Stallion Plastics Ltd 

Stallion Plastics recognised the need to consolidate its position as market leader for animal rearing products.

Traditionally restricted to in-house development, Stallion's new management engaged Designbrand Ltd to redesign their mobile calf feeder in conjunction with their own technical staff.

The brief to design a mobile trough feeder was staked out with two major constraints established at the outset of the project - limited resources and a stringent deadline.

The designers were to integrate the existing tooling where possible, while simplifying mechanisms, reducing component numbers and improving assembly times.

Emphasis was also placed on the ease of cleaning the product in day-to-day use, as well as towing behaviour and damage prevention.

Designbrand analysed the interaction of both the dairy farmer and the calves with Stallion's existing feeders.

From this analysis, a number of areas were identified that could be improved upon to ensure the most ergonomically correct feeding posture for the animal.

The analysis also revealed how to expand usability of the feeder for the farmer.

The new feeder design guarantees minimal breakage of teats, accurate dosage of milk and better general strength.

By using less plastic in the moulding process, the production costs were considerably less.

The footprint of the trailer was significantly reduced in size, the number of parts minimised and the assembly simplified.

Most of the valuable tooling for the tank was retained in the new design, while new tooling was designed to be fabricated in sheet metal as the most economical option.

Significantly improved product performance, reduced manufacturing costs, faster assembly and a market acceptance far exceeding Stallion's expectations.

Back to Designbrand Ltd