United States Department of Agriculture

Agricultural Marketing Service

Federal Grain Inspection Service

Program Notice FGIS-PN-20-05 August 13, 2020 

Distribution: FGIS, OSP Disposal Date: 08/13/2021 Originating Office: FMD 

PPMAB

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in its programs on the basis of race, color, 

national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, and marital or familial status. (Not all prohibited 

bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternate means for communication of program 

information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and 

TDD).

To file a complaint, write to the USDA, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, 

Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal employment opportunity 

employer.

OPTIONAL CORN DOCKAGE CHECKTEST PROCEDURE

Contents

OPTIONAL CORN DOCKAGE CHECKTEST PROCEDURE ������������������������������������������������1

1.PURPOSE �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

2.BACKGROUND �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

3.PROCEDURE �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

4.FILING INSTRUCTIONS �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

5.QUESTIONS �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
FGIS Notice PN-20-05

Page 2

1. PURPOSE

The purpose of this notice is to provide an optional method for checktesting corn-only 

dockage testers. Official Service Providers (OSP) will have the option of using this 

method or the method specified in the Equipment Handbook.

2. BACKGROUND

The Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS) has an approved checktesting procedure 

for dockage testers used exclusively for corn. This procedure is described in the FGIS 

Equipment Handbook, Chapter 4.

Dockage testers used for the analysis of only corn utilize a single sieve and no air to 

separate broken corn and foreign material (BCFM) from the sample. This reduces the 

probability of variation compared to other grains, which require additional sieves and air 

to remove material. The corn-only dockage checktesting procedure was developed and 

implemented to simplify the checktesting procedure without compromising results.

The number of onsite laboratories not in constant use by official personnel, has 

increased significantly to accommodate customers’ needs for inspection. FGIS’ 

checktesting schedule dictates specific equipment be checktested on specific months in 

a limited timeframe. Certain types of equipment, such as dockage testers and moisture 

meters, require samples developed by FGIS for use in the checktesting process. 

Repeated trips to onsite laboratories for different checktests along with shipment of 

samples between OSPs and FGIS is time consuming and labor intensive for both 

parties

Under this alternate procedure, OSPs may designate one dockage tester per agency 

as their standard dockage tester and use it to checktest their own corn-only dockage 

testers. In turn, FGIS will checktest the OSP standard using established procedures. 

The following procedure is designed to provide greater flexibility for corn dockage 

checktests while maintaining the necessary credibility and accuracy expected by 

customers of the official system.

 

3. PROCEDURE

a. OSP Responsibiliti

(1) Notify the FGIS office providing checktesting samples that the OSP wants to 

utilize the optional corn dockage checktesting procedure. Identify and inform

FGIS of the serial number and specified service point (SSP) of each corn only 

dockage tester
FGIS Notice PN-20-05

Page 3

(2) Designate a Standard Precision No. 3 sieve and an OSP Standard Corn 

Dockage Tester. The OSP Standard Corn Dockage Tester may be used for 

other purposes, but the OSP Standard No. 3 sieve must only be used for 

checktesting and only with the OSP Standard Corn Dockage Tester. This 

combination of sieve and dockage tester is the OSP Working Standard.

(3) Checktest the OSP Standard Corn Dockage Tester according to the schedule 

and corn checktest procedures detailed in the Equipment Handbook. Apply

the tolerances from Section d. of this program notic

(4) Generate three corn checktest reference samples in accordance with the

requirements specified in the Equipment Handbook.

(5) Test the reference samples using the OSP Working Standard.

(6) Create a spreadsheet with the official agency name and columns for SSP

codes for locations and serial numbers of all corn-only dockage testers, 

dockage content of the corn checktest reference samples, checktest results, 

and the date of the checktest. (If necessary, contact the supervising field 

office for assistance with creating a spreadsheet.)

(7) Test all corn-only dockage testers using the three reference samples tested

with the OSP Working Standard and the corn-only procedure from the 

Equipment Handbook. Apply the reduced tolerance from this program notice.

(8) Enter the results of each checktest sample in the column next to the reference

sample result and calculate the average difference. After testing all cornonly dockage testers, send a copy of the spreadsheet to the field office in 

charge of oversight. FGIS will enter the checktest data into FGISonline ECT

program

FGIS is working to update ECT to allow OSPs to enter their own corn-only 

checktest data

(9) After initial checktesting, monitor all forms of supervision data at least monthly

to determine if subsequent checktesting or removal from service is necessary.

(10) Retest any dockage tester that has been removed from service for repairs 

before placing back in service.

b. FGIS Responsibilities

(1) Provide OSP with corn checktest samples for the OSP Standard Corn 

Dockage Tester and OSP Standard No. 3 sieve according to instructions in

the Equipment Handbook.

(2) Enter checktest results into ECT until the program is updated to allow OSP

input
FGIS Notice PN-20-05

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(3) Review all forms of supervision data at least monthly.

(4) Report results of each monthly review to the OSP, including any dockage 

tester which must be retested or taken out of service.

(5) Analyze the effectiveness of the corn only dockage checktest program after

one year to determine whether to continue.

c. Checktesting Frequen

(1) Checktest the OSP Standard Corn Dockage Tester and OSP Standard No.

3 sieve with FGIS-generated corn samples according to the corn checktesting 

schedule found in the Equipment Handbook.

(2) Checktest all other OSP dockage testers against the OSP Working Standard 

with reference samples when any of the following apply:

(a) A new dockage tester is placed into service.

(b) A dockage tester has not had a checktest in the past 12 months.

(c) Analysis of any supervision data by the OSP or FGIS indicates the need

for checktesting

(d) A dockage tester is placed back in service after repair.

d. Toleranc

± 0.20 percent mean deviation from Standard dockage tester to OSP Standard 

Corn Dockage Tester

± 0.20 percent mean deviation from OSP Standard Dockage Tester to field-based 

corn-only dockage tester

Note: The optional corn dockage checktesting procedure does not affect FGIS 

supervision activities of monitoring BCFM results.

Note: FGIS reserves the right to rescind this program if in the opinion of the 

Agency, the outcome does not meet the objectives of the Act.
FGIS Notice PN-20-05

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4. FILING INSTRUCTIONS

File a copy of this program notice with the Equipment Handbook. The handbook will be 

revised later to include these changes

5. QUESTIONS

Direct any questions regarding this program notice to AMS-FGIS Policies Procedures 

and Market Analysis Branch