Planning Feedlot Infrastructure for Hotter, Drier Conditions
Hot, dry conditions aren’t new for Australian feedlots, but they do put more pressure on how infrastructure performs.
When you’re planning a covered feedlot, it’s easy to focus on the obvious question: how much area do we need to cover?
In reality, there is a lot more to work through.
Where the building sits, how it’s orientated, how air moves through it, what happens when it does rain, and how cattle, machinery and people need to move around the site all influence the final design.
Getting those decisions right early can make a big difference to how well the infrastructure works once it’s built.
Start with the site
Every feedlot is different, so there isn’t a standard building configuration that will work everywhere.
Before getting too far into spans, heights and roof profiles, look at what’s already happening on the site.
Where does the sun hit throughout the day? Which way do the prevailing winds come from? How does water move across the site? Where do cattle and machinery need to travel? And how will the new structure work with the existing pens and infrastructure?
These are some of the questions worth working through when planning a covered feedlot.
They might sound fairly basic, but they’re much easier to deal with at the start of a project than once the building has been designed.
Don’t treat orientation as an afterthought
The orientation of a covered feedlot can influence solar exposure, shade patterns and how naturally occurring air moves through the building.
But there isn’t a simple rule that says every covered feedlot should face the same direction.
Location matters. So does the size and configuration of the building, prevailing winds, the path of the sun and the layout of the existing feedlot.
We’ve gone into this in more detail in our guide to feedlot orientation, but the important thing is to consider it as part of the initial design rather than trying to make the building fit the site later.
A roof needs to do more than create shade
Providing shade is obviously a major reason for covering feedlot pens, but the roof itself is only part of the equation.
Height, width, pitch and ventilation all affect what happens underneath it.
For larger covered areas in particular, you need to think about where warm air goes and how the building can make use of natural airflow.
That might influence the height of the structure, the way the sides are treated or how ventilation is incorporated along the ridge.
We’ve covered the structural considerations in more detail in our guide to feedlot roof design.
The main point is that roof design, orientation and ventilation shouldn’t be treated as three separate decisions. They need to work together.
Think about what’s happening underneath it too
A covered feedlot still needs to function as a feedlot.
Cattle need to move. Feed needs to be delivered. Machinery needs access. Pens need to be maintained and water still needs somewhere to go when it rains.
A roof that works well on paper but gets in the way of those day-to-day activities isn’t a particularly good outcome.
Before settling on a design, it’s worth walking through how the covered area will actually operate:
- Where will cattle move?
- What machinery needs access and how much clearance does it need?
- How will feed and water infrastructure work around the structure?
- What happens to drainage when the roof is introduced?
- Where are the existing traffic routes?
- Is there anything planned for the site that the building could restrict later?
This is where talking about the operation before talking about the building becomes useful.
Don’t design it just for this summer
It’s understandable that a run of hot or dry weather can bring infrastructure investment higher up the priority list.
But the structure you’re planning now could be there for decades.
There will be wet years as well as dry ones. Cattle numbers might change. Machinery will probably get bigger. Technology will change. The feedlot itself may expand.
You don’t need to predict everything that could happen over the next 20 years, but you can avoid unnecessarily boxing yourself in.
That could mean allowing for future bays, maintaining clear machinery access or simply making sure today’s solution doesn’t prevent tomorrow’s expansion.
Make sure the investment has a job to do
With the cost of running an agricultural business under pressure, it’s reasonable to scrutinise any major capital investment.
That makes defining the purpose of the project even more important.
Instead of beginning with:
“How much will it cost to cover these pens?”
Start with:
“What do we need this infrastructure to improve?”
It might be cattle comfort. It might be weather protection, operational efficiency, future capacity or a combination of several things.
Once that’s clear, you’ve got a much better basis for deciding what the building actually needs to be.
Work it out before you build it
This thinking sits behind TechSpan’s 3C Advantage.
Concept is about understanding the project before jumping into a solution. What are you trying to achieve? What’s happening on the site? What could get in the way?
Configure is where those requirements start shaping the building. Span, height, orientation, roof configuration, ventilation, access and future expansion all come into the conversation.
Construct is when a clearly defined project moves into delivery.
It’s a fairly simple idea: work through the important decisions while they’re still easy to change.
Planning a covered feedlot?
If you’re looking at covering existing pens or planning a new feedlot facility, spend some time defining what you need the infrastructure to do before deciding exactly what it should look like.
You can read our guide to planning a covered feedlot or talk to the TechSpan team about what you’re working on.
Build Smarter.