Labour and machinery costings

Diss Monitor Farm meeting

AHBD's machinery expert Harry Henderson will lead a workshop on how to review spending in this area. Use tools, including the machinery cost calculator, to assess how much you're spending per hour. We will also discuss ways you can minimise costs and streamline your business.

Refreshments, including lunch will be provided.

Speakers

• Harry Henderson, Knowledge Exchange Technical Manager, AHDB
• Simon Wearmouth and Henry Treloar, Brown & Co

Programme

• Registration and sandwhich lunch
• Welcome and introduction: Teresa Meadows, AHDB
• Farm update: Richard Ling, Diss Monitor Farmer
• Introduction to session: Harry Henderson, AHDB
• Labour and machinery reviews – an overview: Simon Wearmouth and Henry Treloar, Brown & Co
  • Why is it important to do a review?
  • Benefits for the farm business
  • How the was review conducted
  •  Talk through the calculations
  • Explain how the results are presented
• Machinery costings – Group discussion: facilitated by AHDB, Brown & Co, Richard Ling
  • Tractor (cost/hr)
  • Drilling operation (cost/ha)
  • Combine (cost/ha)
  • Sprayer (cost/ha)
• Refreshment break
• Total arable machine cost per hectare discussion
• Harry Henderson with Richard Ling
• Budget machinery replacement policy: group discussion
• Meeting summary and close: Teresa Meadows, AHDB
• Depart

For more information:
Please contact Teresa Meadows by e-mail teresa.meadows@ahdb.org.uk or call 07387 015465.

Diss Monitor Farm

Richard Ling farms 400 ha on varied soil types from sandy loam to heavy clay loams. His arable rotation, on 380 ha, includes wheat, oilseed rape, winter barley for feed or spring malting barley. The farm employs one full time member of staff and casual labour when required. Richard mainly operates a min-till system but assesses each field based on soil health. The farm also has a beef finishing unit for Morrisons, aiming to finish 150 British Blues per year; business and residential lets; and a self-storage business. Richard’s ambition is to carry on building a resilient and profitable farming business, with a good work-life balance for all. Through being a monitor farmer, Richard is keen to learn with others and better understand the industry and the challenges facing it.

About Monitor Farms

AHDB Monitor Farms bring together groups of like-minded farmers who wish to improve their businesses by sharing performance information and best practice around a nationwide network of host farms. AHDB organises and facilitates Monitor Farm meetings for farmers, who own and operate the scheme – by farmers, for farmers. Monitor Farms are part of the AHDB Farm Excellence Programme. Each Monitor Farm project runs for three years.