Future-proof your farm with an
off-paddock facility
Every build is custom-designed around your farm, your herd, and your goals. From feed pads and composting barns to free stall barns and NuSpan timber shelters — we handle the full design and construction process, so you get a facility that works from day one.
Compare the range
Pick the system that fits your farm.
Seven off-paddock systems span the full range — from low-cost short-term stand-off pads through to fully-housed free-stall barns. Each card below opens the full breakdown: cost per cow, m² requirements, cleaning schedule, equipment needs, and a real-farm story where we have one.
$1,200–1,500/cow
Mono Pitch Composting Barn
Cost-effective dual-purpose calving barn and feedpad. Designed for small-to-medium herds wanting low-investment off-paddock options through high-pressure periods of the year.
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$2,500–3,000/cow
Centre Pole Composting Barn
Winter and feed all animals at the same time. Reverse-engineered with cost-efficient beam length and minimal poles — easier bedding-pack maintenance and the most cost-effective complete wintering setup we build.
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$2,500–2,800/cow
Centre Lane Composting Barn
Feed the whole herd year-round and winter half of them under one roof. The centre lane lifts feeding throughput, protects feed from weather, and splits into four for calving, springer, and milker mobs side by side.
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$1,200–1,500/cow
Uncovered Feedpad
Short-term stand-off for 1–5 days. Protect pasture from pugging, lift feed utilisation, and reduce daily losses without the capital outlay of a covered system.
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$—/cow
Centre Pole Feedpad
Covered feeding on a centre-pole roof — feed the herd out of the weather without the cost of a full composting barn. Keeps feed and stock protected from rain and summer heat, lifts utilisation, and holds the pad workable through the wettest months.
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$1,300–2,500/cow
Uncovered Loafing Pad
All the feedpad benefits, plus winter housing for up to 8 weeks. Flood-wash cleaning keeps daily maintenance to 5 minutes — ideal for wintering, calving prep, and pasture recovery.
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$2,800–3,300/cow
Covered Loafing Pad
Year-round shelter from rain, frost, and summer heat. The most robust pad-based housing we build — substantial cow comfort gains over uncovered, with the same flood-wash simplicity.
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$5,000–7,500/cow
Free Stall Barn
High-input, high-production housing for 365-day operation. Individual rubber beds, automatic cleaning, no composting maintenance — a different farming philosophy, not an upgrade.
See full detailsMono PitchComposting Barn
Cost-effective system that works as both a calving barn and feedpad. Ideal for small-to-medium herds looking for a low investment that still provides options for high-pressure parts of the year. The lower m² per cow demands disciplined management of the composting bed.
Cost-effective dual-purpose calving barn and feedpad. Low investment with high-pressure-period options.
Creaming It Farm
A hybrid composting barn for 250 cows on Willie and Sally Bosch's farm — mono-pitch roof, 12 m central loafing/compost area, feed faces on both sides. First-season wins: 30% less pasture damage, milk solids up from about 1.9 to just over 2.0 per cow, and they haven't picked up a mastitis cow since mid-August. The barn captures all effluent — no pond needed.
"On the first morning, not a single cow was standing — they were all laying down. It paid for itself already."— Willie Bosch, Creaming It Farm
Centre PoleComposting Barn
Designed to winter and feed all animals at the same time — ideal for those wanting the most cost-effective complete wintering solution. The barn is reverse-engineered with the most cost-efficient beam length and minimal poles, making maintenance of the bedding pack easier without having to work around obstacles. Extras like bigger overhangs and enclosed gable ends can be added as budget allows.
Cost-effective complete wintering. Reverse-engineered for minimal poles and easy bedding-pack maintenance.
Centre LaneComposting Barn
Feed the whole herd year-round and winter half of them under one roof. The centre lane maximises feeding throughput and protects feed during weather events to reduce wastage. Designed with operational efficiency in mind — split the barn into four to run calving, springers, and milker mobs all at once.
Year-round feeding plus half-herd wintering. Split into four mobs for calving, springers, and milkers running side by side.
Willesden Farms
A 300-hectare dairy conversion in Banks Peninsula's Kaituna Valley, centred on a 31 m × 185 m NuSpan laminated-timber composting barn. The barn winters 550–650 non-milking cows in June and July, and is designed to shelter up to 800 during adverse weather. It captures all effluent (no pond), cuts the farm's environmental footprint by 46%, and pays back in five years with structure modelled to last 50+ years.
"We were really attracted to it because it was cost efficient, highly durable."— Matt Iremonger, General Manager
UncoveredFeedpad
Designed for short-term stand-off of 1–5 days, with minimal ongoing costs while still protecting your pasture. Relatively low input. Gives the key benefits of pasture protection and increased feed utilisation without requiring a substantial capital outlay or daily maintenance burden.
Low input with minimal ongoing costs. Protects pasture and lifts feed utilisation for short-term stand-off.
Borrie's Feed Pad
Scott Richmond moved from Southland to manage Rogan and Michelle Borrie's 500-cow operation on a 124-hectare farm, and they now run cows on a feed pad full-time. Feeding 500 cows takes about an hour to an hour and a half. Daily scraping and washing the pad is manageable in 45 minutes to an hour. Mastitis, often a concern in confined systems, is "slim to none."
"On a perfect day, it's hard to choose between the two, but on a bad day, I'd definitely choose the pad — no doubt about that."— Scott Richmond, Borrie's Feed Pad
UncoveredLoafing Pad
All of the feedpad's benefits, plus the ability to winter cows. With flood wash there's minimal daily maintenance outside of 2–3 washes a day. The longer loafing window — up to eight weeks — opens up wintering, calving prep, and pasture recovery use cases.
All feedpad benefits plus the ability to winter cows. With flood wash, just 5 minutes daily maintenance.
CoveredLoafing Pad
The most robust pad-based housing system — year-round protection from weather and heat. A capital step up from the uncovered pads, but the gains in cow comfort are substantial. The roof transforms the pad from a wintering tool into a year-round shelter that performs through summer heat as well.
The most robust pad-based housing system. Year-round protection from weather and heat.
Jersey Girl Farm
Jersey Girl Farm upgraded its infrastructure with a Numat-built feed / wintering pad surface using a flood wash system and Siesta rubber bedding. Each barn is 26 metres wide and gets flushed with 60,000 litres of greenwash water in under five minutes. Effluent is captured in a 160,000-litre sump and pumped back for reuse. The team now flood-washes three times a day, saving approximately five hours of labour daily versus the previous setup.
"The initial feedback has been amazing. Cows are comfy, dry, and clean. It's saving them five hours of labour a day compared to last year in the composting barn."— Bart Geypen, Construction Manager
Free StallBarn
A high-input, high-production system. Designed for maximum output without composting barn maintenance. Individual rubber beds, automatic cleaning, year-round housing. The capital and operating profile is in a different league — this isn't an upgrade on a composting barn, it's a different farming philosophy.
High-input, high-production system. Maximum output without composting barn maintenance.
Let's price it right
Talk to us about your farm.
Every farm is different. Tell us about your herd, your land, and what you’re trying to solve.
We’ll work out which system makes sense for you and what it’ll cost.
Why NumatAGRI
Built around your farm. Managed start to finish.
No two farms are the same. Numat designs every solution with the farmer — around the land, the stock, and the goals.
Your farm shapes the design.
Location, layout, challenges, and long-term goals all feed into how we spec every project.
We manage the whole job.
Design, consents, construction, and handover — all handled by one team.
One contact throughout.
You always know who to call.
Infrastructure built to last.
Durable, low-maintenance builds that work for cows, pasture, and your bottom line.
Outcomes we never compromise on.
Efficiency, ROI, animal welfare, environmental impact, and durability are the benchmarks on every project.
Built around your farm. Every project is different, and we treat it that way.
The Timber Edge
NuSpan engineered timber. Strong, warm, and built for the realities of farming.
Most sheds are steel. NuSpan gives you a better option — one that handles the demands of farm life without the drawbacks.
Built for effluent-heavy environments.
NuSpan engineered timber handles moisture without corroding, making it well suited to dairy and feedlot settings.
Warmer look and feel.
Timber creates a softer, more comfortable space for stock and workers alike.
Up to 20% more cost-effective than steel.
The same structural performance, at a lower build cost.
50-plus year lifespan.
Engineered for the long run, not just the next decade.
Eco-friendly by nature.
A renewable material that reduces the carbon footprint of your build without adding to your budget.
NuSpan does it better.
