Estimating Farm Building Costs
Tom Fallon Farm Buildings & Infrastructure Specialist Kildalton - March 2025
Expenditure on farm buildings is by its nature a long-term capital investment that needs careful planning, both from a financial and a technical point of view. Good workmanship and correctly specified materials are also essential if it is to stand the test of time and prove good value for money.
Planning farm buildings takes time as every farmyard is different and there is usually more than one suitable option. It is also good to visit other farmyards to gather ideas and feedback from other farmers. This pre-planning stage can take a number of months. It is important to engage with an agricultural adviser/consultant so that the farmer is happy that he/she has a plan to suit their needs while meeting requirements for labour efficiency, environment considerations, Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) requirements etc. The planning permission process and approval for a Tams grant can take from 8 months to over a year. Arranging finance and builders to do the job will also be necessary.
Ideally significant building work should commence in the spring so start planning at least a year earlier!
After coming up with ideas for a farm building project, the first question on everyone's mind is, how much is it going to cost?
Generally, the best approach is to divide up the proposed structure into its parts and write a detailed schedule of costs item by item. This is the method used by farm building contractors when they are compiling a quotation.
Having an itemised quotation is of benefit both to the farmer and the contractor. It helps to avoid disputes over what was or was not included in the price. In that way, charges for extras or for modifications to the original plans won't come as a surprise.
Itemised Costs
Itemised costs for a dairy unit and a slatted cattle unit are outlined in Table 1. Floor plans for each of the units are shown in Figures 1 and 2.
In order to write an itemised costing like this, it is essential to refer to detailed plans/drawings of the proposed development. These drawings will have to be prepared for grant purposes and planning permission.
The drawings prepared can be used to accurately price the job by multiplying measurements from the drawings, e.g. roof area (m2) by the cost of that item as shown in the second column in Table 1. The cost of the roof and tanks are very dependent on the scale of the project so the cost per square metre and per cubic metre respectively are higher for the suckler unit. The cost of site work is included but this cost can vary substantially between projects.
Follow the same procedure for each element of the building. The total cost calculated can be compared with quotations you get from contractors.
Table 1. Itemised costs for a dairy and a suckler unit
| Items | Cost per item € | Dairy Unit costs, Figure 1(€) | Suckler unit costs Figure 2 (€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roof | 110 and 150 per m2 | 130,130 | 60,060 |
| Tank | 130 and 170 per m3* | 103,610 | 44,070 |
| Cubicles and beds | 230 each | 22,700 | |
| Pre-cast cubicles | 7,670 | ||
| Concrete floors | 34 per m2 | 22,610 | 11,016 |
| External Walls | 230 per linear m (157/m over tank) | 20,482 | 10,052 |
| Sliding doors | 161 per m2 | 18,998 | 10,964 |
|
Feeding barriers per bay - straight rail |
143 | 2,288 | |
|
Feeding barriers per bay - diagonal |
300 | 1,800 | |
| Feeding barrier walls | 36 per linear metre | 2,419 | |
| Automatic scrapers | 4,800 per passageway | 19,200 | |
| Pen divisions with drinkers, calving gates etc. | 7,273 | ||
|
Water troughs |
495 each | 1,980 | |
| Electrical work | 350 per bay | 5,600 | 2,100 |
| Cubicle mats | 80 each | 9,280 | |
| Cattle crush and holding pens (including concrete) | 9,260 | ||
| Miscellaneous | 12,240 | 8,000 | |
| Total | 377,147 | 164,595 | |
| Number of animals | 116 | 50 | |
| Cost per animal | 3,140 | 3,252 | |
| Roof and tank (% of total) | 62% | 63% |
*Slatted tank costs vary depending on size, whether double or single tank so €130 and €170 per cubic metre is used for the dairy and suckler tanks respectively