Ashvale Station

These yards were a greenfield site build for owners of Ashvale Station, the property is located near Harlin, QLD. The cattle operation is run over a 4047 hectare property plus lease a further 5261 hectares on a joining block.

Ashvale Station manager Tim Collins said the reason why Thompson Longhorn was chosen to build the yards was “ they can offer designs with the latest technology and design concepts for safe cattle handling”.  Feedback from operators has indicted that focusing on separating staff and cattle from being in yards together, plus the use of an air-operated yards system has greatly improved livestock handling safety at Ashvale Station.

On the northern end, there are feed pens and bunks where the operation plans to create feedlot pens once approval is received by required authorities. Closer towards the yards there are drafting and weaning yards plus holding pens, then on the western side, it feeds into the cattle yards to air operated cattle drafting pound and race leading to the multi-cattle crush set-up with all air operated gates throughout the entire facility. The yards can also draft cattle five different ways without an operator needing to manual change gates, plus concrete has been stamped in all high cattle traffic areas to help drain away liquid and manure.

Increasing safety was a priority for management, the main solution was to reduce the amount that workers have to be in yards with cattle, this was done by incorporating catwalk around pens with remote operated air gates so they didn’t have to be in a yard to open and close gates behind cattle. The Ashvale Station cattle yards also have a double-deck truck ramp to increase the efficiency of loading and unloading livestock. A medium-size shade roof over the core centre equipment provides relief for workers and animals during the humid summer months.