#160 - Pigs and airflow - how important is it and how do we optimize it? by Dr. Brett Ramirez

Pigs will only be able to grow at their max potential if they are in good health, and an important component of having good health is having proper air quality and airflow in your barns. In today’s episode, I talk with Dr. Brett Ramirez about proper airflow, the importance of air quality in new and old barns, and other things to consider when designing a new swine facility.

What you’ll learn:

1. First steps when building a swine barn
2. Things to look out for in a sow barn
3. Putting new technology in old barns
4. Finding the airflow sweet spot
5. Designing a wean-to-finish facility
6. New tech developments
7. Importance of pig heat production

Meet the guest: 

Dr. Ramirez’s research and extension program encompasses swine and poultry production systems with a primary focus on: ventilation, natural resource and energy efficiency, animal energetics, environmental control, and precision livestock farming. Through mentoring students on fundamental and applied research projects, his program aims to generate practical solutions to current and emerging issues surrounding animal agriculture and its producers.

He received his BS and MS in Agricultural and Biological Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2012 and 2014. Then, Brett completed his PhD at Iowa State University in late 2017 and transitioned to his current position as an Assistant Professor in the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering.