Column
Carcass Ultrasound 101
by Patrick Wall, Director of Communications, The National CUP Lab
 
Becoming A Carcass Ultrasound Technician

The telephone at The National CUP Lab rings often in the spring of each year, but as the bull & female sale  season winds down, the clients’ questions begin to change from barnsheets, images and data processing to  "How do I become a field technician?” Despite the rapid growth of available scanning technicians in the last five  years, there are still parts of the country that thirst for someone to scan their cattle. Seeing an opportunity, a  number of creative cattlemen have filled the void in their area by becoming a certified technician. On the surface,  getting into the ultrasound scanning business seems quite simple: learn the science, buy equipment, find cattle  and scan ‘em. However, there is a lot more involved in building a successful business in the carcass ultrasound  industry. Passing the initial certification exam is just one step; mastering the craft of carcass ultrasound takes  diligence and literally thousands of head of practice.

There are a number of hurdles one must jump in order to ultrasound purebred beef cattle for inclusion in a genetic evaluation. All major breed associations require that images be collected only by technicians certified by the  Ultrasound Guidelines Council (UGC), the governing body of carcass ultrasound. Over the last decade, UGC  developed a set of guidelines that ensures technicians take images in a consistent manner. Standards must be  followed in order to fairly evaluate technicians in determining pass/fail status. Technicians who successfully certify then collect images in the same manner when submitting to a centralized processing lab for evaluation.

To achieve certification, a technician has to simply pass an extensive test of their ability to properly and accurately  collect ultrasound images. This exam consists of scanning 20 head of cattle, followed by the same 20 head in re- randomized order. Cattle are scanned twice to test a technician’s ability to consistently scan the same animal. All  40 sets of images are then evaluated for quality by experienced lab personnel. This process involves looking at  every single image to assess if the correct landmarks are clearly visible. For example, if the bottom of the ribeye  muscle is not well defined, the interpreter will make a decision to reject the image or venture a guess. If a  technician’s images involve too much guesswork, he/she will ultimately fail the test. Image quality standards are  quite stringent, ensuring only those who are truly prepared to scan your cattle are allowed to pass the test.

Each exam participant is compared against carcass data and a reference scanning technician. Since some   animals are more difficult to scan than others, participants are tested against an experienced technician for   accuracy. Complete carcass data is collected on half of the animals used for the test, including a meat sample of  the ribeye to achieve Percent Intramuscular Fat (%IMF) readings. Breeding heifers, bulls, and feedlot steers of  varying weights and ages are utilized to test the ability of each technician to scan different biological types of cattle. Younger, leaner animals are easier to scan then older, fatter cattle. As well, bulls are easier to ultrasound than  heifers or steers. All said, UGC wants to ensure that certified technicians are ready to scan all shapes and sizes  the beef industry has to offer.

Historically, 50-80% of those who attempt UGC Field Certification receive satisfactory results. As one can imagine, receiving extensive training prior to the exam dramatically increases the chances of passing the test. In the early  years of carcass ultrasound, those wishing to take the certification exam were required to own their equipment  prior to the test; a risky investment in excess of $20,000. Since 2005, The National CUP Lab has offered six  consecutive days of training just prior to certification to help technicians offset some travel expense. As well,  ultrasound equipment is rented for the day to eliminate the risk of purchasing equipment, but then failing the test.  Over that time period, the number of UGC certified technicians available to cattle producers across North America  has nearly doubled.

After a technician has completed the exam, animals used in the test are harvested within 7 days. Each participant  is assigned a random alias number through the entire process. Images are then randomly split between  experienced lab technicians for analysis. A vast spreadsheet of statistics including image quality scores, carcass  data results, and ultrasound results from both reference technicians and exam takers are analyzed by the UGC Board. Members of the Board then vote to pass or fail each alias number based on the statistics in front of them.  The entire process usually takes 60-90 days to complete. Successful technicians must then pass the test again  two years later to maintain UGC Certified status.

Technicians have two opportunities to take the UGC Field Certification exam every calendar year. The National   CUP Lab and Iowa State University co-hosted the UGC Field Certification in Ames, Iowa in June. The University of  Georgia will also host the exam in Athens, Ga., in the fall. As a result, anyone who receives unsatisfactory results  from the June certification may attempt a second time at the exam in Georgia.

Becoming a certified ultrasound technician requires a large time commitment to the purebred cattle industry, not  to mention a substantial financial risk. Ultrasound equipment is expensive and highly specialized; the probe used  to capture carcass images has only one commercial use. Technicians spend countless hours on the road and   endure adverse weather conditions. The UGC Certification exam is difficult, but demand for ultrasound information from bull buyers and seedstock producers has driven the expansion of the science. The dedication by field  technicians and the Ultrasound Guidelines Council to ensuring accurate results should not go unnoticed. The  system allows producers of all breeds to make genetic progress, and buyers of their product can bid with  confidence for the carcass bull or female that fits their program.