Case Study: Surbiton Station, Alpha

Another Central Highlands cattle farmer who had their financial woes sorted by the MACS Monitoring system is Elsie Dillon, owner of Surbiton Station Alpha.

Like Mr Zahl, Mrs Dillon also runs a large commercial herd with her two adult children, son Sean and daughter Teneille Ham.

The Dillons have incurred significant financial costs from the inconsistent flow of electricity and the constant fluctuations. So, when Mr Elliott gave her the option to install a MACS Monitoring system she jumped at the opportunity.

“We’ve got boxes on each of our two bores. They are very important to us for watering stock,” she explained.

“We were having a lot of trouble with the submersible pumps but since we had them installed 16 months ago, we haven’t had any problems.”

Before installing the device, the Dillons had to replace one submersible pump at great expense and pay to have another repaired.

The nearest supplier was over 200kms away. When they had to wait long periods of time for parts or labourers to assist, it risked taking them “down to the wire with water”.

“Since we’ve had the two (MACS Monitoring) boxes it eliminates the fluctuation and it has significantly reduced our electricity bills. What we’re paying now is a lot less than what we were paying before we had the installed,” she said.

“I think they’re worth their wait in gold. If we didn’t have these boxes installed who knows how many more pumps, we would’ve had to replace.”

This farmer’s story appeared in Queensland Country Life, 06/04/20