Establish what you want and what you need

This article was featured in our West Cork Farming 2026 magazine – you can read the full magazine here!

Visit other farms, talk to farmers, attend discussion groups, open days etc.

There’s a lot of information and experience in the locality, avail of it to inform your own project and improve the outcome. 

Planning and design

Cork-based Grasstec Group – experts in farmyard design – says it’s important to be clear on: 

What are you building? Eg milking parlour, slatted house, cubicle shed, calf house, slurry storage or silage pit

Site and location: Is it a greenfield site? Is it an extension or a modification to an existing building/yard?

Size: factors include cow numbers, site location

Planning permission and compliance: Do you need planning permission/retention on all building? 

Safety measures: use of mass concrete walls for silage pits or feed storage etc. Agitation points for slurry storage must be external for safety

Budget: Be clear on funds to avoid having to cut corners towards the end of the project.

Hidden costs include site preparation, surveys, design changes, landscaping. 

The financial plan should project cash flow for several years to ensure the business can meet repayments and living expenses

Grant applications

Once planning is secured (this takes three months) the very next step is to contact your agri advisor, says David Walsh, Barryroe Co-op’s farm advisor and then get your builder in place. 

Grants of up to 40% are available for farm building projects and 60% for slurry storage (which has to be increased by 20% b 2028) and David, and other advisors, will advise on what capital investment scheme to apply under (eg young farmer; animal welfare etc). Note, however, that grants are paid according to the department’s costings, and not the farmers. 

Be realistic with timelines: grant approval can take anything from 3-6 months and approval is not always guaranteed. Some schemes are oversubscribed and are paid on a marking scheme with less marks going to intensive farmers etc. 

Absolutely no works can begin until approval is secured and a pre-approval inspection can take place. 

Payment is made within 6-12 months on completion of works. That’s why it’s vital not to finance the project from cash flow, or short-term finance. Give yourself time and space, and avoid potential financial stress, advises David. 

It all takes time. Start thinking about a project up to 12 months before you’d like to begin, he says. 

Common pitfalls (according to Grasstec Group)

Design:

Facing an open-ended shed southwest (the direction of 70% of wind and rain in regions like Ireland) creates a cold, wet environment that harms livestock health.Having new cubicles or parlour without a master yard layout makes daily tasks difficult and labour-intensive.

Leaving the cattle crush or handling unit as an afterthought instead of integrating it at the design stage. 

Sizing & Structural Errors:

• Skimping on height to save money often prevents modern machinery ie silage grab, loader from entering safely.
• Designing passages too narrow (eg under 4m) 

Planning & Compliance:

Assuming a building is an exempted development without checking all criteria—such as being at least 100m from a neighbour’s house or not exceeding height limits.

Submitting plans that are not to scale or have inaccurate red lines for the site boundary can cause immediate refusal and wasted costs.

Failing to check for underground gas/water lines or forgetting the mandatory two-month notice for work near overhead electricity lines. 

Financial & Strategic:

Underestimating hidden costs: getting a quote that excludes essential drainage, site prep, or internal finishes like electrical sockets.

Sustainability innovations to consider:

Rainwater Harvesting & Greywater Recycling: Beyond just collecting water, modern designs can incorporate greywater recycling for non-potable uses like floor cleaning. This reduces dependency on local supplies and minimises operational costs.

Solar Panels mounted on roof of milking parlour or shed depending on position. Grant aid of 60% is available but David Walsh of Barryroe Co-op says only one in four grant applications for solar panels are currently successful as the scheme is over subscribed. 

Realising the plan

It is extremely important to engage a good builder, considering the capital investment and to seek trusted advice throughout.

Paudie Keohane of Keohane Readymix says: ‘Farmers frequently consult us during early discussions for advice on the most effective way to achieve the end goal by means of forward planning and value engineering the proposed project. A phased approach allows farmers to manage cash flow, align works with grant approvals and ensure each stage supports the overall vision for the farm.’

He says it’s rare to see a farmer regret investing in infrastructure: ‘Developments are usually designed to improve efficiency and compliance, and ultimately make farmers’ lives easier.

I always advise to go big with slurry storage.

We have returned to numerous farms just a few years after completing a project to extend storage.

It is significantly more cost-effective to build additional capacity at the outset than to retrofit later. With evolving environmental regulations and increasingly unpredictable weather patterns, slurry often needs to be stored for longer periods.

If you take a winter like we’ve just had, opportunities for spreading slurry have been very limited since the opening of the season, requiring farmers to have extra capacity.

Planning for greater storage from day one provides security, flexibility and future-proofs the investment.’