OSU Builds New Dairy at Columbus Lab
Ohio State CFAES is constructing a robotic dairy facility on the site of a 1972 barn at its Waterman lab.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Agriculture
Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) is building a new state-of-the-art dairy facility at the Waterman Agricultural and Natural Resources Laboratory in Columbus. The outdated 1972 dairy structure was demolished in March, and the Jersey herd was temporarily relocated to the CFAES Wooster campus.
Why it matters
The new facility gives Columbus-area researchers and students a modern dairy site for studying milk production and animal welfare on the university's main campus. Its location just off Lane Avenue at the primary campus entrance makes it highly visible to the local community.
The new dairy will house 60 Jersey milking cows with an initial single robotic milker, replacing a 1972 structure on the 261-acre Waterman lab. Space is designated for a second milking robot and an onsite milk processing facility, but no timeline for those additions was provided.
The players
Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES)
CFAES is the Ohio State college overseeing agricultural research, teaching, and outreach, including the Waterman lab and Wooster campus facilities.
Lely North America
Lely North America supplies the robotic milking and barn-management technology being installed in the new dairy.
The details
The new dairy will be equipped with technology from Lely North America, including robotic milking systems that let cows be milked on their own schedule, on average three times per day. Cows are fed grain inside the robotic milker to encourage frequent visits, and two robotic manure vacuums keep barn alleys clean while reducing water use.
Timeline
March: The outdated 1972 dairy structure at Waterman was demolished.
Spring 2025: Completion of the new Waterman dairy is anticipated.
Industry Context
The project replaces a 1972 structure at the Waterman lab with a robotic dairy, extending the university's longstanding agricultural research presence in Columbus. It reflects the broader adoption of automated milking systems that let cows set their own milking schedules.
Columbus residents driving past the primary Lane Avenue campus entrance will see the new dairy under construction. The facility will house 60 Jersey milking cows once completed, with construction expected to start soon and finish in spring 2025.
The takeaway
Robotic milking lets cows set their own schedules, averaging three milkings per day, which can reduce the labor of fixed milking shifts. Readers tracking agricultural technology can watch how this Columbus facility performs once its second robot is added.
Further reading
For related coverage, see Agriculture news in the business section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Feedstuffs.
