Hot off the press …the latest in IWG media releases and archived media releases.

Equipment loan helps wool education

The loan to the University of New England of a wool-measurement technology package worth $94,000 is contributing to a national sheep-industry education program managed from UNE.

Interactive Wool Group (IWO) Pty Ltd, of Tamworth, has lent the package to David Cottle, UNE’s Professor of Sheep and Wool Science. Professor Cottle manages the national education program of the Australian Sheep Industry Cooperative Research Centre (Sheep CRC).

OFDA2000 is a portable computerised fibre measurement instrument. It can be used to measure greasy wool direct from the sheep’s back, or from a fleece at shearing time. It can measure 800 samples every eight hours. Measurements include mean fibre diameter, percentage of fibres greater than 30 microns, curvature and standard deviation of curvature, staple length, fibre diameter profile along the staple, and position of the finest and broadest points along the staple.

The Director of IWO, Richard Manning, and an IWO Research Officer, Shelley Carpenter, recently installed an OFDA2000 in the wool metrology laboratories in UNE’s School of Rural Science and Agriculture. It is being maintained by Michael Raue, a Technical Officer in the School. Earlier this week, students from UNE and other universities in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania undertaking the new Clip Preparation and Wool Marketing” unit delivered by UNE for the Sheep CRC, as well as wool-classing students from Armidale TAFE, used the equipment in the field at UNE’s Kirby Research Station near Armidale.

“This technology is extremely robust and can be used in shearing sheds and sheep yards,” Professor Cottle said. It enables wool’s important processing characteristics to be identified and measured in real time, providing critical information for clip preparation, breeding programs and flock management.”

Professor Cottle is using the instrument on the University’s farm clips as part of the undergraduate teaching program for UNE’s new Bachelor of Livestock Science degree. This program, to begin next year, incorporates all the Sheep CRC degree units.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at September22, 2004 03:54 PM

Rural invention plays star role in world record

Following the announcement of their world recording-breaking achievement –producing an 11 micron bale of wool – Queensland wool producers, brothers, Rick and Bim Goodrich, have recognised the key part played by leading edge on-farm technology.

The Goodrichs were early adopters of the Interactive Wool Group (IWG) OFDA2000 technology developed in Western Australia by BSC Electronics and distributed world wide by Bill Johnston and Richard Manning (Directors of IWG). Mr Bim Goodrich said the OFDA2000 was a valuable and important part of their wool operation’s marketing and management plan.

“Our intention is to produce the best fibre, to meet the specifications and requirements of the very top processors and, simply put, we couldn’t have done it without the OFDA2000,” said Mr Goodrich.

Last Wednesday the 11 micron bale of Australian merino wool was certified as the finest and softest wool in the world. The record 11 micron wool, undisputedly the world’s softest and most luxurious wool carries the family’s PRIMERINO brand shorn from the pride of the Goodrich family flock.
Ultra-fine wool breeder, dual America’s Cup yachtsman and National champion oarsman, Rick Goodrich and his brother Bim Goodrich, are specialist wool growers with a strong belief in sustainable future for Australian agriculture and astute financial managers, established the PRIMERINO brand to forge an enviable future for lowmicron wool in Australia.

The brothers started using OFDA2000, during shearing, three years ago. They now own two units and lease a third and continue to purchase management software updates developed by IWG.

“We saw there was a demand in our local woolgrowing community for this type of technology and now we have operators measuring growers’ clips in northern NSW and a lot of Queensland,” said Mr Goodrich.

“Wool producers, in our area, can see if they use a micron measurement tool, such as OFDA2000, they can make a significant difference to the management of their sheep and the marketing of their wool every year.”

Director of IWG, Bill Johnston, said the ground-breaking wool bale was a momentous milestone for Australian agriculture. “We are very proud of Bim and Rick’s success and delighted that OFDA2000 has played a significant part in this achievement,” he said.

“It goes to show how wool growers can use a tool like OFDA2000 to make a real difference to the management of their mobs, which is reflected by a positive bottom line.

“IWG has a continuing commitment towards furthering research and development within the animal fibre industry. We have continued to remain active in initiating research with the OFDA2000 operating software and IWG application programs in the
last 12 months.

“Our objective is to become accepted as the market leader because our technology and systems continually add to productivity and profit for wool producers and wool clients” The Goodrich property is a family enterprise built around honing ultra-modern farming techniques in the production of an ancient natural fibre. It was in this region the family pioneered the production of wool in 1846. Six generations and countless wool clips later, they continue to produce some of the most sought-after wool in the world. The bale, produced on the family property at Inglewood, Queensland, shattered all previous records, breaking through a barrier wool industry experts considered unreachable for several years. The brothers are the fifth generation of the Goodrich wool growing dynasty who have produced high quality merino wool continually for more than 160 years.

Study shows NSW woolgrowers benefit with On-Farm Fibre Measurement

The results of a recent independent On-Farm Fibre Measurement (OFFM) trial could commercially benefit Australian woolgrowers by providing a benchmark assessment of current testing methods.

The report, issued by Australian Wool Innovation Ltd (AWI) this week, has validated the practice of on-farm fibre testing of wool, as conducted by the Interactive Wool Group's (IWG's) software-based testing instrument, the OFDA2000.

AWI conducted the On-Farm Fibre Measurement (OFFM) Instrument Evaluation Trial in order to cut through the mass of information which exists around fibre testing and to provide woolgrowers with an independent evaluation of testing methods.

"This research confirms, in a general sense, that on-farm testing is as suitable to the task as laboratory testing, and more specifically, it notes the performance and high capability of the OFDA2000," explains Director of IWG, Richard Manning. "As an independent study, the trial's results are invaluable to woolgrowers - We hope that if they are not using OFFM already, they will now see the merit in adopting it."

The OFDA2000 is the world's first portable computerised fibre measurement instrument, the first to measure greasy wool and diameter profile along the staple. It's in-built modem and communications software enable electronic data transfer and download in real time and on-farm. This technology means that wool's important processing qualities and characteristics can now be identified and measured immediately, providing critical information required for breeding programs and flock management.

IWG's Richard Manning says that producers use the OFDA2000 for its unique advantages - its ease of use, small footprint, no requirement to shear the sheep, micron profile measurement and tracking, auto capture of fleece weight and body weight. Plus, the instrument is transportable and hardy enough to use in a shed, a yard or a laboratory.

Ultra-fine wool breeder, dual America's Cup yachtsman and National champion oarsman, Rick Goodrich and his brother Bim Goodrich, are specialist wool growers with a strong belief in a sustainable future for Australian agriculture. Astute financial managers they established the PRIMERINO brand to forge an enviable future for low-micron wool in Australia.

The brothers started using OFDA2000, during shearing, three years ago. They now own two units and lease a third and continue to purchase management software updates developed by IWG.

"We saw there was a demand in our local woolgrowing community for this type of technology and now we have operators measuring growers' clips in northern NSW and a lot of Queensland," said Mr Goodrich.

"Wool producers, in our area can see if they use a micron measurement tool, such as OFDA2000, they can make a significant difference to the management of their sheep and the marketing of their wool every year."

"The AWI trial results further support three trials IWG conducted and published at the International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO) conference in 2002."

"Our 2002 report to the international wool industry was the culmination of three years of commercial testing and research in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa," says Richard Manning. "We clearly demonstrated that the OFDA2000 was a precise and accurate instrument, meeting all of the requirements of our producer and commercial clients. And, we can see from the recent AWI study, the OFDA2000 keeps on delivering results."

AWI has indicated through a range of programs its priorities for extension and education and the OFFM report clearly indicates that the OFDA2000 is a valid form of producer measurement and assessment. AWI is now poised to roll out an accreditation program incorporating Quality Assurance components for OFFM operators and instruments.

"IWG has been very pleased to assist AWI in development of these programs and will support them any way we can," adds Richard Manning. "Industry is now in a position to move forward and capiltalise on the production and fibre benefits to be derived from on-farm testing and we look forward to terrific results for producers and the industry as a whole".

The AWI On Farm Fibre Measurement Report will be presented at the annual IWTO meeting in France on 4 May. Copies of the report are available from the AWI website at www.wooloffm.com.au For further information on the OFDA2000, contact IWG Director Bill Johnston on telephone (08) 9335 3495 or 0407 986 105 or visit www.iwgofda.com

Richard Manning is currently travelling through rural and regional Australia and will be in and out of mobile range. In the first instance Bill Johnston can be contacted for an interview.

Following story and photo courtesy of Northern Daily Leader.

Best thing since mechanical shears
Sunday, 8 September 2002

Sheep production has taken a major step forward towards the electronic age with the launch of a major new project.

Scientists in Armidale last week said linking electronic identification with fibre measurement using revolutionary database analysis had just become a reality.

The future in their hands: Interactive Wool Group partners, Bill Johnston and Richard Manning, with Warrane superfine merino wool grower Maurie Stephen and Wesfarmers Landmark wool tester Stephanie Fittler. Photo: Lu Danieli

The success is the result of a collaboration between the Australian Sheep

Co-operative Research Centre (CRC) and the Interactive Wool Group (IWG).

The testing system being trialed at Warrane, near Armidale, is the biggest thing to happen to the industry since the introduction of mechanical shearing, according to IWG partners Bill Johnston and Richard Manning, and CRC spokesman, Professor James Rowe.

"To manage individual animals will offer the sheep industry opportunities to enjoy the same rates of improvement as those demonstrated with beef and dairy production," Professor Rowe said.

"The move towards individual animal management, based on objective measurements, has been a dream of scientists and producers for years.

"The ability to combine technology in this way is likely to revolutionise the sheep industry."

Mr Manning said wool growers could use the system to optimise profit from wool, and may actually require less labour.

"It will be possible to combine information on wool quality with measurements of meat and parasite resistance in the same data base," he said.

"In this way producers will have the tools to optimise profits from both wool and meat."

June 6, 2002

OFDA2000 operators get behind quality control
OFDA2000 on-farm testing instruments across Australia and New Zealand have performed to the highest standard in the latest Interactive Wool Group (IWG) quality control tests, which analysed the relative precision of mid-side and top samples measurements produced by each instrument.

A total of 49 instruments participated in the process, which is believed to be the biggest proficiency test of micron in the world.

The tests, which are conducted on a regular basis by OFDA2000 distributors IWG, form a critical part of the company's quality control protocol to confirm instrument calibration and operator procedures.

The latest results are to be released in full at the IWG annual conference in Melbourne later this month, but according to the distributors, the results have provided the strongest demonstration yet of the technology's precision and reliability on-farm.

The quality control tests also highlighted the robustness of the instruments, with the trial samples tested in environments ranging from the slopes of Mount Cook in New Zealand to Longreach in Queensland and conditions that ranged from 14-41 degrees C and 11-62% Relative Humidity.

"Despite this incredible range in environmental conditions, we were able to achieve excellent confidence limits for mean fibre diameter (MFD), CVD% and Curvature in both the greasy wool staples and tops that we asked our operators to measure," said IWG director Richard Manning.

"We are committed to driving quality assurance in on farm testing and we will release our test results publicly after our international operator workshop this month."

The quality control testing process required participants to measure both fine and strong samples of greasy wool; to then scour those samples and re-test them in clean. Two tops were also included for measurement.

Test results were compared between samples and instruments and confidence limits considered.

The 49 instruments under scrutiny produced a greasy wool 95% confidence limit of +/-1.16 micron for MFD; +/-2.3 for CVD% and +/-9.3 for degrees per mm of curvature. Tops measured in the same round trial produced 95% CLs of 0.4 for MFD; 0.9 for CVD% and 7.0 for Curvature.

"The significance of these results only hits home when they are compared to the Australian laboratory Confidence Limit standards for mid-side samples and what they show is that these 49 instruments are performing at a precision level that is very close to the Australian laboratory standards," Mr Manning said.

"This process allows us to document the uniformity of the 49 participating instruments in the field and to demonstrate to our clients the reliability of the OFDA2000 compared to a laboratory test."

The next round of quality control proficiency trials will be conducted in July, following the release of the latest version of IWG software upgrades.

..ends..

May 6, 2002

Fleece testing embraced at Dunkeld

Story and Picture reprinted courtesy James Nason, Stock & Land

ON-FARM fleece testing using the OFDA2000 portable testing device and a switch to autumn shearing is helping a Dunkeld woolgrowing family breed towards a gradually finer flock and overcome a seasonal struggle with tensile strength.

Neil and Cindy McIntyre and their son and daughter-in-law Shaun and Lisa McIntyre are specialist wool producers, running 2000 Rock-Bank blood Merino ewes on their Tooronga at Dunkeld, Vic.

The management is based on two joinings a year, a strategy which allows the McIntyres to improve genetic gain by using a smaller number of better quality rams each year, and also to spread the workload and seasonal risk throughout the year.

The purchase of a neighbouring property recently has placed a short-term emphasis on expanding sheep numbers through breeding, particularly with current high sheep prices making it uneconomical to buy in outside breeding stock.

After noticing a broader trend in their breeding flock in recent years, the McIntyres began using the OFDA2000 portable testing device last year to test maiden ewes prior to joining, something they will continue to do in future.

All ewes that are broader or outside their breeding aims are being culled into a prime lamb breeding flock to be crossed with White Suffolk rams. This allows them to take advantage of high prime lamb prices and make full use of all breeding sheep as they continue to build numbers.

As they continue to test all maiden ewes each year, the McIntyres will eventually have objective measurement data on all ewes in their flock. Tested ewes are classed on frame and wool and will be correctively mated to OFDA tested rams in future.

The McIntyres opted to use the OFDA instead of Fleecescan because it was available locally, and because it meant they could test maiden ewes in their yards prior to joining, not during the rush of shearing as Fleecescan requires.

Shaun McIntyre said the long-term benefits of micron records and the consequent gradual fining down of their flock far outweighed the upfront cost of using OFDA of $1.30 per head.

The McIntyres are also gradually moving their shearing from spring to autumn in a bid to reduce the impact of the autumn seasonal break on the tensile strength of their clip.

They began phasing in the autumn shearing three years ago. A new age-group joins the April shearing every year, and within four years the spring shearing will be entirely phased out.

While shearing in autumn has resulted in slightly less yield due to dust and more vegetable matter content, these downsides have been significantly outweighed by the gains in tensile strength, Shaun said.

"Tensile strength was costing us a lot of money," he said.

"We have gone from averaging in the low 30 Newtons (per kilotex) to low 40s, so it has made a big difference."

The later lambing to complement the autumn shearing has also eased the burden of feeding ewes in autumn.

Ewes can now be run through the autumn virtually as dry stock, allowing the McIntyres to ease back the feeding regime, knowing the ewes will lamb in good condition on green feed in July/August.

Picture at Right: Shaun McIntyre (right) and his father Neil (second from right) have introduced OFDA testing as a sheep classing tool on their Dunkeld, Victoria, property Tooronga. They are pictured during shearing of lambs recently with John McIntyre (left) and Allan Myers.

September 19, 2001

OFDA2000 GREASE FACTOR SYSTEM SUPPORTED

WOOL scientists have published two independent papers* in recent months to demonstrate how greasy fibre diameter measured by the portable wool testing instrument OFDA2000, is directly proportional to the clean diameter.

The work supports the grease correction factor system that is used by OFDA2000 operators throughout Australia and NZ, but which has come under criticism from some quarters in recent months.

According to Interactive Wool Group (IWG), the company with the world wide distribution rights to OFDA2000 on-farm testing, trials continue to confirm that greasy wool tests are correlating closely with core-test results and they say latest research on grease significantly grows the understanding of grease factor in raw wool measurement.

"Whilst it is known that the amount of grease on wool fibres varies between mobs, between sheep and along the length of the staple, researchers have found that a portion of the grease actually coats the fibre in a relatively uniform manner, which is proportional to the diameter of the fibre," IWG direct Bill Johnston said.

"It has been observed that the fibres appear to be coated with a sheath of grease which is about 11-14% of the diameter of the fibre. This doesn't constitute the entire grease content of a greasy staple, but seems to be the portion that primarily affects measurements of greasy fibre diameter by instruments such as the OFDA2000."

Mr Johnston added that the OFDA2000 had an important in-built quality control that few were aware of, to give further assurance to users that the correction for grease was an accurate figure.

He said the OFDA2000 would only measure diameter when the instrument was satisfied that the two sides of the fibre portion were parallel.

"What this means is that it negates any chance of taking a measurement on areas of the fibre that have blobs or irregular grease coatings.

"The grease correction factor is therefore not just an average figure as a ratio against the average micron - a correction is applied to every single fibre measured in the staple, depending on the diameter of that fibre and it is therefore precise when averaged for the entire staple."

OFDA2000 operators use sonic scour kits to ensure all sheep mobs tested with OFDA2000 have an individually tailored average grease factor.

The mob average grease factor is established by testing the first 30 samples of a group twice - firstly in the greasy state and then again as a clean (scoured) sample.

A Grease Correction Factor (GCF) auto calculation is used to track the first 30 samples greasy and clean and then apply the calculated average GCF to the OFDA2000 measurement system to test the remaining greasy samples from the mob.

Mr Johnston added that the grease test is primarily performed to improve the accuracy of the OFDA2000 for preparing lines of wool for sale and stressed that it does not improve the ability of the system to rank animals according to micron.

"Despite that, the recent AMS trial conducted in Mingenew WA showed the ranking of animals between the three current forms of testing - laboratory, OFDA2000 and Fleecescan, was similar, despite the variations in the grease factor between sheep."

*The scientific papers relating to this topic have been written by Andrew Peterson and Peter Baxter and were published in the latest issue of Wool Technology and Sheep Breeding (Vol 49, No 2).

..ends..

July 11, 2001

TRIAL HIGHLIGHTS PRECISION AND ACCURACY of OFDA2000 AND ASSOCIATED SAMPLING METHODS

OFDA2000 sampling methods have again shown high correlation when compared to Laserscan laboratory wool testing and core-testing systems, this time as part of a trial conducted on a Mingenew WA property recently.

Department of Agriculture senior research officer Andrew Peterson has completed a trial involving 600 ewe hoggets, where the OFDA2000 has shown beyond doubt it's ability to produce results that are replicated in laboratory conditions, despite significant differences in sampling systems used.

The OFDA2000 sampling and measurement system was compared directly against the results produced from two sets of laboratory tests.

· Australian Fibre Testing's (AFT) Laserscan, which measured the same samples as the OFDA2000.
· AWTA Laserscan on the core-sampled subsequent fleece lines.

Thus, Laserscan's two completely separate sampling methods (fleece sample and core-test) were used and results compared against OFDA2000. The trial also made comparisons between hip-bone and mid side sampling.

The trial found that the average mean fibre diameter (MFD) results of the first 100 hoggets sampled were as follows:

The fleeces from the 600 hoggets were then classed into 3 micron classes that had been established by on-site testing. The expected class microns were then compared to the resulting AWTA Laserscan core-tests.

Once all short, cotted and tender fleeces had been removed, a total of 264 fleeces that had been measured and categorised by OFDA2000 were sent off for core-testing. The results were as follows:

The trial confirmed what Interactive Wool Group (IWG), the distributor of the OFDA2000 technology, has repeatedly claimed, and that is that OFDA2000 accuracy and the sampling system associated with it, correlates extremely well to laboratory wool test results and sampling methods.

The trial's instigator, Australian Merino Society member and site host Alan Heitman, was seeking comparison of both on-farm wool testing systems. It was Mr Heitman and fellow AMS member Chris Richardson, who approached the Department of Agriculture to design, supervise and analyse a trial in which both the OFDA2000 and FLEECESCAN were used to rank animals and prepare lines of wool, based on mean fibre diameter (MFD).

According to Andrew Peterson's final trial report, the ability of each on-farm testing system to rank animals based on MFD measurements compared well with conventional laboratory testing of a 20g sub-sample taken at the hip-bone.

He said in his conclusion that both OFDA2000 and FLEECESCAN systems were similar in their levels of precision when ranking animals based on MFD measurements, although the OFDA2000 hip-bone measurement based on one greasy staple was more precise than the FLEECESCAN measurement of a fleece.

The full trial report and statistical analysis is available on the IWG website at www.i-activewool.com.au.

…ends..

Authorised by Interactive Wool Group and
issued on their behalf by Esther Price Promotions

Monday 9 April 2001

The nation-wide surge in demand for on-farm wool testing reached an important milestone this month, with the passing of the millionth commercial test for Interactive Wool Group, the distributors of the OFDA2000 technology.

One of the groups founding licensees, Tasmanian based brokers Roberts Ltd clocked up the millionth test under the guidance of operator Alistair Calvert whilst providing OFDA on-farm services on the Webster family property "Warringa" at Woodbury, Tasmania.

Almost 5000 samples have been OFDA tested on property at Warringa since Bill Webster first began using the technology in September last year.

Mr Webster applies the technology to both genetic selection and wool marketing aspects of his wool growing enterprise and has been particularly impressed with the ability of the portable on-farm OFDA technology to correlate with certified pre-sale Laserscan wool testing.

Utilising the technology to set up and market his hogget wool lines in single micron increments, Mr Webster was then able to compare the correlation of the in-shed results, to the core tested sale lines he created.

The following table relates to Warringa hogget wool, tested in September last year:

AWTA Result(laserscan) OFDA 2000 Micron Groups
3 bales 15.2 mic 14.9 mic and finer
4 bales 15.7 mic 15.0 to 15.9 mic
3 bales 16.6 mic 16.0 to 16.9 mic
1 bale 17.3 mic 17.0 and stronger

"The guide was in fact so accurate that it then gave me the confidence to use the OFDA2000 in order to identify the sheep that carried the microns on which I wanted to concentrate my breeding program," Mr Webster said.

Mr Webster estimates that the use of OFDA2000 to set up wool lines by micron produced a 20% premium for his Warringa wool clip, while he claims that the system provides the most economic method available for identifying desirable breeding ewes.

..ends…

March 8, 2001

OFDA2000 ADDS SIGNIFICANT VALUE TO DISPERSAL SALE

THE VENDOR of a WA clearing sale at which superfine ewes topped at $305/head and averaged $116, has estimated OFDA2000 testing conducted on each ewe added between $40 and $50/head to the overall sale result.

In fact, Steve Pederick, principal of the Jarrah Grove superfine stud at Boyup Brook, who dispersed his flock last month amidst some of the strongest auction competition seen at a WA sheep sale in years, believes that he achieved premiums of up to $100/head on the sub-16 micron ewes by offering them in micron categories.

He utilised OFDA2000 services provided by licensees Primaries of WA to draft sheep into nine different micron categories, the lowest being 13.4-14.9 and in then in 0.5 micron increments up to 19.5.

The sale top of $305 head came from a line of 21 ewes classed into the 13.4-14.9 category, which included four ewes measuring below 14 micron on the pin-bone.

According to Mr Pederick, the opportunity to value-add to his dispersal sale via OFDA2000 technology was an example many others could learn from.

"Buyers of these fleece-measured sheep need to understand the measurements are a guide only and wool tests on these sheep in subsequent years will vary with seasonal conditions, management and age of the sheep," he said.

"However by offering the sheep in micron categories, we are giving the buyers the opportunity to set up their wool lines when they shear these sheep and enable them to offer the wool in a much tighter micron range, which should give them a market advantage."

Mr Pederick has been individually fleece testing his ewe flock for a number of years using OFDA100 technology at the Genstock laboratory in Kojonup and said the high instance of sub-15 micron sheep in the dispersal sale came as no surprise to him.

"However for people who haven't previously fleece tested their individual sheep, accessing an OFDA2000 on-farm can be a big learning experience about the make-up of a flock."

..ends..

Footnote: The dispersal sale was conducted by Wesfarmers Dalgety

February 14, 2001

STYLE GRADING CRUCIAL FOR ON-FARM WOOL TEST USERS

Interactive Wool Group (IWG) director Bill Johnston has urged all users of on-farm wool testing services to ensure they remain focused on style grading when using the new technology that allows them to class wool lines according to micron.

IWG is the company responsible for the distribution of OFDA2000 on-farm wool testing services throughout Australia and New Zealand.

"All forms of on-farm wool testing is being widely endorsed and adopted at a rapid rate around the country by wool growers," Mr Johnston said.

"As clever as the technology is, it does not remove the need for the highest wool classing standards to be maintained. The normal style grades such as short, tender, colour, cott and dermo should still be removed. Growers should also consider the style grades within the fleece micron ranges established to further optimise the benefit of on farm testing."

Mr Johnston said that classing into micron lines should be regarded as an additional tool, after which the highest clip preparation standards must be applied.

He added that growers had identified substantial economic benefits from marketing wool in micron categories, but those who had reaped these rewards had been diligent in their style grading and clip preparation.

"In addition to wool returns, there is also the labour/time benefit of testing pre shearing, as this eliminates the need for re-mustering and re-identifying and allows sheep to be drafted into micron groups on the spot," he said.

(NSW-based farm consultants Hassell & Associates estimate this saving to be worth 75c-$1/head).

Further economic benefit can be gained by considering the advantages that relate to genetic selection.

..ends..

Authorised by IWG Pty Ltd and
issued on its behalf by Esther Price Promotions

February 1, 2001

GIOVANNI SCHNEIDER APPLAUDS OFDA INITIATIVE

ONE of the world's most respected wool processors, the Italian-based Giovanni Schneider Group, has applauded the initiative and commitment of the privately owned company that has commercialised OFDA technology.

According to the Group's Australian division managing director Don Belgre, the role that the digital-based Optical Fibre Diameter Analysis technology will play in further improving the way in which the world measures it's wool, is significant.

"For a small, privately owned company to deliver this technology to the world and successfully pitch it against the certified wool testing system and a corporate monopoly the size of AWTA, must have required considerable courage," Mr Belgre said.

"But the textile industry will benefit from this kind of research and development competition, which must be widely endorsed and encouraged.

"We need to see a continual improvement in wool measurement systems so that we, in turn, can achieve a more accurate indication of wool's commercial processing capabilities.

"And, the greater the number of alternative wool testing methods that are developed that will facilitate this process, the better."

Mr Belgre said his company believed that OFDA technology was delivering the kind of technological advances the industry required and as a result had installed the latest OFDA laboratory models in its Italian mills.

He added that the introduction of on-farm wool testing utilising OFDA2000 technology had huge flow-on benefits to companies such as the Giovanni Schneider Group, but warned that traditional wool classing standards must not be compromised.

"Being able to class for micron is an enormous advantage to the grower in setting up his wool lines, however that benefit is negated if the classer isn't applying the usual length, strength and style considerations when preparing the clip."

Meanwhile, Primaries of WA chief Des Sheedy has added his support.

"When a company the size of Giovanni Schneider, with all it's resources, has selected WA-based technology to take on the role of predicting processing performance of the wool it buys, that is a big endorsement for a privately owned and funded fledgling company," Mr Sheedy said.

Primaries of WA and its Tasmanian partner company Roberts Ltd, were the first Australian wool brokers to take out OFDA2000 licenses.

"Now that Primaries clients are able to access OFDA2000 technology on-farm, they are in a position to value-add on-property.

"OFDA2000 provides a shorter lead time from where they are today to where they are aiming to be in terms of the productivity and profitability of their wool clip."

..ends…

Authorised by Don Belgre of Giovanni Schneider and released on behalf of
Interactive Wool Group by Esther Price Promotions

November 3, 2000

OFDA 2000 paves way for new wool sale heights.

OFDA 2000 technology has assisted two wool producers in setting new wool sale records in two states in the past month.

Following the commercial release of the first series of the OFDA 2000 portable wool testing machines, the technology is now in use across all states of Australia as well as New Zealand.

The state record prices, set in Queensland and WA, were achieved in fine wool flocks, where wool producers have used the OFDA 2000 to identify super fine lines of wool.

In Queensland the Goodrich family of Currajong Station, Inglewood, established five lines at 0.5 micron increments, with their finest line set at 15 micron.

Traditionally, this portion of the clip would have averaged in the vicinity of 17 micron, however under the OFDA system, they were able to extract a price of 5500c/kg for one bale of 15.3 micron wool and in doing so, setting a new state record for un-shedded wool.

The wool was consigned through Primac Elders and the buyer was Australian Wool Exporters on behalf of a Korean client.

The other four lines set and measured by the OFDA 2000 machine drew prices of 4270c/kg (1 bale of 16 micron); 3018c/kg (2 bales of 16.3 micron); 2688c/kg (2 bales of 16.7 micron) and 2240c/kg (4 bales of 17.3 micron).

The price was almost matched in WA, when McAlinden farmers MJ & CH Bleechmore, received 5010c/kg greasy for 2 bales of 15 micron wool.

The Bleechmore family had tested the fleeces in the drafting race prior to shearing and identified a 15 micron line. The resulting offering set a new state record in WA when the wool was consigned to Fremantle for auction by Primaries of WA and purchased by Howard Scott for Giovanni Schnieder.

.. ends ..