Assessment of technical-productive aspects in Italian dairy farms equipped with automatic milking systems: A multivariate statistical analysis approach.

The aim of this study was to assess technical-productive aspects of dairy farms equipped with automatic milking system (AMS) in Northern and Central Italy. A survey was carried out on 62 dairy farms selected through convenience sampling with the following inclusion criteria: adoption of robotic milking for at least 1 yr and ability to provide farm data. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire to obtain a general description of farm characteristics and overall management practices. Through the combination of principal component analysis and k-means cluster analysis, the farms were allocated in 3 clusters. The identified clusters were described and afterward compared using one-way ANOVA or a chi-squared test. The main observed differences between clusters were the average number of lactating cows and AMS installed, average annual milk production, average AMS loading, average annual milk yield per full-time employee, average daily milk yield per cow and AMS, and the average annual veterinary costs per cow. cluster 1 (n = 24) included small-to-medium-sized semi-intensive farms with low AMS loading and low average daily milk yield per cow. In this farm typology, the AMS is not fully used and is likely perceived as a means to improve quality of life rather than profitability. Clusters 2 (n = 31) and 3 (n = 7) included, respectively, small-medium-sized and large intensive farms. These 2 farm typologies are characterized by an intensive approach to dairy cattle breeding, with average higher AMS loading, labor efficiency, and milk yield compared with the farms of cluster 1, likely due to better farm management. This classification could help dairy technicians give farmers customized management advice for the function of the cluster they belong to, and farmers falling in a specific cluster could evaluate whether they are reaching their objectives.

Personal and occupational factors contributing to biomechanical risk of the distal upper limb among dairy workers in the Lombardy region of Italy.

Biomechanical overload in the wrist flexor and extensor muscles, together with awkward hand positions during work activities, can result in occupational wrist and hand disorders. Dairy workers, specifically those that work in the milking parlor, are exposed to highly repetitive and forceful exertions of the upper limb throughout their work shift. There are very few studies that have investigated the determinants that contribute to the risk of distal upper limb musculoskeletal disorders among dairy workers. The purpose of the present study was to identify the variables affecting the biomechanical overload of the distal upper limb among milking parlor workers, define risk profiles, and propose possible interventions to reduce the high physical loads to the distal upper limb during milking activities. Forty male workers from the three most common milking parlor systems in Lombardy Italy were recruited to participate in this study. Multiple correspondence analysis of personal characteristics and occupational risk factors, followed by cluster analysis, led to the identification of three distinct groups of workers. Low, medium and high risk profiles were assigned to each group based on the risk assessments performed using the Strain Index and electromyography of the distal upper limb. The main risk determinants were workstation characteristics, work organization and milking routine. A well-organized milking routine, milking cluster weight below 2.4 kg or the use of supporting arms for the milking cluster may reduce the risk of biomechanical overload.