M²erlin Milking Robot vs Astronaut A5 Next
Two robotic barn machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
The independent alternative to the big-three milking robots — Fullwood (milking robots since 1996, rebranded from Fullwood JOZ) has built the M²erlin since 2014 around an open box, natural walk-through entrance/exit and a quiet electric robot arm. Ten years of incremental upgrades include TDS2 laser udder recognition (2020), FullCount real-time somatic cell counting (2021) and the FULLSENSE software platform (2023). Hundreds of farms run it worldwide; the Meridian variant does robotic batch milking in groups.
Best for: Dairy farms wanting a low-stress open-box robot with per-quarter monitoring from a long-established independent maker, or batch-milking herds (Meridian) that keep parlour-style routines with robot labour.Robotic milking system — cows milk on their own schedule around the clock; the A5 Next (June 2025) adds a new OS with over-the-air updates, laser+camera teat detection and an automatic milk filter.
Best for: Dairy herds of 50–120 cows seeking to cut milking labour and lift yield per cow.| M²erlin Milking Robot Verified 2026-07-16 | Astronaut A5 Next Verified 2026-07-16 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Robotic barn | Robotic barn |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom | Netherlands |
| Availability | Available now | Available now |
| EU market | CE-marked | CE-marked |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | ~20 wk |
| Last verified | 2026-07-16 | 2026-07-16 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Mains electric; energy-efficient electric (non-pneumatic) robot arm | Mains electric · vacuum + compressed air |
| Required tractor power | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| Dimensions | Open-box design with natural straight-through cow entrance and exit | Single box ~3.5 × 2.5 m footprint |
| Weight | Fixed installation | Fixed installation |
| Min farm size | Not disclosed | 50 cows / unit |
| Productivity | Higher milkings per cow per day claimed vs conventional parlour routines | ~60 cows per robot |
| Max speed | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| Sensors | TDS2 laser teat/udder recognition · FullQuestFC per-quarter conductivity · FullCount real-time somatic cell count sensor · AfiCollar ID integration | Laser + camera teat detection · milk MDi sensors · cow ID |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | Not disclosed | €165,000 per unit, installed (indicative) |
| Native price | Not disclosed | €165,000 |
| Business model | Buy via Fullwood dealer network worldwide | Buy · finance; national livestock-modernisation grants |
| Ongoing cost | Service contract; liners and consumables; software/herd-management subscription terms not disclosed | €4,500/yr service; consumables + energy |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Milking frequency Higher number of milkings per cow per day (voluntary traffic) · vendor | Milking labour −73% · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | CE marked | CE marked |
| Machinery Regulation | Placed on the EU/UK markets by Fullwood under the applicable machinery regimes | Compliant — Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 |
| CAP subsidy | Eligible under rural-development livestock schemes in several member states | Eligible under rural-development livestock schemes |
"—" means the manufacturer has not disclosed the figure; we never estimate silently. Model either machine's payback with your own numbers on its ROI calculator page.