Digital Re-print - May | June 2010

Feature title: The use of peripheral machines in flour mills of today

Grain & Feed Milling Technology is published six times a year by Perendale Publishers Ltd of the United Kingdom.
All data is published in good faith, based on information received, and while every care is taken to prevent inaccuracies,
the publishers accept no liability for any errors or omissions or for the consequences of action taken on the basis of
information published.
©Copyright 2010 Perendale Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form
or by any means without prior permission of the copyright owner. Printed by Perendale Publishers Ltd. ISSN: 1466-3872

www.gfmt.co.uk NEXT PAGE

 Peripheral machines Feature Feature Peripheral machines

Images courtesy of Satake Europe : http://www.satake-group.com

condition of wheat to first break to such an 1950s when

The use of extent as to allow the mill operative to set

his mill up properly and optimize extraction
mills often had
two roller floors.

Images courtesy of Satake Europe : http://www.satake-group.com

peripheral
rates. The fact that
Calibration is required regularly and if a roll was set
records of “as found” conditions should be to grind too
kept to identify seasonal trends. For example hard then flakes

machines
if the local vegetable processing factory uses were produced
high levels of water in the season then you which were
will need to make adjustments to allow for scalped off and
that. lost down the
As we move on into the mill I would class coarse reduc-

in flour mills of today

the scales as peripheral machines, since they tion side of
do not change the nature of the product as the mill was
it passes through. apparent to
Scales do however play an enormously most millers
important part in the running of the mill and engineers
since all our information about mill efficiency, and hence the
by Jonathan Bradshaw extraction rates, throughput rates etc comes flake disrupter
from the scales, more often than not these was introduced
Bran Finisher
days linked to a central processor that gives so that hard
a continuous read out of the scale readings grinds could be
and the calculations which we would other- achieved and any flakes could be very pungent and unique

W
hilst there can be no
disputing the fact that
the rollermills and the
sifters are the main, key machines
within a flour mill, there are a host
of other machines scattered around
the mill, wheat cleaning, bulk storage
and packing areas that have signifi-
cant roles to play in maintaining or
enhancing operational efficiency
on a site and it is these machines I
intend to look at in this article.
Let us start at the beginning in the wheat
silos where we see an intake separator, often
I don’t class the intake separator as a
peripheral machine but I do class the magnet
in the silo as being peripheral to the process.
Magnets, wherever they may be, in the
intake house, the wheat cleaning plant, scat-
tered around the mill or in the bulk flour
silo should have the material they collect
examined regularly and for me that means at
least once every eight hours unless there is a
large quantity of product passing over them
in which case twice a shift would be more
acceptable.
Looking at what has been collected on a
magnet can often give warning of a disaster
about to happen elsewhere. If a large quan-
tity of sifter bolts starts
to appear then further
examination is required
a separator and a colour sorter is all that is wise do long hand at the end of each shift. broken down before they reached the scalp- odour. So unique is the
required to provide a clean wheat stream to It goes really without saying that proper ing covers. Similar maintenance tasks should smell that many operatives do not recognize
first break. calibration is required on all scales and their be carried out periodically on disruptors it and it goes unattended to. It pays to train
However, colour sorters come under my proximity to blowing lies should be checked and blades should be kept sharp by running all staff correctly to recognize this odour and
heading of peripheral devices and they do for any adverse effects on scale operations. an angle grinder over them to maintain the also in the accepted practices for dealing
require regular servicing, bulb changes and The use of flake disruptors on the head leading edge. with insects.
nozzle checks. The compressor which sup- reductions, detachers on the lower reduc- I also class sieve cleaners, throughs tray Pheromone traps can help identify insects
plies air to these machines is definitely on my tions and other similar devices, either posi- cleaners and other devices on purifiers and on the wing and also give warning that a
list of peripheral machines and needs good tioned in the basement, on the top floor in sifters as peripheral devices and I believe fumigation should be performed. Pheromone
servicing if it is to work efficiently. or mounted directly in the pneumatic lift all that regular inspection of these and replace- traps should be logged and should not be
We have a great dependence on clean have an impact on extraction and ash. ment of worn ones will give you a handsome placed anywhere where they are likely to
dry air for many functions in our mills and Keeping rotors in good order is of para- return for very little expenditure. be dislodged or fall off into the process.
I see many mills where the compressor is mount importance and I believe it pays to If you are not careful you could cause
stretched to its limit due to the air supply change pins once a year ideally just prior to Recognizing odours yourself more of a problem than you
having ever increasing demands placed upon harvest. The number of rollermills in a mill Regular strip down of sifters will reveal bargained for.
it as additional machines are added. has now drastically reduced since the mid- the tell tale signs of bug urine which has a Several sifter sections are prone to
In my strongly advocated daily walk round
the mill I recommend turning on the com-

“It pays to know your at the sifter since one or

more is clearly about to
fall apart.
mill and screenroom but New items
appearing
we must not forget the
In the wheat clean-
ing house the principal
ancillary machines, they machine are all familiar
to us but there are some
pressed air supply when the mill is not run-
ning. It is much easier to hear air leaks and
track them down when plant is stopped and
you would be surprised just how many traps
and water separators jam open, costing you
money when it is unnecessary.
The principle of colour sorting is to use
the diffused light to make the wheat grains
“disappear” into the background which then
allows impurities to be much more easily

all have a role to play”
much maligned and rarely maintained since it
is such a simple piece of equipment which
rarely breaks down or goes wrong.
new items appearing
which need our attention.
Colour sorters are
common place now and
often can be seen replac-
ing cylinders and disc separators in the older,
more established mills. In the new mills they
are now the accepted norm and often just
identified. If bulbs are not maintained then
the wheat remains visible and the colour
sorter will reject it. A good maintenance
contract will pay dividends … literally.
The importance of calibration
Damping systems are important and
when operating accurately can improve the

24 | may - June 2010 Grain &feed millinG technoloGy Grain &feed millinG technoloGy PREVIOUS PAGE NEXT PAGE may - June 2010 | 25
Images courtesy of Satake Europe : http://www.satake-group.com
Intake Separator SATAKE GFID
sweating if not exhausted properly and
careful attention should be paid to estab-
lish which sections are prone to this
since when sweating or condensation does
occur the sifter cannot perform prop-
erly and flour covers will simply blind over
gradually.
Spouts should be checked regularly
under sifters that sweat to ensure moth
frasse and webbing does not build up. If
it does then spouts should be cleaned by
“dragging”. Fortunately such evidence of
insect activity is rarely seen these days.
Definitely classed as a peripheral
machine in my book but with a very
important role to play is the bran finisher.
Now fully recognized by most engi-
neers, Satake in particular, this machine
not only removes the last remnants
of flour from bran but is also
marshalls coarse stocks into a
recognizable stream. Given
the use of inclination
in the new Satake
machine the bran
finisher can be
used to great
effect, espe-
cially as far as
extraction levels are
concerned.
The last ‘policeman’
Redress sifters are all important since
they are the last ‘policeman’ in the mill.
I am seeing more mills using level
probes under redress sifters to tell the
mill operative when the bag is full of
excess overtails, indicative of a burst
cover back up the mill somewhere.
Drawing samples will quickly identify
where the burst cover lies.
As well as sieve cleaners being impor-
tant then so too are roll brushes and
other roll cleaners, criterion cleaners and
similar These, when working correctly will
enable the miller to set a good grind but
if they are damaged or ill fitting the miller
26 | may - June 2010
Peripheral machines
will struggle all day trying to set a good
grind.
Screw conveyors collecting flour
and being used to mix in additives
should have the additives feeders posi-
tioned as far away from the discharge
point as possible in order to attain a
good mix.
Additive feeders should be equipped
with level alarms so that flour cannot be
produced without the correct additives. It
varies from country to country as to wheth-
er the miller or the baker adds the bakery
improvers but it is becoming the norm
for the miller to do it, hence it is vitally
important for there to be good indication
of low levels in all the feeders. In the case
of mills who have an automated mill control
system the mill will be sent into suspend
mode whenever low levels of additives are
reached rather than produce any flour that
is not acceptable to the baker.
Health and safety has precluded the
use of gas to bleach flour but several mills
still maintain agitators through which dif-
ferent flour streams may pass. Whilst
this is somewhat over the top for most
operations, I see no reason not to maintain
agitators to assist with blending of flour
additives.
In the bulk flour silos and through to the
packing plant there is usually a liberal use
of magnets. My earlier notes about mag-
nets applies just as much here as earlier
in the flow.
Making a large investment
Packing houses have changed beyond
all recognition since the mid 20th Century.
High speed packing using carousels has
led to direct loading onto vehicles, occa-
Feature
M lling 2010/11
International
sionally with very few, if any operatives at
all. Such highly efficient items of equipment Directory
obviously require a sizeable investment
and a large volume is needed to justify the
expense. Well worth it however in the
larger mills around the world.
19th PRINT EDITION - OUT NOW!
In these larger mills it is quite common • Industry Terminology
to pellet the bran produced and in mills • Products & Services section > including thousands of products and services from across the industry
where there is a low demand for bran it • A-Z of milling suppliers > Over 25% of our information has been updated since last years edition, as well as over
is common to place the bran in the wheat 150 new companies that have joined the IMD.
silos as they are emptied and then trans- • International Organisations > We have added more organisation data, that will help any company operating
ship the bran back to the origin of the within the global industry
wheat on the next available grain vessel.
• Commodities data > Completely updated section, produced in association with IGC (International Grains Council)
Occasionally larger mills will have their
• Equipment guides section > now including:
own feed mill and will use the bran as
- NEW! Elevator buckets guide
part of the diet for local livestock. In such - Extruder & Expander guide > additional charts added!
cases they may bring in mixed cargoes of - Hammermills guide > additional charts added!
commodities such as wheat, maize, soy, - NEW! Pellet press guide What ever you
etc to make up a balanced diet often using
local ingredients such a guinea corn where
are looking for
available. - find it with IMD!
And, finally, I include in peripheral
machinery such items as generators, labo-
ratories and vehicles used for transporting
finished products locally.
All of these
www.internationalmilling.com
need to be
maintained, par- IMD_AD190x132.indd 1 25/05/2010 16:43
ticularly genera-
Shangdong Yingchun
tor sets. Where
they are installed
Steel Silo Manufacturing
to supply power as
an alternative to the
main supply company
it is done for reasons
TRUTH - INNOVATION - PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE - QUALITY - PEOPLE ORIENTED - PROFOUND KNOWLEDGE
of continuity of supply
and to maintain a constant
voltage, not often achiev-
able from the local power “With over 50 years of experience in the industry, we have built a solid reputation for “Yingchun”.
company. Using fuel from the This reputation is based on our scientific management, advanced processing, strict quality control
incoming grain vessel to power and excellent after sales service.
the generators can show some
We will stick to our tenet of “Quality first, credit uppermost, customer guided, common
economies, but there is little need
to justify the expense of a generator
development” and provide the best products and services for you”
set when the alternative is invariably no
power supply at all.
As a last comment, it is attention to
detail that keeps all these peripheral and
ancillary machines performing satisfactorily
and daily walks around the mill and other
processes will pay handsome returns come
the days of reckoning.
Shandong Yingchun Steel Silo Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
A simple check list of functions that Address: No.101, Beiyi Road, Dongying City, Shandong Province
should be examined daily is well worth Tel: +86 546 8313068
keeping especially of the operations that Email: ycgbc@silo86.com
are being monitored. It pays to know your
mill and screenroom but we must not
forget the ancillary machines, they all have
a role to play.
Grain &feed millinG technoloGy Grain &feed millinG technoloGy PREVIOUS PAGE NEXT PAGE may - June 2010 | 27
Your mill is our priority. No one knows our systems as well as we do. We built
them, and we will do everything we can to ensure that they continue to improve
your company’s productivity. With fully customized service plans we are able to
provide everything from reliable troubleshooting and original replacement parts
to technology upgrades, preventative maintenance, and consulting services.
Are you satisfied? Then we are too.

Bühler AG, Customer Service, CH-9240 Uzwil, Switzerland, T +41 71 955 30 40,
F +41 71 955 33 03, service.gp@buhlergroup.com, www.buhlergroup.com

The solution behind the solution.

PREVIOUS PAGE NEXT PAGE
This digital Re-print is part of the May | June 2010 edition of Grain & Feed Milling Technology magazine.
Content from the magazine is available to view free-of-charge, both as a full online magazine on our
website, and as an archive of individual features on the docstoc website.
LINKS
Please click here to view our other publications on www.docstoc.com.

June 2010 • See the full issue

• Flour mill design
• Visit the GFMT website
• Horizontal

• Contact the GFMT Team

twin-shaft In this issue:
paddle mixers
The ultimate in mixing
technology • Grain storage
- The Canadian way
• Simultaneous
• The use of determination of
peripheral mycotoxins
machines
in flour mills of today • Hygienic
Compact
Containment
• Subscribe to GFMT
System

A subscription magazine for the global flour & feed milling industries - first published in 1891

GFMT10.03.indd 1 28/05/2010 10:15

To purchase a paper copy of the magazine, or to subscribe to the paper edition please contact
our Circulation and Subscriptions Manager on the link adove.

INFORMATION FOR ADVERTISERS - CLICK HERE

Article reprints
All Grain & Feed Milling Tecchnology feature articles can be re-printed as a 4 or 8 page booklets (these have been used as point of sale materials, promotional materials for shows and exhibitions etc).
If you are interested in getting this article re-printed please contact the GFMT team for more information on - Tel: +44 1242 267707 - Email: jamest@gfmt.co.uk or visit www.gfmt.co.uk/reprints

www.gfmt.co.uk PREVIOUS PAGE