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Grain Bunker Holds Up To 2 Million Bushels
If you're in the market for low cost grain storage on a big scale, you'll be interested in the new Mid-Term storage "bunker" developed by Nationwide Steel, Inc., Amherst, Wis.
Mid-Term grain bunkers range in size from 260,000 to nearly two million bushels. "Although primarily designed for grain elevators and co-ops, large farmers or groups of farmers are showing lots of interest," explains Bob Burghart, sales manager for Nationwide. "Mid-Term offers safe and efficient grain storage for approximately 25 to 40 cents per bushels, as opposed to 50 to 60 cents per bushel for conventional bin storage."
The system is called the Mid-Term because it's designed to let you store grain long enough to increase your pricing options, without going to the expense of permanent, long-term storage.
Perforated steel panels, much like standard bin flooring, make up the outside walls of the Mid-Term. The panels permit grain to "breathe", yet shed moisture and keep rodents out. The walls are set at a 30? angle. Steel trusses at 2 1/2-ft. intervals all around the structure add support. A customized tarp covers the entire structure to make it weatherproof.
The structures range in size from 100 by 150 by 10 ft., up to 200 by 300 by 10 ft. All are constructed on a concrete or blacktop pad, with a complete aeration system built into the system. The aeration system consists of a series of lateral aeration tubes, fitted with 5 to 7 hp. fans.
Mid-Term bunkers are filled with portable augers or a trough system, according to Burghart. At the first installation, at Quad County Grain, Oskaloosa, Iowa, one end is open and grain is simply piled on the floor of the structure with a portable auger. Quad County Grain erected the structure themselves for about $100,000, including the concrete base pad.
Nationwide Steel is researching the feasibility of smaller scale Mid-Term grain bunkers to fill the needs of small to medium-sized farmers. The company emphasizes that the new structures are designed for relatively short term storage and have not yet been fully tested for long term grain holding.
For more information, contact: Nationwide Steel Construction, P.O. Box 277, Amherst, Wis. 54406 (ph 715 824-5424).


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1982 - Volume #6, Issue #2