Don’t Sweat It!

The Texas Heat has nothing on the PolarPen… No Bull!

by IBBA Assistant to the Executive Vice President Yvonne “Bonnie” Ramirez

 

The sizzling Texas heat in the summer months is no secret. It’s a scorching time of year with temperatures reaching record highs, over 100 degrees. Tackling, much less accomplishing, anything livestock-related during a hot Texas summer is quite a feat. Collecting semen from bulls, specifically, during the summertime is a challenge. But don’t sweat it; the fine folks at Elgin Breeding Service (EBS) have formulated a cooling system as a solution for collecting on bulls during the summer. The Texas heat is no match for EBS’s PolarPen … No Bull!

What exactly is the PolarPen? Simply put, it’s what the name implies. It’s a cooling system that keeps bulls cool and comfortable. “It’s a cooling paradise,” said EBS Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Hillary Kvamme. The family who owns and operates EBS in Elgin, Texas, has operated the world-renowned custom semen company since 1954. EBS is one of the oldest and largest semen companies in the United States.

In the heat, when being collected on, bulls display signs of heat stress in their semen. Their progressive motility, concentration, and percentage of abnormalities can significantly be impacted. In the mid 80s, knowing the challenges that the Texas heat posed on affecting semen quality, the EBS team opened EBS-West, a satellite facility in Eastern New Mexico. The facility was located in the mountains, situated at 7,000 feet, thus, protected from extreme heat conditions and humidity. “It allowed us to escape the daunting realization that heat stress could rear its ugly head at any moment when the temperatures started soaring,” Kvamme said. The ideology behind the satellite facility worked well for many years. However, in 2014 the doors for that location were closed due to evolving Certified Semen Services (CSS) guidelines. “We realized that the facility was outdated, and to bring it up to what needed to be done to stay in compliance with CSS guidelines was not worth the financial and physical burdens,” Kvamme mentioned.

It was then that modern technology and the EBS’s team partnered up. New innovations and ideas soared, and the PolarPen was born. The PolarPen consists of two primary components: a cooling unit, called a Coolerado, and a barn built to create a cooling paradise. The Coolerado uses indirect evaporative cooling technology; but instead of using chemical refrigerants and compressors to cool the air, it uses a process that runs fresh external air through a filter and then through a heat mass exchanger. The system uses 90 percent less energy with no chemical coolants. This process allows for improved air quality and, also, reduces carbon footprint. “Simply put, here are a few highlights of the PolarPen: 100 percent fresh air enters the cooling system, the air is filtered of dust, working air removes heat, heat and moisture are exhausted from the system, and cool product air enters the barn with no added humidity,” Kvamme mentioned.

When temperatures reach over 100 degrees and you factor in the humidity, the heat index could reach 115-plus. “When you compare that to the inside temperatures of the PolarPen, there is a minimum 35-degree difference,” said Kvamme. Last summer, the PolarPen did not exceed temperatures above 85 degrees. Kvamme exclaimed, “That in itself is a success!”

The PolarPen is twelve feet by thirty feet and is made up of two stalls separated by a walkthrough. The inside walls have been sprayed with foam insulation, which allows for keeping out the hot air and keeping in the cool air. A roof was installed over the roof to reflect as many rays as possible. The PolarPen is closely monitored for temperatures. EBS has a service that works off of cellular signals. One probe goes inside the barn, and it constantly measures the temperature. There is an antenna on the exterior of the barn, which allows EBS staff to set the temperature levels. If the temperature is too high, the system will immediately send, both, a text message and email to EBS team members. “To date, we have yet to have a problem with the unit,” Kvamme said. The PolarPen, also, has a closed-circuit video surveillance.

Bulls are not kept overnight in the PolarPen. They are let out during feeding time and at night. Bulls are only kept in the PolarPen during the day. They still get to be bulls. The EBS team incorporated several things to make the PolarPen experience as real as possible. They added toys, like balls, and music to help maintain their social nature.

To date, the benefits of the PolarPen have been fruitful. Kvamme added, “The benefits are robust!” The crew at EBS has experienced the following: less heat stress in the semen collected, no decline in semen production, harvested semen is good quality and consistent, concentration of cells are stable, motility scores are at or above the levels given before the PolarPen. “In our book, that shows that our major experiment is working, and working well,” Kvamme explained.

Sounds like the sweltering Texas heat is no match for EBS’s PolarPen … No Bull! For more information about EBS’s PolarPen, visit www.elginbreedingservice.com or call 1-(800) 654-2503.