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On the basis of data from two farms with a total of five MS Astronauts, the use of the facilities and frequency of milking were studied. The number of cows milked with one MS (capacity) and the influence of multiple milkings on the milk yield were analysed. Data was available of 675 successive days.

The individual MS are assigned to fixed groups of cows. Cows not appropriate for the automatic systems, for example freshly calved cows, and sick or lame cows were milked in the old herringbone milking parlour (2x6).

The results show that with a net milking time of about 13 hours (not including the time required for application, animal change and periods without milkflow) the systems capability was reached. It was also shown that the milking frequency went down with more than 50 cows on one MS. The cows did not use the system enough in the period from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. With a mean of 2.82 milkings per cow per day, good values were achieved.. The estimation ability gained through this study shows that the milk yield (not corrected for fat) improves by about ten percent with three milkings per day, and that it is necessary as a good management practice.