Poultry Hub -

SARDI

Wednesday, 15th December 2010

The South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) is a research and development institute delivering innovation to enhance the food, fibre and bioscience industries and living environmental systems in southern Australia. SARDI pursues excellence through highly skilled scientists, post-graduates students and technicians supported by state-of-the-art advanced research facilities at 16 locations throughout the State. Regional sites provide significant regional employment, community capacity, technology transfer and industry development. Programs focus on innovative, cost-effective technologies to meet emerging market needs that underpin internationally competitive and ecologically sustainable industries.

SARDI is a Participant in the Poultry CRC.

SARDI poultry research

Poultry research facilities at SARDI’s Pig and Poultry Production Institute are available for research in areas such as poultry nutrition, physiology, welfare, housing, husbandry and behaviour. The facilities comprise of an AME bioassay facility, broiler grow-out facility, layer facility and a shelter suitable for free range layer studies. Ancillary facilities also include cool room, freezer facilities and a registered abattoir, that enables on-site processing and storage of poultry and eggs.

AME bioassay facility

The apparent metabolisable energy (AME) bioassay facility includes five, purpose built, temperature controlled rooms for rearing chickens, AME determination and digestive physiology studies, and subsequent grow-out of broilers to market weight. AME determination is conducted routinely as part of research projects and services to industry. The AME bioassay unit includes 96 single metabolism cages and 96 group cages with 4-6 birds per cage. Areas within the unit can be utilised for collecting digesta samples from various gut sections as part of digestive physiology studies.

Broiler facility

Large scale broiler grow out facility

A state of the art, fully environment controlled broiler shed is used to conduct large scale broiler grow out studies. The shed is divided into 48, 2.6 x 4.2 metre floor pens with a capacity for up to 100 birds per pen. The specialised broiler growth research facility incorporates the following features:

Highly insulated roof and walls constructed from sandwich panels (75 mm thick in roof, 50 mm in walls)
Whole of house heating by two gas-fired brooders (one at each end of the shed) supplied from a large capacity storage tank on site
Cross flow ventilation with four 1200 mm fans and two 630 mm fans
Internal air mixing with four 800 mm fans
Evaporative cooling pads (36 metres in length, 1000 mm high, and 100 mm thick) positioned on the side opposite to the extraction fans
Adjustable air inlet flaps for control of flow into the shed
Incandescent dimmable lights
Programmable logic controller for integration of heating, cooling, and ventilation, and for lighting programs able to be connected to a modem for remote computer access for data logging and for reprogramming of the logic controller in the event of equipment malfunction or failure
Diesel-powered back-up generator
Back-up supply of water for drinking and cooling
Independent alarm system connected to automatic telephone dialler.

Layer facility

Layer research facilities available for experimental studies with laying hens include a controlled environment layer shed with capacity for 5,000 birds and two separate temperature controlled rooms for up to 300 hens in single cages. The layer shed currently contains 96 Harrison “welfare” back-to-back, single-tier, double cages with 8 birds per double cage (total capacity 768 hens). Programmable controllers control the operation of lights and provide thermostatic control of the evaporative cooling system. The two separate air conditioned rooms presently contain a total of 168 single cages for hens. Back-up facilities include an independent diesel power generator, a back-up water supply and an “over temperature” alarm system connected to automatic telephone dialler. Cameras, recorders, data logging and computer-based equipment are available for bird behaviour studies.

Free range layer facility

Free range layer shelter

The outdoor shelter suitable for free range layer studies is constructed of light steel framework and covered by high ultra violet protective shade cloth. The shelter is partitioned into four identical quadrants each having feeders, drinkers, nest boxes, perches and a mechanically operated curtain to enable manipulation of ventilation. Each quadrant provides access to a separate 0.5 hectare paddock for grazing. The shelter can house a total of 240 hens.