Key Factors in Developing Vendor Relationships
June 4, 2015
We often discuss the importance of developing a partnership with our customers, but another very important relationship is the one we have with our vendors. Without strategic partners,…
Author: Kenneth Aniunoh
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Capacity Planning
February 5, 2015
There’s an old saying that goes: “failing to plan is planning to fail”. This is as true in life as it is in a production facility. A question…
Calculating Drying Costs and Heat Needs
December 4, 2014
Plant investments can vary from initial capital investments to ongoing costs. This is why our sales team devotes time to conduct a feasibility analysis with you. We are…
Exceeding Expectations: Putting the Customer First
August 7, 2014
During a recent trip to visit prospective clients, I was reminded how important customer relations were to business. Without customers, there is no business, so as a collaborator…
Calculating Conveying Capacities
May 20, 2014
When designing a plant, it is important to consider the flow of material during a given time. This is the “mass flow rate” and is important when specifying…
TOM D WIP – Lean Manufacturing’s Enemy
September 24, 2013
Lean manufacturing is a concept that has been around for a while and has become the go-to buzzword over the last several years. Every company wants to create…
Hammer Mill or Roller Mill for Soy Extrusion?
April 9, 2013
In the blog “Particle Size Reduction,” we touched based on the various types of equipment used to pre-grind materials before extrusion. The majority of projects we work on…
Plant Layouts
February 5, 2013
Here at Insta-Pro, we not only sell equipment, but we have the unique opportunity to provide engineering services as well. This can prove to be a valuable resource…
Particle Size Reduction
November 22, 2012
Regardless of your feed production process, there is a good chance that you will have to grind material to a suitable size for processing. In the case of…
Mechanical Oil Pressing
November 1, 2012
Oil extraction is often a goal with seed processing. Oils can be harvested from a variety of seeds and a common method is through an oil press. This…
Extruder Screw Design and Purpose
October 11, 2012
At its core, the extruder is a very simple machine. The various configurations of shaft speed, number of chambers and types of screws/steamlocks enables the operator to create…
Soybean Dehulling – How Does it Work?
September 20, 2012
A topic we come across often is the need, or want, for soybean dehulling. Dehulling (or decortication) is the process of removing the hull of a seed and…
Statistical Process Control (SPC): Quality Tools for Your Plant
August 30, 2012
An area sometimes overlooked within a plant is quality control. Quality control does not have to be limited to visual appearance only, though. It is easy to associate…
How Does an Extruder Work?
July 25, 2012
We should probably start with what an extruder is. In fancy terms, it is a positive displacement machine designed to apply shear forces to raw ingredients in order…
Conveying and Product Transfer Options for Food and Feed Manufacturing
June 13, 2012
When designing a manufacturing process, product obviously has to get from point A to point B. The typical way to do this is through conveying. This is a…
What is Shear, and How Does it Apply to Extrusion?
May 16, 2012
In simple terms, shearing is what occurs when two forces act upon each other in opposite directions. The simplest example of this is when you rub your hands…