Project Showcase

Frenchman Valley Farmers Coop
Chappell, NE

Dry Fertilizer Automation

Dry Fertlizer Operation with Multi-Hopper Automation Blend System

Project: Frenchman Valley Farmers Coop, Chappell, Nebraska

OVERVIEW

Frenchman Valley Farmers Coop expanded their dry fertilizer operation with a new facility at their Chappell, Nebr., location using a Doyle Autobatch legal-for-trade multi-hopper automated blend system.

WHAT THEY NEEDED

Frenchman Valley needed to upgrade to a larger system to fulfill the intercompany demand within their agronomy division for five other locations. The company had outgrown their old 1,500-ton facility and needed to expand to a more efficient system without the use of scaling trucks. At the same time they wanted to have the same operation as another location to provide flexibility of operation between their sites.
Blending+System
Multi-Hopper - The multi-hopper automated blend system features two swing hoppers, each with a 9-ton capacity.
Product+Bins
Weigh Bins - Five major product bins have a 16-ton capacity each from a new 15,000-ton building.
Reclaim

Reclaim - Reclaim and loadout can be controlled from a loader tablet to maximize the operator's time.

Blender
Rotary Blender - Kahler system controls 16-ton rotary blender plus conveyors, scales, discharge gates & more.
Streamline+Operation
Truck Scales - Direct-to-truck legal-for-trade loading without a truck scale streamlines operations.
System+Controls
System Controls - System controls 6 main products, 3 micros, and respective liquids for optimum agronomic blends.
Touchscreen
Remote Touchscreens - The remote touchscreen provides the ability to run the system manually if needed.

What We Designed

  • Productivity & precision-focused control in a small footprint & high return on investment
  • Direct-to-truck legal-for-trade loading without truck scales for facility flow
  • Controls & software common with other facilities are great for personnel management
  • Electronic order integration eliminates paper & manual entry errors
  • Streamlined ticket data supplied by the Kahler Automation software for fast & accurate accounting
  • Blend analysis calculated & provided on delivery tickets for customer clarity

What They Had to Say

Nathan Duckert, Facility ManageNathan+Duckert-1

Interview with Nathan Duckert, Facility
Manager, Star of the West Milling Co., Emmett, MI

Q: How does Kahler Automation help you achieve your business goals?

“Kahler’s very good at keeping inventory and being able to put it into our computer system from an order all the way through, and for anybody to track it at any point. ... Tracking inventory on the system is simple, and daily reports are easy also.”

Q: How has productivity improved with your Kahler system?

“If I had to put a number on productivity, it’s probably 5- or 10-fold from our old system. It’s just astronomical how fast we can move product through this system.”

Q: How does Kahler Automation training and support help your team?

“We can call pretty much at any time... to get any questions answered. Kahler will go the extra mile and help you out.”