04.12.2015
Watching the late Owen Wright scanning ewes on his first trip to New Zealand in the winter of 1992 was the “eureka” moment. I had determined to own my own business by the age of forty and sheep scanning ticked all the boxes.
As for a business name, we used the K.I.S.S. principle, tell them your name and what you do and Jeff Sewell Animal Scanning was born a year before my business deadline.
I worked as Owen’s assistant/marker for the 1993 U.K. season in return for giving me training in the skills of scanning and headed back to New Zealand with what was to be only the second Vetscan 2 ultrasound machine in the country at that time.
Having undertaken extensive market research and farmer calling before I left, my return was greeted with a great amount of enthusiasm from farmers, vets and agricultural consultants alike and more than a healthy amount of inward intrepidation from me. Was I up to the task?
I set myself a goal of being able to accurately scan 180 ewes an hour by the end of my first season. Accuracy before speed with the focus on being invited back the following season.
You never really know how you’ve performed until you canvas the farmers as to their results. One of the first properties I scanned was an older farmer. Perhaps sensing the nervousness in my voice he boomed down the phone, “You , you B…….there were twins in the singles and singles in the twins, it was a right mess.” Leaving it long enough to sense the turmoil that he’d created by the stunned silence coming from my end of the line he then said, “It was perfect, best thing I’ve ever done. Book me in for next year”
Jeff’s first vehicle. “Tell them your name and what you do” K.I.S.S. principle.
As the business grew I was able to contract other scanners into the business. The first was Carl Williams, a Kiwi who had started scanning in Denmark and was now heading back to New Zealand with his family. Carl worked in the business for two seasons and continues to scan Denmark/New Zealand. Then George Bowie, the “B” in the BCF name found Neil Crighton from Northumberland for us. Neil worked for us for three seasons before circumstances changed for him and on his recommendation Hamish Hall from the Borders came out for twelve years. I was fortunate to have been able to scan every year in the U.K. since my training with Owen, firstly scanning for Owen then for a vet practice in Ledbury before contracting to Neil up until 2012.
International travel has been a bonus having also scanned in France, Germany, Chile and latterly Australia. As I say “Sheep all Baa the same where-ever you are in the world, it is the people you meet and the experiences that you share that is the real bonus.” Learning new languages, fording swollen rivers on horseback, transcending hierarchical barriers, new foods and new found friends. In Chile I always had an English/Spanish dictionary on the scanning desk and the staff were always looking up words to expand their English, which in turn expanded my Spanish. I used a white board in the shearing shed putting up new words or sayings in English with their Spanish equivalent. Everyone wins.
Tandem scanning with Uta in Germany.
Having been associated with BCF since 1992 when I placed my order with George Bowie for my Vetscan2 it has been fascinating watching the growth in the business. The personalities and face recognition that goes with a small business is a very personal thing, and in those early days it was very special to be greeted annually by everyone from management to the production line staff. To his immense credit George Bowie could see that the company needed to progress and putting the business in the hands of Alan and Gavin has seen an exponential growth and they are to be applauded for the new look BCF.
Some of the special memories I have is of my annual scanning at the Scottish Agricultural College. I would phone Scot Cowan of BCF to let him know when I would be due to scan the ewes and BCF would send a team down to observe scanning first hand. Everyone from reception to production and marketing were included. Then having observed me scanning and the images produced I would kit them out, sit them in the scanning chair and have them scan ewes. It is one of the special elements of the ethos that defines the BCF “team” mantra. We were also well served by the BCF Australasian team under Chris Graham.
Scanning in Victoria Australia.
I have trained a number of new operators over the years and been part of training courses. I try to impart to operators that it is a privilege to be invited onto a farm to scan. The management information you provide the farmer will assist them achieve the very best result they can from their flock. You become more than a “service provider”, you become an “integral cog” in their farm management team. It is important that farmers understand what information you can provide them with and how they can use that information to best advantage.
Thus, scan operators have an education role that goes beyond the physical job of pregnancy testing the ewes which means you need to spend time with your farmer clients discussing the results. The ongoing benefit of this becomes apparent when you see their business succeeding which means you succeed. It is from this that lasting friendships are made and it is these lasting friendships, both local and International that have given us the most satisfying rewards from the scanning business.
Scanning at Cocklaw in the Borders for Hector McAskill.
Having reflected on 23 years in the scanning chair it is now time to hang up the probe and sell the business. Time to move on to and explore other opportunities.
If anyone is looking for a stable business opportunity for ten weeks of the year in the warmest winter province in New Zealand we welcome your enquiry.
