The Stradbrook Farm in Mid Canterbury, New Zealand, now has cows that milk themselves any time of the day or night; the strip grazing fences use solar power instead of human power and robotic gates open and shut alone, driven by the needs of the individual cow standing before them. Even the effluent system turns itself on and off, sorting fibre from liquid. The 5am/5pm guaranteed milking times are gone and cows are treated as individuals, no longer just a herd. Based on the success of robotic milking overseas started by Lely more than 15 years ago, Winslow purchased four Lely Astronaut A3 milking robots in July 2007 after first touring five farms overseas where they were in use.

The Astronaut robotic milkers were kinder to cows than traditional milking as it served their needs rather than the farmer's time schedule. The robots' sensors also picked up any health issues a lot more quickly than some dairy staff. Once all the cows have calved and are trained in the system the farm will be open to the public for tours from November.

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