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| Brand inspection enters the age of hand held computers | ||
| 01/14/2009 | ||
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ODA begins using an electronic system at auction markets It's a sign of the times. Brand inspectors with the Oregon Department of Agriculture are setting aside the pen and paper used to record important livestock information at one of the state's eight auction markets in favor of hand held computers and wireless transmission. The change over to electronic recording is expected to provide the same benefits as the old paper system, but with a few key upgrades. "An electronic version of the same information recorded under the paper system should allow us to be much more efficient in our work and more cost effective," says Dr. Don Hansen, State Veterinarian and administrator of ODA's Animal Health and Identification Division. "We are just catching up with technology. Other states are starting to record information electronically and we want to bring Oregon up to the new standard for brand inspection. Eventually, the hand held computers will be used by our brand inspectors when they do field inspections as well." ODA is fully aware that the Brand Inspection Program, like many other programs, is facing budget restraints. With the help of a federal grant, ODA was able to purchase hand held computers and other electronic equipment designed to collect and process the information from brand inspections. Funds from the Brand Inspection Program, which is 100 percent fee supported, are not being used to implement and maintain the new system. ODA has brand inspectors at every auction yard at all hours on sale day, in addition to the general field inspection work they do on a daily basis. "We look at the animals and the documentation,' says Rodger Huffman, ODA's State Brand Inspector. "We verify the ownership. If the brand belongs to the person presenting the animal, then the new buyer will get a certificate showing they now own the animal with that brand on it- just like transferring a title to a car. It passes on from the previous owner and we will document that sale." Information collected during livestock brand inspection activities deals with animal identification, location, and proof of ownership. Types of information recorded by brand inspectors include a physical description of the animal as well as owner identification and address. As the State Veterinarian, Hansen also sees applications that would assist animal disease control. "Right now, we use brand inspection information to resolve ownership issues and to investigate livestock theft," says Hansen. "On the animal health side, we use brand inspection information to help trace out locations of animals that need to be tested to rule out major diseases like tuberculosis or brucellosis." No one questions the value of the information recorded by brand inspectors. Changing the way that information is collected and handled will hopefully have value as well. Under the new electronic system, how soon would the information be available to ODA's Brand Inspection Program for theft investigation and ownership issues? "Nearly immediately," says Hansen. "As soon as the information is transferred from the hand held computers to computers that are placed in the auction market office and to our Salem office database, we will have access to it. Under the current paper-based system, the brand inspection information arrives at the office several days later. It then may take several more hours or even days to complete a trace out for animal health concerns." The electronic system does not completely eliminate the need to generate paper for those who need it. A computer in the market office, provided by ODA, will track consignor information from the hand-held devices through the sale and match livestock sold to their buyers. The system will allow a brand inspection document to be printed for the new buyer. In addition, a paper copy of the complete day's brand inspection information will be available at each market as needed by the end of each sale day. Likewise, the ODA brand inspector performing field inspections will be able to enter information into the hand held device and then print out a brand certificate for each completed transaction. Inspectors may transfer the field inspection information to the Salem office at the end of each day's activities just as soon as they have internet access, hopefully through Wi-Fi hot spots. As more wireless internet access becomes geographically available, the information transfer can take place at any time during the day. ODA has already started the new system at a couple of auction markets on the west side of the state and will soon expand to the rest of Oregon. So far, so good. Jack Noble, the Field Operations Manager for the Brand Program is overseeing the implementation of the computer-based system at each market and will also administer the implementation for field inspections. "The focus right now is on upgrading the auction market system, but we plan to use the new electronic system for field brand inspections," says Noble. "We will continue to look at it and make necessary improvements as we go along," says Noble. "If the new system does not do what we expect or want, we can elect to go back to the paper system. However, at this point in time, I'm encouraged about how it's working." Last year, ODA's 69 brand inspectors checked more than a million cattle as part of their routine work. Now those inspectors have a new tool to help them gather, organize, and store information. Hand held computers and associated electronic equipment are just another sign that new technology has arrived for one of the Oregon Department of Agriculture's oldest functions. For more information, contact Don Hansen, State Veterinarian, or Jack Noble, Field Operations Manager at (503) 986-4680. Story of the Week pdf version http://oregon.gov/ODA/docs/pdf/news/090114brands.pdf Audio Story of the Week http://oregon.gov/ODA/news/090114brands_audio.shtml |
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