By Dirk Maier
Award-winning publication discusses developing a total system for grain drying, handling and storage
MidWest Plan Service’s award-winning publication “Grain Drying, Handling, and Storage Handbook” (MWPS-13) is now available for download through the MidWest Plan Service website. The publication had previously only been available as a printed hard copy.
The book provides information on the whys and hows of developing a total system for grain drying, handling and storage. It discusses how the design and location of a grain system can help avoid bottlenecks during harvest and how grain handling components can be tied to performance, capacity and convenience.
It also includes information on the function and operation of equipment used for holding wet grain, maintaining grain quality after harvest, handling large volumes of grain and the need and importance of safety and automation.
The publication was written by Dirk Maier, professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering at Iowa State University, along with experts from the other MidWest Plan Service university partners.
“This handbook is in its third edition and has always been a collaborative project between engineers from several universities leading this field,” said Maier. “Our handbook has more than 150 pages packed full with expert advice on how to plan a modern grain drying, handling and storage system.”
MidWest Plan Service is a university-based publishing cooperative dedicated to disseminating research-based, peer-reviewed and unbiased publications that support the outreach missions of the North Central Region land-grant universities. Established in 1929 and publishing since 1932, it is one of the oldest regional cooperative efforts of land-grant universities in the United States.
The publication recently received the Blue Ribbon Award from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE).