Herd Testing in United States and the Role of Quality Certification

1. Herd Testing in United States and the Role of Quality Certification Steven J. Sievert Technical Director, National DHIA/DHIA Services Manager, Quality Certification Services Inc.

2. Consultants, Vets & Nutritionists Laboratory Dairy Farm AIPL DRPC Field Service Provider Breed Associations AI Organizations Meter Center Interbull Overview of Herd Testing in the U.S.

11. Sievert, 2008 ICAR, DHI Manager’s Session, 11 Quality Certification in the United States • Program is user-driven • Guidelines developed by service providers • Review and recommendation by Audit Review Committee • Approval by Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (Records Providers, Breed Associations and A.I. Organizations) • Administered by Quality Certification Services, Inc. • Specific auditors for each service area • Serve as compliance auditor and educational resource

12. Quality Certification in the United States • Two views on the certification process… • Certification is a business requirement • Certification is an asset to our business • The difference is subtle and rooted in leadership and/or management at the provider level Our Mission Provide a reliable source of information to people interested in the U.S. dairy records industry

13. Scope of QCS • 27 Field Service affiliates working with: • 3,007 Field Technicians (including 284 Dependent Service Providers) • 47 Meter Centers and 89 Meter Technicians • 103,165 Certified Portable Meters • 66,127 Certified Electronic Meters • 47 Laboratories analyzing an average of 4.73 million milk samples monthly • 4 Dairy Records Processing Centers processing cow data • QCS interaction with CDCB, ARC, FSAC, LAC, ICAR, AIPL, NAAB, • PDCA, USAHA, and industry partners.

14. Consultants, Vets & Nutritionists Laboratory Dairy Farm AIPL DRPC Field Service Provider Breed Associations AI Organizations Meter Center Interbull Assuring Data Accuracy is the Role of QCS

15. Is There a Difference between Certified Providers? • No…. • All certified providers meet the minimum standards or guidelines for their service area • Assurance of the accuracy of data throughout the system • And Yes… • Providers operate in a competitive marketplace • Invest in employees • Offer service-driven programs and services • Exceed the minimum standards in each compliance area • Market their people and organization effectively

16. Who are the Field Service Providers?

17. 27 Field Service Providers serving the U.S. Wide range of ownership or management • Private testing businesses • Federated associations • Vertically integrated organizations • Non-profit organizations and for-profit businesses Working with 3,007 Field Technicians • Employee Field Technicians • Employees of County Testing Organizations • Independent Milk Testers/Testing Organizations

18. Certified Field Service Affiliates

19. All DHI Providers Working with… 4.4 million cows in 23,005 herds 10,412 to 784,214 cows 8 to 4,425 herds 3,007 field technicians 103,165 portable meters 66,127 electronic meters Top Quartile (n=7) Working with… Herds of all sizes/all geographic locations 110,000 to 559,685 cows 145 to 4,425 herds 15 to 196 technicians 930 to 10,814 portable meters 72 to 3,987 electronic meters Snapshot of the U.S. Milk Recording Providers

20. Certification of Field Service Providers • Guidelines developed by DHI Managers • Certification program administered by QCS • Annual Certification – alternating on- and off-site • Education resource for all providers

21. QC – It starts at the dairy • Member Service Agreements • Education of dairymen with respect to Code of Ethics, Release and Use of Records, and Uniform Operating Procedures • Includes Herd Code, Owner, Date and Signatures from Dairy and Field Service Affiliate • Every dairy needs to have one on file to submit data to the GEP (AIPL) – receive young sire incentives, animal PTA’s, breed recognition programs

22. QC – It starts at the dairy • Monitoring Test Day/Milk Shipped Deviations • Average test day weight is 103% of bulk tank • Investigate if <96% or >110% • Common sources of variation include • Hospital milk not in bulk tank • Large calf milk usage • Irregular milk pickups by plant • Two herds (herd codes) in one bulk tank • Sales and Service Opportunity? Yes!

23. QC – It starts at the dairy • Performance of Electronic Milk Meters • Must be ICAR approved model (i.e. Boumatic Perfection) • Annual evaluation by: • Water Calibration Test • Parlor Performance Report • EMMR from PC Dart • Parlor Report from Dairy Comp 305 • Metatron Report from DairyPlan (GEA) • Need to identify the make, model & number

24. QC – Electronic Meter Monitoring << PRE CALIBRATION POST >> CALIBRATION

25. The Minimum Standard… Annual calibration or statistical review of each electronic meter The Goal… Ensure that accurate data is being sent to the dairy records processing center from dairies using daily meters The Top Quartile… Calibration of meters one to twelve (monthly) times per year Going the extra mile… Meters are periodically out of spec Sales and service opportunity for provider Maximizing the performance of the dairy’s investment Is There is Difference? Electronic Meter Calibration

26. QC – The Field Technician’s Role • Annual Continuing Education Requirement • Calibrate your Portable Meters Annually • Proper Sample Collection and Handling • Support for Field Service Affiliate • Conduit from the dairy to field service affiliate • Collection of MSA, EMM, BT documentation • Ensure dairy gets value from records

27. The Minimum Standard… On-farm training with 3 herds The Goal… Provide new technicians with hands-on training of meters, sampling and data entry/handling The Top Quartile… On-farm training with 7-20 herds Going the extra mile… Technicians are ‘farm-ready’ and exposed to a variety of milking systems and designs Meet the expectations of today’s dairies Is There is Difference? Field Technician Training

28. The Minimum Standard… Annual continuing education meeting for all technicians The Goal… Educational forum for updates to policies, procedures, and technology changes The Top Quartile… Field technician training 2x to 12x per year Going the extra mile… Employees are part of team and provided with tools for success Balanced approach of training, support, and marketing The field force is the ‘front line’ of sales Is There is Difference? Field Technician Training

29. Complaints from Dairyman • Field Technician does not show up on time • Field Technician appearance/behavior is not professional • Meters do not operate properly • Meters are dirty • Meters are old (or appear to be old) • Field Technician is not mixing samples properly • Sample ID accuracy • Data entry errors/handling • Data turn-around time Bottom Line – the little things matter…

30. What are the Meter Centers?

31. QCS - the Meter Center role • Calibrates the portable meters used in the field using approved procedures • Maintenance and repair of meters • Continued training of meter technicians • Timely reporting of calibration results to Field Service Affiliate

32. Calibration of Meters a Priority • 45 Certified Meter Centers in the U.S.A. • 89 Certified Meter Technicians • Meters must be calibrated every 12 months (not 14) • Uniform Calibration and Performance Guidelines

33. Certified Meter Centers

34. The Minimum Standard… Calibrate each portable meter annually at a certified meter center The Goal… Ensure that each meter is calibrated and providing accurate estimate of milk production The Top Quartile… Calibration of meters one to four times each year Going the extra mile… Meters are ‘in-service’ 300 to 400 hours per month Identified the need to inspect/repair/calibrate these meters more frequent basis The ‘oil change’ theory Is There is Difference? Portable Meter Calibration

35. The Responsibility of Laboratories

36. 47 DHI Laboratories in the U.S. and Mexico • Varying business structures • County DHI laboratories • Privately held laboratories • Labs operating as part of integrated field service provider • Offering varying services • DHI component testing only • Analysis of DHI and payment samples • MUN testing (31 labs) • ELISA testing of milk samples (11 labs) • PCR and/or Microbiology services

37. 47 DHI Laboratories in the U.S. and Mexico • Sample analysis includes • 4.73 million milk samples monthly (2-year mean) • Smallest lab analyzes 8,000 samples per month • Largest lab analyzes 464,000 samples per month

38. Certified Laboratories

39. Samples Unknown Lab Certification Report Lab within Guidelines

40. Samples Unknown Lab Certification Report Lab out of Compliance

41. Samples Unknown Lab Comparison Report • Allows a lab to compare their lab with other program participants • Only know their identity – do not know who the other labs are • Identify trends, see all the instruments at once • Marketing tool?

42. ELISA Proficiency – Certification Report

43. TEXASDHIA ELISA Proficiency – Comparison Report • Shows performance of all participating laboratories • Only know your performance -

44. Dairy Records Processing Centers (DRPC)

45. Handling the Data • Four Records Processing Centers in the U.S. • Process monthly DHI data for herds on both Official and Management Programs • Provide technical training for field service providers and field technicians

46. Dairy Records Processing Centers

49. The difference is the management team – not the program • The QC program is the fundamental basis • Independent (3rd party) audit of compliance • Provides the (part of the) framework for the field service activities of recording providers • Resource for the recording provider • The management team … • Recognizes the importance of compliance areas • Integrates QC into day-to-day service activities • Invests time and capital in people and programs • Markets and positions their organization

50. QC – Everyone’s responsibility • Accuracy and reliability of data • Levels the playing field for all providers • Independent of size, structure or geographic location • Dairies, Studs, Breed Associations, etc. all trust us to do the job right • Quality data at the dairy level to make educated management decisions