ROTARY BUILDINGS

Introduction

Dairy Tech was one of the first dairy construction companies to use Duragal™ RHS Steel (a lightweight, medium tensile rectangular hollow section) for portal frames (studs and rafters) to span greater distances at less cost.

Frames

By using Duragal™ RHS Steel in octagonal rotary buildings, Dairy Tech can efficiently house 80-bail platforms with clear spans from one wall to another without posts in between.

Construction efficiency is also optimized by not requiring trusses as Dairy Tech’s design of Duragal portals can span up to 30 metres.

Walls

Outside walls between the portals are pre-cast concrete panels 1.2 to 1.5 metres high and the client chooses a surface pattern and coloured overlay for external visual appeal. Aluminium joinery sliding windows and/or see-through polycarbonate sheets are fitted above the walls to allow natural light and ventilation.

Roof

Coloursteel® long-run iron sheets on a 15 degree pitch are screw-fixed to Duragal RHS steel framing and has as standard a covered, central vent for more ventilation and natural light.

Service rooms

Service rooms for milking plant, office, tearoom and toilet plus secure crèche and storage area can be built on the side of the octagon portals to a width of 5 metres and to a length required by the client. Materials used are the same as in the octagon.

Floor

Concrete 100mm thick 25 MPA strength poured in sections on two or three levels for the outside platform area, under platform area and centre platform area.

Services

All electrical, water, pneumatic and automation lines, pipes and cables are ducted underground from source to points of operation.

Silo stands

The walls of an octagon shaped silo (vat) stand are constructed of pre-cast concrete from Dairy Tech designed moulds. They are placed onsite and plumbed by a site construction team for vat wash and overflow drainage. The silo stand floor is 250mm thick mesh-reinforced concrete, designed to meet engineers’ specifications for load bearing.

Pump ‘shed’

Dairy Tech’s preference is for vacuum and water pumps and air compressors to be sited away from the octagon in a separate Dairy Tech designed installation to reduce noise for operator comfort. All service lines are ducted underground into the octagon.

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