Minister Humphreys visits McAree Engineering to review latest advancements in farm safety technology

The visit highlighted the installation of Lvlogics' innovative SiloSpi on McAree Engineering's V-Mac Silos.

Based in Co. Meath, Lvlogics has developed the SiloSpi, a cutting-edge digital silo -multi award winning, monitoring system. This system automatically informs farmers and feed mills about the quantity of animal feed remaining in silos, eliminating the need for farmers to climb to the top of silos to check levels—a hazardous practice responsible for numerous accidents over the years.

With this real-time data, feed mills can optimize their delivery schedules, reducing travel miles and delivery costs along with the associated carbon footprint. Additionally, farmers benefit from the assurance that they will not run out of essential feed supplies, enhancing animal husbandry practices.

Barry Finnegan, Managing Director of Lvlogics, explained: “We use a patented laser monitoring system that constantly records the feed level within a silo with an accuracy of +/- 5%. This information is sent to a smartphone app, allowing farmers and feed mills to know the silo's contents at anytime, anywhere. We have a significant number of systems installed across Europe, and our feed mill customers, including Kiernan Milling, Longford, Roches Mills, Limerick, *Dairygold Co-op, Cork .ForFarmers, NWF and many others in Britain , have seen significant cost savings through the improved logistics planning based on the information we provide.”

Fergal Sherry, V-Mac Silo Sales Manager, added: “We have been collaborating with Lvlogics for several years, and SiloSpi is the best solution for silo monitoring we've encountered. It is a cost-efficient and accurate system for monitoring silo contents. Its self-cleaning mechanism ensures the laser probe remains clean, maintaining accuracy.”

During the visit on Monday afternoon, Minister Humphreys stated: “I’m delighted to see two local Irish agribusiness firms come together to introduce technology that not only makes farms and feed mills more sustainable but also significantly enhances farm safety. Farming can be dangerous on many levels, and innovations like this that improve safety are very welcome. Barry and Vincent are to be commended for making this happen.”

Vincent McAree, Operations Director at McAree Engineering, added: “We have been manufacturing our V-Mac Silos for nearly 60 years, and they are a vital part of farm equipment in terms of biosecurity. Now, with the addition of SiloSpi, we are making our V-Mac Silos smart.”