can access. Saving time in the office is a clearly a key benefit for all producers, but the cousins say the current pressure on milk prices means the app’s ability to analyse data to keep a keen eye on costs is particularly vital both now and going forward.
“We’ve created the most efficient way to manage staff, bill customers and keep accurate records. It’s the same efficiency logic that producers apply to rearing the best heifers and maximising milk production,” says John. “But we’re applying it to an area of the dairy business that most owners will view as a burden because it’s not the day-to-day running of the herd and unit.”
Digital timesheets
The Yokit app can be used on a phone or accessed via desktop. While businesses buy the subscription, all members of staff can use it on a daily basis. Digital timesheets are the most common and popular reason for adoption by producers so far.
“Take a typical example of a member of staff working during a busy calving period,” says John. “They could be called upon at any time of day or night, and there’s no knowing how long a job is going to take if they are dealing with a difficult calving. They could be doing overtime too.
“By the time that person gives their hours for the week, the chances are it’s going to be written on a scrap of paper and they won’t remember accurately what they did or for how long they did it for.
“Using the app, they can create a worklog that details exactly what they did and for how long. It takes seconds and it’s foolproof. That record goes straight into the platform for the dairy manager or business owner to approve for payroll,” he explains.
Developing the app was the result of the pair’s own frustrations with running family farms in Angus. John manages Balmirmer Farms, a mixed enterprise with potatoes, cereals, oilseed rape, breeding ewes and a suckler herd. James runs Fairlie Farms, centred on potatoes and combinable crops, plus a 500-kilowatt biogas plant.
From looking at their own businesses, and that of their peers, they both saw how much time was lost to poor record-keeping and missing job tickets. James says the need for change became even more obvious during contracting work.
Time saving
“If one of my operators was out drilling or ploughing for a neighbour, I’d get a note scrawled on a bit of paper, and two weeks later I’d be trying to remember what it meant, and how much I said I would charge,” he says. “Now everything goes straight into Yokit in the field. The data’s there, the invoice goes out faster, and everyone’s paid correctly. It saves hours every week.
“The app is also good for tracking holidays and making sure there is enough staff power. Ensuring staff cover for busy periods is also critical and Yokit’s holiday tracker makes that easy,” adds James.
Dairy producers who contract farm on behalf of neighbours or other local customers can see additional benefits when using the app.
“There are a number of different types of specialist agri-contractors focused on the dairy industry,” says John. “There is increasingly high usage of contractors to carry out silage and slurry work, as well as harvesting grass and maize in the busy summer months.”
As well as managing worklogs and holidays, a tractor operator can log which customer’s field they went into, the amount of fuel used, and the time taken to complete a job. This is filled out when they leave the field and can be used to populate an invoice to a customer.
“This is a useful feature that makes it really clear to any customer you’re contracting for exactly what you did, and when you did it,” adds James. “I can click a button and create an invoice straight away, if I want to.
“This field information is stored so we can look back on when a crop was drilled, what fertiliser use, when it was harvested, and even what machinery and implements were used. This helps to create an accurate picture of how much work equipment has done, or what happened in a particular field in a certain year.”
John and James have set up a free trial offer for producers so they can see how the Yokit app could fits into their business and make a real difference.
“The agricultural industry has adopted GPS steering, variable rate applications and nitrogen sensors because the value is clear and the cost savings justify the investment,” says John.
“It’s the same principal with digitalising the way staff hours, holidays and the jobs carried out for customers are recorded,” he adds.
Key features
· WORKLOGS: the daily activity of each staff member is captured as a worklog. Operators log jobs as they go so that managers can see live costs and generate invoices for work completed. The data feeds into detailed reports which can be created to assess fuel efficiency, equipment hours, and labour costs, providing an up-to-the-minute picture of a farm’s performance
· HOLIDAYS: tracks holidays and shift patterns to make sure there's always enough staff available
· COST ANALYSIS: see the live cost of each farm task completed
· INVOICES: any work carried out for third parties can be invoiced at the click of a button
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