Land Watch Customer Stories
REDHILL, COOLAC
Andy Graham, a fifth-generation Merino sheep and Angus cattle farmer from Adjungbilly NSW, was struggling with theft and trespassing on his family property.
Andy’s main problems were not uncommon in rural NSW and the rest of rural Australia, the theft of sheep and cattle was losing him big numbers each year. Although one of the most complex issues at Redhill was the main road that ran straight through the middle of the property, which provides great access for workers but an unwelcome entry to strangers. With black spots over most of the farm and the undulating topography of the land, it made it hard to find a solution for most. After looking around for years for a large and sound quality camera system to benefit his property and limit these issues, he found Land Watch Australia.
The main goal was to achieve a combination of security and better connectivity across the property. After putting together the project, it was clear that the topography of the land, although not flat, was actually an advantage for the Land Watch team. Repeater stations were installed on the top of the hills and used as a central point to then connect all the cameras around it, this would enable Andy to keep an eye on all of his cattle yards, sheds, and entrances. With this set-up, although the property has limited reception, with the Land Watch wireless links it allows Wi-Fi to be emitted all across the property.
“With Land Watch, it allowed us to transfer Wi-Fi to intensive areas of the stockyard. This not only gives us peace of mind of the security, but also occupational health and safety. The ease of it for us was we told them what we wanted, and they knew what they could do straight away.” - Andy Graham.
No matter how large a property is, or in Andy’s case how uneven the topography of the land is, there is always a solution. We aim to keep on eye on what’s important through custom solutions, while giving peace of mind and less worry. You’ve got enough to think about, let us worry about the security.
KOOBA AG, RIVERINA
Located in southeast NSW near Darlington Point sits Kooba Station, an agricultural corporate farm that consists of close to 36,000 hectares with 9,000 hectares of cotton, perennial plantings, livestock, wheat, and barley. With such a large property and high chance of theft/trespassing, water and operation manager Simon Lok started thinking more seriously about the security needs for the station. Simon was on the lookout for a company that could handle security on a large-scale, agriculturally speaking. After 13 months of scouring the internet, he discovered Land Watch.
Following a detailed design process, a custom Land Watch solution was implemented, covering all entry points with number plate recognition cameras including time stamps, knowing 24/7 who goes in and out. The topography of the land was challenging but by using the vastness of the property and the existing silo and tower structures, Land Watch were able to take the already existing internet connection from the office and spread it out to all areas where it was needed.
Kooba Station is now fully equipped with 24/7 live stream to entry points, sheds, paddocks, and pump stations, viewable from the office with recording and remote access.
“God forbid something happens we can go in the next morning pull up the cameras and go through license plates, and feeds at certain times. It’s very handy and whether they were in the Sunshine Coast or over in Perth, I still would have brought them on every day of the week and I can confidently say I’ve never looked back and will continue to extend our solutions.” - Simon Lok.
NILPENA EDIACARA NATIONAL PARK, SA
Out in the western fringes of the Flinders Ranges, about 500km North of Adelaide, sits a 60,000 hectare national park known as Nilpena Ediacara National Park. This area holds some of the oldest fossils on earth, being named one of the most important national parks in Australia.
The trouble with a discovery like fossils, is that it becomes open to the public and researchers and universities come and visit for various studies. With this, comes the risk that someone might like to have one of these irreplaceable fossils on their coffee table.
Protecting fossils has a similar approach to most Land Watch projects, cover all entrances with number plate recording and the main asset areas. In this case the main assets were scattered across the park, so 360 degree coverage camera stations were rolled out on each and every fossil bed that link back to a main base station.
“We are serious about protecting it and now we have got the systems in place to protect it. What made this project really exciting, was how we could secure the site to make it both accessible for people but also make sure that over time the fossils weren’t stolen.” - Jason Irving, Director of National Parks Program, DEW, SA.
BARMOUNT FEEDLOT, MARLBOROUGH
Conveniently located between Rockhampton and Mackay about 110 km northwest of Marlborough, lies Barmount Feedlot, a 7,500-hectare family owned and operated beef/cattle feedlot with over 40 years custom feeding experience.
Between 10-25 staff occupy the feedlot all year-round including admin, caretakers, and farm hands. Barmount also has a variety of external contractors, agronomists, nutritionists, and veterinarians, therefore there are a lot of vehicles, trucks, and people coming and going on a daily basis. With all of this in mind and such a large property at hand, it was decided that installing cameras was something that needed to be done, not only for further security of the property but also for the safety of the workers.
Following a detailed design process, a Land Watch camera solution was installed to cover the most important parts of the property as well as monitoring the occupational health and safety requirements of the staff. Most importantly, a camera was installed on the cattle crush to monitor staff safety and cattle loading and unloading. An ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) placed at the front entry of the property monitors every truck coming in and out carrying grain and cattle.
On the station, Operations Manager Regan uses Land Watch to monitor the roller mill and the set of pivots. This allows him to monitor these actions remotely 24/7, and not have to focus on that full time. With this system, it enables Regan and others to focus on other tasks while still being able to check on the mill from anywhere on the station.
Tess, the Leading Hand at the station, uses Land Watch to continuously monitor livestock trucks coming onto the property. Tess gets a notification from the front entry camera straight to her phone, allowing her enough time to get to the way bridge allowing a seamless transition.
Andrew, the Business and IT Consultant, works remotely at times so being able to use these systems to monitor traffic and commodity deliveries coming into the feedlot, is a smart and efficient way to keep track of things while away. He also doubles this solution as personal security for the property, keeping an eye on health and safety incidents in particular with 24/7 recording and accessible storage on all cameras.
“If a workplace health and safety incident were to occur, we have 24-7 recording available that we can go back and review the incident. The Land Watch systems are a great solution to help us in our business long term.” - Andrew Conaghan.
BROADMERE
For over a century the Lee-Madigan family have lived in Broadmere, 2700 hectares of undulating black and red soil country near Nanango in the South Burnett region. The property, once a dairy farm, now runs a commercial cattle operation of Grassland beef that has spanned for over 132 years and through 5 generations.
With a home as rich in history as this and crime on the rise, security was a must have for the family. They were after peace of mind that their major assets at their homestead and property were protected, as well as keeping an eye on staff, livestock, and pests potentially coming onto the farm. When looking for a security system, it was important to the family that whoever they chose had knowledge of farming and the rural community. After a lot of research they decided on Land Watch, as these systems are built to withstand rural Australia’s harsh conditions.
A Land Watch custom property solution was made to cover all of the Broadmere property, with multiple cameras and Land Watch wireless links providing surveillance of all critical infrastructure and accesses. Doing this gave the family the desired peace of mind that all parts of their property were now protected, while having any activity, suspicious or not, go straight to their phone to view in real time. No guesswork required.
“The whole process was streamline, efficient, and professional. It was well above my expectations I had in terms of communication. Definitely give them a call, they have the knowledge.” - Margaret Lee-Madigan
KARINGA - BILOELA
Scott Muller, a fourth-generation farmer from Biloela, Queensland, runs a 1600-hectare cropping and cattle property named "Karinga" with his family. Security concerns, particularly due to increased local crime, led him to seek better solutions for protecting machinery, livestock, and fuel supplies. Muller purchased off-the-shelf surveillance units but found connectivity issues hindered their effectiveness. He quickly realised the need for reliable on-farm security solutions with better connectivity, he began searching for alternatives.
Through the government's On Farm Connectivity Program, Muller connected with Land Watch Australia. Once the systems were installed through the grant, it was easy for him to see this was what he needed all along, the systems offered quick verification of suspicious activities, providing essential peace of mind.
The 50% rebate from the On Farm Connectivity Program was crucial for Muller's decision. He praised the simplicity of the grant application process facilitated by Land Watch Australia and the government.
“They introduced us to a video surveillance system that was nothing short of state-of-the-art, specifically designed with the unique needs of rural properties like ours in mind, and crucially, included the necessary connectivity. The program’s support has been instrumental in allowing us to take proactive steps towards a more secure future” he concluded.
