18/05/2015: Modular silos and the benefits of a ‘flat pack’ design

Andy Vanparys, Managing Director, SCE - Silo Construction & Engineering, Belgium

 

First published in Milling and grain, March 2015 

The global demand for food is becoming greater and greater with an ever-increasing population, which is why companies will have to produce more efficiently and effectively. SCE are playing an active part in helping companies with this by designing silos that take up little space and are quick to assemble in any production unit.

   

SCE’s first silo was constructed in Belgium 26 years ago and is still in use daily – a testament to the quality of build and design. The company now boasts an impressive global portfolio, of which silos for animal feed are also a part. SCE have completed projects in China, Denmark, Indonesia, Switzerland, Poland, Great Britain, and the Netherlands.

     

Flat-pack wins - fair and square

SCE square (flat pack) modular silos have achieved global recognition within the feed industry. Time is the biggest risk and cost-driver in a construction period, regardless of whether it’s a feed mill or a flourmill. Through experienced engineering and new technologies SCE offer the fastest erection cycle in the business. A square silo offers 25 percent more storage than a round silo on the same ground surface. The mill building can also be attached directly to a square modular silo, resulting in great efficiency profits to the customer.

    

“We have gained the trust of many milling companies and machine manufacturers because of our long experience within the grain-processing and mixed-feed industry,” says Andy Vanparys, Managing Director.

“My father - the founder of the company - was born and raised in feed mills so the passion to keep on improving feed mill buildings is in the genes of our company.”

Strong, swift steel

The selection of structural steel for a building’s framing system brings numerous benefits to a project. All other materials are measured against the standard of structural steel and it is still the material of choice. Little surprise, then, that it is the favoured material for SCE silos.

The rapid design, fabrication and erection cycle with structural steel allow the structure to be finished sooner and available earlier to other construction partners. The building process can start and finish earlier which leads to a lower total cost of ownership. 3-D interoperability technology allows close cooperation between the erection crew and the mill designers, thereby saving both time and dollars in the construction process.

     

Light and renewable

Not only is structural steel a stronger material, it also has a much higher strength-to-weight ratio than other materials. This results in the building being lighter and therefore requiring less extensive and costly foundations. Sustainability is structural steel’s middle name: It is the most recycled material on our planet – today’s structural steel is made of 88 percent recycled material. It is fully recyclable in the future and can be reused without further processing.

Saving water

The production of structural steel also conserves water. The only water used is ‘make-up water’ added to a closed-loop recycling process. Structural steel mills discharge no water into the environment. It is not used in the fabrication process and no water is used or discharged at the project site.

Simple, global solutions

Over the 25 years SCE have been catering for the feed industry, there have been numerous technical innovations in silo construction. The improvement in types of high-yield steel products has made it possible to make lighter components without any loss of strength. New research and development for the grain industry has led to square bins which can hold up to 400 tonnes without any need for extra measures.

     

Silo blocks can now be built without using any nuts or bolts. SCE’s ‘sliding principle’ for connecting pieces together is the fastest in the business and results in a hygienic storage environment. This simple construction method also greatly reduces the need for highly-trained labour. SCE silos can be – and have been – erected virtually anywhere in the world by just one SCE supervisor instructing a local work crew.

SCE have also recently developed a new silo outlet that further increases the outflow of any product, winning accolades from many in the flour and milling industry.

Such innovations, combined with the latest design and production technology, have made life easier for project managers and workers alike. Little surprise, then, that from the Philippines to Uganda, from Madagascar to Indonesia, SCE are going from strength to strength.

Read the magazine HERE.

 

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