Elders recently hosted a tour of the Elders Wool centre in Melbourne for 45 South Australian wool growers, classers and shearers, showcasing the innovation and technology helping transform the journey from farm gate to market.
Marty Kay, Elders District Wool Manager based at Kingscote, said the visit gave growers a valuable opportunity to see their wool further along the supply chain.
“Elders Wool has been operational for a couple of years now, but many of our growers haven't had a chance to come and have a look,” Marty said.
“This tour gave them the opportunity to see their wool on the show floor, observe the sale process and gain a better understanding of what happens to their wool once it leaves the farm.”
The Melbourne facility is part of Elders' investment in modern wool infrastructure, combining wool sales, storage, testing and show floor activities in one location. The centre can store more than 60,000 bales and uses 22 autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) to move wool around the site, improving operational efficiency and reducing safety risks.
For Karoonda wool classer Caitlin Mitchell, the tour provided valuable insight into how wool is presented and assessed after leaving the shearing shed and entering the selling system.
"The wool looks completely different when it's on the table and has been pressed, compared to when it's pulled out of the bale, opened up and fluffed up," Caitlin said.
"The technology Elders is using, like the AGVs to move bales, is incredible.
“It has also shown me the opportunities that exist in the wool industry. Some people think that with a wool classing certificate, you're bound to work only in the wool shed, but you're not. You could work in wool testing or become a broker or buyer. This trip has really opened up the industry and shown me that the opportunities are endless."
Kangaroo Island wool grower Ros Wilson said the tour demonstrated how investment in technology and infrastructure can deliver benefits throughout the entire wool supply chain.
"It's really great to see Elders taking up new technology. I believe it's going to create significant efficiencies for the industry," she said.
One of the key takeaways for Ros was the importance of on-farm practices in supporting a more efficient sales process.
“It was really interesting to see the whole supply chain of how the wool arrives and gets processed,” Ros said.
“You can see how important it is to have your paperwork in order so everything can be processed efficiently when the wool arrives.”
“It also gave us a better understanding of how much extra handling is involved with overweight or out-of-specification bales. Seeing that firsthand makes you think about what you can do on farm to make the process smoother for everyone involved.”
Alongside the visit to Elders Wool, the group toured the Emu Show Factory, Loomtex, Australian Wool Testing Authority laboratory and the M50 Wool Sale at AWEX Tottenham.