The building of Kelly and Lyn Symmans' new milking shed was a real family job.

Lyn and Kelly Symmans (front) in the pit with Campbell Wheeler, son Sam Symmans and farm worker Bob Tepairi.

Kelly did much of the construction himself with the help of their son Sam, their daughter Katie and partner - builder Campbell Wheeler, and farm worker Bob Tepairi. Kelly's father Brother Symmans was also roped in, along with daughter Amy and her partner, Matt Pethybridge, who did welding, and youngest daughter Emily. Peter Pethybridge was the blocklayer.
'All the kids helped out where they could,” says Kelly.
It was Lyn's job to make sure the workers were well fed and watered and to hold the fort at home while the boys pulled the odd all-nighter to get the job done on time.
The Symmans, who call their operation Supermoo Ltd, have lived in the Galatea valley at Murupara for 16 years. When they arrived, the family had planned to stay for just five years, until the children when to college.
'But we loved it so much we stayed. It's a really neat community. It's beautiful with all the hills and we've got a river in the back of the farm,” says Lyn.
When they first bought the farm it was 72 hectares but they have since purchased neighbouring land to take the property up to 100ha. They also currently lease a further 17ha.
The couple currently run 300 Friesians and Friesian-crosses but with the new shed they hope to increase that number to 400 during the next few years.
The reason for building a new shed was simple.
'The old one was stuffed,” says Kelly.
'We were spending up to four hours milking per milking last season. The old 18-a-side was closed in and the cows had to turn 180 degrees out of the front, which slowed things down pretty badly.
'It was always a struggle when the inspector came.”

A new shed has been in the family's plans for some time. They built a new yard and vat stand about five years ago as the first step towards their goal.
The new dairy is a 40-a-side herringbone.
'It's a bit of over-kill at the moment but we've done a little bit of future-proofing.”
The Symmans chose to build a herringbone shed because of its simplicity and lower cost compared to a rotary. The style also enabled them to do a lot of the work themselves.
'Campbell did all the boxing, got the levels right and built the rooms. We did it all ourselves other than the concrete layers during the main pour. We did all the small pours ourselves. It saved money,” says Kelly.
'I don't think we forgot anything and we didn't spend a lot of time planning either – just lunchtimes.
'So far I think there is only a couple of things I'd do differently. I think a cow shed should last forever if you build it right.”
The wet weather gear proved essential, as after a big dry the previous summer, it rained almost non-stop during construction.
The Symmans chose to install a Waikato Milking Systems Supa 4 system, installed by Bay Milking Equipment Ltd.
Dave Cassells of WMS says Kelly urgently needed to source a good standard milking system that would ensure he had trouble-free milking well into the future.
'He was pleasantly surprised when Waikato could deliver on time in a high-pressure year for the entire milking machine industry.”
The Supa 4 system chosen has Waikato NT24 Pulsation, G2 jetters with swing down brackets, 320 claws with a five-year bowl guarantee, and standard shells with standard large bore liners.
The machine has an industrial plate cooler and a BP400 blower with an 11kw smart air VSD vacuum pump controller.
'It was assembled to reflect Kelly's requirements for a low maintenance, high performing milking machine able to provide hassle-free milking and the ability to add automation down the track, if required.”
'We wanted functionality, not flashiness,” says Kelly.
'Waikato Milking Systems were really good. We're really happy with them.
'They and Bay Milking Equipment just came and did it and never held us up. They were the best price too.
'They were happy to work around us and go away for a while until we got things ready for them. We have absolutely no complaints about them.”
The refrigeration system was supplied by DTS.
Two 30,000 litre water tanks were installed.
A Wetit teat spraying system was installed after the majority of the work was completed. Kelly would also like to put in a heat exchanger eventually.
A Protrack electronic drafting system enables Kelly to draft cows that need special attention. He has chosen a basic system that can be upgraded later on.
Protrack's Tim Sandbrook even had input into the final layout of the shed, advising Kelly on how to improve cow flow on entry and exit.
'I'm here to make sure our system works properly but often the farmer ends up with a much better design than without Protrack,” says Tim.
One unusual thing about the Symmans' shed is that it had to be built to enable their irrigator to go over the shed.
'We couldn't go too high for that reason.”
The effluent sump is also built low so they don't have to pump out of the pit – it is all gravity fed.
'The more pumps you have, the more trouble you have. We haven't really got a water table here, so we could just dig the tanks down.”
The new shed has significantly reduced milking times, down to an hour to an hour and a quarter per milking. It is also lighter, cooler and more open. The cows are more relaxed because of the improved plant, cup alignment and flow through the shed. Not having to stand around in the yard for four hours a day helps too.
Kelly plans to use the time he has gained to finish off all the half-done projects around the farm.
'It's just about getting everything to run smoothly and more labour efficiently. Eventually I'd like to get out of the shed but there's no great rush. It's a lot more tolerable now.”