ElO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 4, 1994
PAT TORETTI
Innovative testing plans, once
experimental territory for a bold
few of Pennsylvania’s dairymen
are finally taking hold in a big
way. “In the past six months
we’ve added as many labor effi
cient records herds on test as we
put on the program in the whole
previous eight years,” says Dean
Amick, Field Services Director
for Pennsylvania DHIA. “We’ll
probably add that many again by
the end of December. And we
look for this to be the program of
the future.”
Summary of the Buard
1 Meeting
by Dave Slusser, General Each department head had the
Manager opportunity to answer questions
“ from the board, thus resulting in a
better understanding of PA DHIA
operations, and a better under
standing of the board’s expecta
tions of the staff. The strategic plan
of the association was reviewed
and discussions centered around
how we are following the plan. We
are following the plan for the most
part, and we find that our oppor
tunity for growth is good.
The board voted to restructure
our state annual meeting and set
the date for March 10, 1995. We
will have the delegates come in
Thursday night and register. The
Friday program will start with an
awards breakfast followed by the
annual meeting. The meeting will
end in the afternoon, and delegates
will return home. We will try this
approach in 1995, and see how the
delegates like it. A lot of money
will be saved by a one day meet
ing, however attendance might be
affected.
Reports were given to the board
on county reorganization progress,
retirement plan, converting the
milk testing laboratory to DHIA
employees, and the closing of the
College Avenue office.
The PA DHIA Board of direc
tors met April 26th and 27th in
State Cllege. The board election
resulted in Frank Omer, president.
Bill Jackson, vice .president. Lane
Sollenberger, secretary, and Nor
man Hershey, treasurer. Marian
Butler from Tioga County and
Luke Rebuck from Northumber
land County were seated as new
directors. Marian is the first
woman elected to the PA DHIA
state board.
The board spent a lot of time
evaluating our financial system,
and decided to place in top priority
the redesigning of the system. This
will result in easier tracking of the
accounts receivable, billing, and
cash flow for management and the
board. They also studied our cost
of service and our pricing system.
They want to move toward a uni
form method of pricing. We find
that our prices for service are very
competitive throughout our ser
vice area and they want to remain
that way.
Staff reports were given by Jim
Garrity, Dixie Burris, Jim Boyer,
Dean Amick, and Dave Slusser.
Spring Conference
(Continued from Page E 9)
our Pennsylvania DHI A
DR PC staff. Over 2 hours of
each technician conference
was spent on computer
functions and on farm reports.
Our technicians were asked to
name something good about
working for PA DHI A, and
the remark I heard far more
than anything else was, “ I
love and care for my farm
families”. They really love
you, and care for your future
God Bless them, and God
Bless you!
Our laboratory and
field training program has just
completed the Quality Certifi
cation from National DHIA.
The lab scored a 99%. The
«•
field service scored a pass.
National DHIA QC now
scores field service only pass
orfail. Historically we have
always scored 100%. Iwish
the scoring system had not
changed because it does not
give a true picture of our field
service. I can assure you that
they are the best in the coun
try. Our DRPC service will
be scored later in the summer.
LER Program Taking Off
The Labor Efficient Records
Program, first sanctioned by
National DHIA in the mid
nineteen-eighties, is. just one of
several new and innovative record
plans now being offered by PaD
HIA. In the labor efficient records
method of data collection, a dairy
farm equipped with electronic
meters and on-farm computers
submits status and milkweight
results monthly to DHIA as in a
typical DHIA program. But that’s
where the similarity ends. A
DHIA technician visits the farm
1 wish that these scores were
public information nationwide
If it were, PA DHI A would
rank near the top, if not the
top.
We are in the process
of making some changes in
State College. The West
College Avenue office will be
closed, June 3()th, and we will
all move into the laboratory
building on Orchard Road.
Also, we are making some
personnel changes in our milk
testing laboratory. All of these
changes are for economic
reasons, so we can provide
the Best Service at com
petitive prices. However,
during the next 2 months
our turn around time may slow
down some. I ask you to be
patient with us until our new Clinton County: Howard
people get better trained at Thompkins. Levi K. Esh, Paul
their work. K. Fisher, Ja''ob Fisher
We, at PA DHIA are Crawford County: Marshall
honored to serve you. If you Livingston, Fred & Kalhi
have any concerns, please Wenzel
write or call me at 800-344- Cumberland County: David
8378. Our PA DHIA Burkholder.Jr., Roy E. Dcitch
members and their profitability & Sons, Daniel Zimmerman,
are the reason that we exist. Rob & Chris Waddcll - Harr y
N. Leinbach
only once every 90 days. During
the quarterly supervised tests,
samples are taken for laboratory
analysis, and permanent identifi
cation and computere procedures
are verified. In some newer varia
tions of the'program now allowed
by NDHIA, the technician’s role
is limited even during the super
vised visits. In the “spot verifica
tion” innovative version of LER,
the technician verifies the milk
weights recorded in the parlor on
test day and checks permanent ID,
but never actually enters any milk
weight or status information on a
herd at all.
Because the cost of putting a
technician on the farm on test day
amounts to 80% of the price for
DHIA, farms employing the
Labor Efficient method of data
collection to see significant sav
ings in their monthly DHIA bill.
And because most of the data col
lection is performed automatical
ly, test day visits are smoother and
less obtrusive than for other
programs.
“Pennsvlvania DHIA had some
of the first, maybe the first herds
in the country on this program
when it was initially announced.”
notes Amick. “Wayne Haipster in
Huntingdon, Frank Feeser in
York, and Bill England in Blair
county, have been on the program
since the very beginning. Things
have been bumpy from time-to-
December, 1993 through
April, 1994
by County
Adams County: Mark Gicron,
Kc-Holt/ Dairy 2, Thomas
Brouglicr
Armstrong County:BulTalo
Creek Hoi, Samuel W. Mont-
gomcry
Bedford County: Pcimshire
Lamanchas, Mike & Michelle
Will, Rob Sandy Hawk
Berks County: Ammon N.
Leid, Dervin Burkholder, James
H. Martin, Steven W. Hoover,
Lamar Lehman
Bradford County: Lloyd
Barrett, Chasmarcll Fann,
Scrivners Angels, Dale Vannoy,
Randy Chapman. Harold
Weaver
Bucks County: Richard
Tnoxel
Butler County: Dennis E.
Hogg
Centre County: Diane
Beatty, Dawn Rise Dairy,
Emanuel Fisher, Isaac Z. King
Chester County: Benucl F.
Miller, Daniel Z. Stolt/J'us. Carl
N. Hansen, Jr., Ben &
Rebecca Smuckcr, Robert &
Sharon Nolan
time, as they will be on a new
program of this kind. But those
people have stayed with us and
helped us make this into a useable
program, to the point where this
isn’t just an experiment anymore.”
The requirements for the prog
ram are minimal. All that’s
required is an NDHIA approved
type of electronic meter in the
bam, and a protocol for exchang
ing data with PaDHIA’s compu
ter. “Westfalia and DeLaval have
a method for sending data that’s
based on an international stan
dard, and those two systems seem
to be the ones most easily able to
exchange information with
DHIA,” notes Jim Boyer, process
ing center manager, “but we
haven’t limited the program to
those manufacturers. We have
Boumatic and Surge systems on
LER also. The only thing that’s
really needed is the ability for the
on-farm computer to be able to
report milk weights and status
change data. Fresh dates, dry-off
dates, sold dates, and reproductive
information. Most of the herd
management programs can do
that, and we’re willing to look at
systems that aren’t currently
plugged in to see if they’re
suitable.”
The success of the Labor Effi
cient Records prog, am has meant
an increased willingness for
DHIA to consider a variety of new
Dauphin County: Daniel B.
Beiler, Martin Etzweiler.Meivin
Esch
Erie County: John Wozniak
Fayette County: Joseph A.
Harim
Franklin County: Twin Lane
Farms, Arthur Gloss, Lynn &
Rhonda Stoner, Carl Hawhakcr,
Richard D. Miller, Harry
Kathlcn Lehman, Donald Piper,
Ernest F. Rot/, Wit Brook
Farms, Pondvicw Farms
Huntingdon County:
Raymond Middaugh, Joseph V.
Feathers, Halls Dairy Fann 2.
Sugar Run Dairy, Brant’s
Homestead, Randy Sunderland,
Nolan Druist
Indiana County: Larry
Spadinc, Jewart Dairy, James
D. Good
Jefferson County: Bowser
Dairy, Dan Keller, Jim/Pam
Berry
Juniata County: Ray & Dan
Geissinger
Lancaster County: J.K.
Swarey, Jr.. Dr.
Riddlepcnmarydell, Leroy P.
StoltzAjs
Lebanon County: Michael &
JoAnn Shirk
Luzerne County: Chas &
Kevin Drasher
Lycoming County: Daniel F.
King, Charles Bosch, Jacob B.
Zook. David C. Duncan M
Mercer County: Leroy
McFall
Mifflin County: Wallace L.
Yoder, Charlie Pent
Montgomery County: 7 Stars
Farm. Wateriiousc Herd
Northampton County: Carol
O'Neill
testing plans, not limited to farms
with electronic gadgets. In one
variation of testday procedures
called “advanced notification”,
the farmer and DHIA technician
work out in advance when the
DHIA employee will visit the
farm and stick to that schedule.
And in a variation of the tradition
al AP program approved last year
named “timerless timer”, the AP
timer has been replaced with a
verification method that stresses
the amount of testday milk
shipped over the quirky and some
times inaccurate electronic clock.
“Not every new plan is approved
by every breed association,” says
Amick, “and those involved inten
sively in sampling young bulls
should check with their AI studs to
see if a particular type test is going
to be acceptable. But it’s clear that
the DHIA program is going to
open up more and more as time
goes on. National DHIA has come
around to recognizing that we
need to offer more options. And
we need to take more of the bur
den for rule enforcement off the
technician on testday.”
If you’d like to enroll in the
LER plan, or would like to be con
sidered for any other innovative
DHIA program, contact your
DHIA technician, or call
1-800-DHI-Test.
Northumberland County:
William A. Betz
Perry County: Turtle Rock
Farm
Snyder County: Darren +
Debra Moyer, Jay Hollcnbach,
Alvin Stoltzfus, James W. Stahl
Brad + Susan Ewing
Somerset County: Clyde
McWilliams, Thomas E.Bcll, Ja
Lind Farm
Sullivan County: Brian &
Tracy McCarty, Forks Mount
Guernsey
Susuquehanna County:
M&M Farm. Dennis Lewis.
Maple Hill Fami
Tioga County: Pen Ro Farm,
Tim Kaltenbach
Union County: Ammon B
Martin
Warren County: Nathan
Damcott
Wayne County: Pocono Mt.
Jerseys, La Tour Valley Farm.
G+J Eisenhaucr, Vince +
Cheryl Smith, Bailey Graham
Farm. Brook side Farm. Emil R.
Swingle, Kyle Kerber
Westmoreland County:
Michael Heplcr, Waller Brown
Wyoming County: Robert
Lock
York County: Jim & Nonna
Warner, William Robert
Funtom. Calvin Hostctter
New Jersey: William
Kerkendall, Gary Teel, Martin
Little, William Systema. Oscar
Ungamst, Jr., Tbny & Mar
Perticari, Stephen & Rich
Czar, Mitch Cortright. John/
Sarah Dumschat, Harold Cosh.
C and C Farm, Casey
Systema, Richard Systema,
Dwayne L. Russell. Ervin
Watters, John Kerkendall
New York: Carol J. Brooks