Considerations When Establishing a Hi-Gel™ Corn Processing Facility
As you consider operating a processing facility, it’s good to go over some points before starting up. Here are a few things that we run into frequently from longtime customers and prospective customers as they consider putting up a Hi-Gel™ corn extrusion plant:
Power Requirements:
Check with your local power/energy supplier to make sure they can support your needs. Insta-Pro CG extruders used to produce Hi-Gel corn require three-phase power to support their 125 HP motors.
Sourcing Your Corn:
I’ve seen customers often get excited about the thoughts of establishing a Hi-Gel™ corn extrusion plant to provide Hi-Gel™ extruded corn for use in local dairies and feedlots, as it is proven to provide nutritional and performance value to these customers.. Dairies and feedlots require large amounts of corn every single day. So in considering establishing a corn extrusion plant, you will need to determine how accessing these large volumes of corn will that effect local and regional supplies. My recommendation is to work with a quality commodity company or a local elevator as possible source for grain as well as potential marketer of your extruded product to ensure the product is an investment that pays off in the long run.
Know Your Customer Base:
Once the plant is up and running, who are you going to sell too? Conducting market research and identify key dairies, feedlots and feed mills to approach pays dividends as you start manufacturing your extruded product.
Tell Its Story:
Be prepared to talk about the process and the uniqueness of product that you have to offer. Hi-Gel™ corn is a superior product that offers many advantages for producers to reduce diet cost and help overall herd health, so be sure to talk about this because people want to know. Be ready to have samples to show and hand out to potential customers. Leverage nutritional data, studies and technical and marketing expertise provided by Insta-Pro on your extruded products.
Plan For Expansion:
Whether you are putting up a Hi-Gel™ corn plant or an ExPress® soy processing plant, plan for future growth. As product gets into the marketplace, it will gain momentum and demand will increase. With that being said, design your facility with extra room for expansion, whether that’s more room for intake, additional extrusion or ancillary machinery, larger machines, or storage. As well, at time of initial installation, it is recommended to install electrical wiring for the planned expansion, which will serve reduce cost of expansion and shorten the time to be operational. We have seen customers get land locked in a plant and can’t expand equipment to meet demand. This will increase capital cost and often slow down expansion.
