BLOGS
Animal Feed Mill Design & Layout
Ease of Operation, Material Handling & Flow
- Weighbridge - near main gate & security –with straight approach access; unloading and waiting for areas for the truck.
- Boiler - height & location of the chimney as per government norms, should be at a distance from living, office area and inflammable products, storage space for fuel as per density – wood, oil & husk.
- Machinery - Select the location of machinery in such a way; that there should be sufficient distance between the dust control equipment and nearby residential area. Select the location of the blower duct outlet opposite the nearby residential area.
- Store - Select the location of the store and daily need equipment as per the process flow and ease of operation.
- Rodent proof construction - Rats and mice cause serious damage to all kinds of grains if they are allowed access to them. As rodents cannot crawl upside down; so a 2 feet extended platform above 3 feet plinth level helps to prevent rodents in the feed mill.
- Electric & Transformer - should near the mail line & security.
Size of Raw material warehouse as per inventory required & Project running capacity
Flat storage area instead of bulk silos required more ground area. So, the size of the warehouse shed should match the project capacity and raw material storage. Practically 1 MT of the material requires 5-6 square feet of area at 15 feet stacking height on maize density.
For example: If we have to store raw material stock for 2 months and our daily production is around 100 MT we need; 100 x 25 days x 2 = 5000 MT of storage for 5000 MT storage on maize density we need a minimum space of 28,000 – 30,000 square feet.
Provision for future expansion
Selecting a layout with no room for expansion is a mistake. Even with the best planning, most successful plants will make changes in future years that could not have been foreseen. Therefore, it is wise to allocate some areas of the site for future growth and expansion. And always select the location of the feed mill in such a way that there should be space for expansion towards the raw material godown (In direction of the chain conveyor). Also, provision can be kept for bulk silos.
Availability of water, electricity, labour, and other resources
Water is necessary for boilers, toilets, and fire protection. However, if it is not available from utility, a well on the property may be necessary. In this case, underground water availability will need to be investigated. Sometimes both sources are used in the same plant.
A public sanitary sewage connection is desirable, but properly installed septic tanks and drain fields work very well in remote areas.
Rainwater harvesting points
Rainwater harvesting & conservation is the activity of direct collection of rainwater. The conservation of rainwater so collected can be stored for direct use or can be recharged into groundwater. The main goal is to minimize the flow of rainwater through drains to the rivers without making any use of the same. Hence, it’s a wise decision to keep the provision for soil water harvesting points while designing a shed.
Human safety & firefighting
- Roads should be provided in a symmetric manner to serve all areas requiring access for operation, maintenance, and firefighting. At least two approaches/exits should be provided for each operating area. The fire control room should be earmarked/located in a non-operating area, Fire control room may be in the security room/administrative building.
- High Tension (HT) line and HT sub-station(s) shall be terminated/located outside the operating area.
- Plant elevation should be higher than the outside boundary surroundings and approach roads inside the plant area should be on higher ground to avoid flooding.
- Plant elevation should be higher than the outside boundary surroundings and approach roads inside the plant area should be on higher ground to avoid flooding.
