Complete Feed Production Line in Serbia

RICHI MACHINERY

A quick look before going deeper

The client wasn’t new to agriculture. They had been raising poultry and pigs for years, but feed costs kept moving up and down. At some point, buying feed stopped making sense.

Instead of building something oversized, they wanted a practical pelletizing line that could:

• Handle common grains like corn and soybean meal
• Run continuously with minimal operators
• Fit inside a multi-floor structure
• Stay within a controlled investment range

One thing they said early stuck with me:
“We don’t need fancy. We need stable.”

RICHI MACHINERY

How the project actually started

• First inquiry: March 2024
• Technical discussions & layout revisions: March – May 2024
• Contract signing: June 2024
• Manufacturing period: ~90 days
• Installation & commissioning: October – December 2024

The client already had land and decided to construct their own plant instead of renting. That gave us more flexibility in layout design, especially for vertical flow.

RICHI MACHINERY

What the client was really trying to solve

Feed supply in this region depends heavily on seasonal crops. Corn is abundant, soybean meal is available but fluctuates, and additives are imported.

Their key concerns were:

• Dust during handling (they had issues before)
• Inconsistent mixing quality
• Pellet durability during transport
• Labor shortage (they wanted automation)

So the design of this feed pellet production line leaned heavily toward automation and dust control.

RICHI MACHINERY

Product Plan

Before designing feed mill equipment, we confirmed what exactly they wanted to produce.

The ratio matters. Bulk feed required stable silo discharge, while bagged feed required accurate packaging and stitching.

RICHI MACHINERY

Raw Materials

The raw material mix reflects what’s actually available locally:

One small detail:
The first few test batches had slightly uneven moisture because bran moisture varied more than expected. We adjusted conditioning steam accordingly.

RICHI MACHINERY

Working Conditions

The staffing was kept low intentionally. Automation and centralized PLC control replaced manual handling.

RICHI MACHINERY

Equipment Configuration

We don’t usually list every model in marketing documents, but here the client wanted transparency. So we kept the structure clear:

Core Sections

1. Raw Material Receiving & Cleaning

• Bucket elevators
• Scraper conveyors
• Initial cleaning screens
• Magnetic separators
• Pulse dust collectors (4 units)

2. Grinding Section

• Hammer mill feed grinders (2 units)
• Feeding systems
• Cyclone + dust collection
• Screw conveyors

3. Batching System

• 22 batching bins
• Automatic weighing system
• PLC-controlled batching scale
• Micro-ingredient dosing system

4. Mixing Section

• Twin-shaft paddle mixer
• Buffer bins
• Dust control unit

5. Pelletizing Section

• Conditioner (steam-based)
• Animal feed pellet mill (core machine)
• Counterflow cooler
• Crumbler
• Grading sieve

6. Packing Section

• Automatic bagging scales (2 lines)
• Sewing conveyor system
• Bulk loading bin

7. Auxiliary Systems

• Oil spraying system
• Air compressor system
• Steam boiler (2 × 1.5 t/h)

RICHI MACHINERY

Why the process was designed this way

In this 20t/h complete feed production line in Serbia, the process is not just a simple “grind–mix–pellet” flow. It is a fully structured system designed around raw material characteristics, dust control requirements, and pellet quality stability.

From actual operation experience, the performance of an animal feed production line is heavily dependent on how each step is handled—not just the pellet mill.

Below is the full process, step by step, aligned with the original engineering design.

1. Raw Material Receiving, Conveying & Cleaning

Raw materials such as corn, soybean meal, wheat bran, flour, extruded soybean, rice bran, and additives are delivered in bags by truck. These are manually unloaded and transferred to the raw material warehouse.

Bulk soybean oil is transported by tanker truck and pumped into dedicated storage tanks.

Unlike bulk intake systems, this project uses bagged raw materials, so dust generation during unloading is minimal.

Process Details:

• Materials are lifted to the 6th floor via bucket elevators
• Enter receiving pit with grid screen → removes large impurities
• Conveyed by scraper conveyor → enters primary cleaning screen
• Passed through magnetic separator → removes metal contaminants
• Distributed into storage bins via rotary distributor

Output:

• Clean raw material → storage bins
• Large impurities → discharged manually

2. Grinding Section (Particle Size Control Core Stage)

Not all materials require grinding, but key ingredients like corn, soybean meal, and wheat bran must be processed.

Process Details:

• Materials enter grinding bin (80m³)
• Controlled feeding via impeller feeder
• Enter hammer mill chamber
• High-speed hammer impact + screen friction → size reduction
• Final particle size controlled at 1.5–2 mm

Material exits under airflow and centrifugal force through screen holes.

Important Observation:

The discharge temperature stays around 7–12°C, which helps avoid nutrient degradation.

Output:

• Uniform fine powder → conveyed to batching system

3. PLC Automatic Batching System

This section is where formulation accuracy is controlled.

Process Details:

• Ground materials transported via scraper conveyor → collection hopper
• Lifted again → distributed into 22 batching bins (300m³ total)
• Central PLC system calculates formula proportions
• Materials weighed through batching scale system

Small additives (vitamins, amino acids like lysine and threonine) are added separately via:

• Manual feeding
• Micro-dosing scale verification

Key Feature:

• Fully automated batching based on pre-programmed recipes
• Real-time monitoring of weighing sensors

4. Mixing Section (Critical for Feed Uniformity)

Process Details:

• Batching materials discharged into twin-shaft paddle feed mixer machine
• Mixing time: ~3 minutes per batch
• Ensures uniform distribution of nutrients

After mixing:

• Material enters buffer bin
• Moves to next stage

Output:

• Homogeneous mash feed

5. Steam Conditioning (Core Quality Step Before Pelletizing)

This is one of the most critical steps in the entire compound feed mill plant.

Process Details:

• Mixed material enters conditioner
• High-temperature steam injected

Operating Parameters:

• Temperature: 75–90°C
• Retention time: ~180 seconds

What actually happens:

• Starch gelatinization
• Protein denaturation
• Moisture adjustment
• Bacterial reduction

This step directly affects:

• Pellet durability
• Digestibility
• Feed palatability

6. Pelletizing Section

After conditioning, material enters the animal feed pellet press.

Process Details:

• Conditioned mash fed into pelletizing chamber
• Rollers compress material through die holes
• Cylindrical pellets formed

After Pelletizing:

• Pellets enter counterflow cooler → reduce temperature to ambient
• Optional crumbler → break pellets into smaller sizes
• Rotary grading sieve → separate qualified/unqualified pellets

Output:

• Finished pellets ready for packaging or storage

7. Packaging & Bulk Storage

Process Details:

• Pellets transported to finished product bin
• Automatic packaging system (DCS-50) used for bagging
• Sewing conveyor seals bags

For bulk feed:

• Transferred to bulk storage silo

Output:

• Bagged feed
• Bulk feed

8. Laboratory Testing & Quality Control

Each batch undergoes testing for:

• Moisture content
• Crude protein
• Ash content
• Calcium & phosphorus
• Heavy metals (As, Pb)
• Aflatoxin

Chemicals used:

• Sulfuric acid
• Hydrochloric acid
• Sodium hydroxide
• Ethanol

9. Other Auxiliary Pollution Sources

Wastewater:

• Kitchen wastewater → grease trap → biological treatment
• Domestic wastewater

Solid Waste:

• Dust collected → reused
• Waste oil, contaminated materials → hazardous waste
• Sludge from treatment system

This 20t/h complete feed production line in Serbia follows a very typical but highly optimized structure:

Cleaning → Grinding → Batching → Mixing → Conditioning → Pelletizing → Cooling → Packaging

But the key difference lies in:

• Multi-point dust collection
• Central PLC automation
• Vertical plant layout
• Controlled conditioning parameters

RICHI MACHINERY

Plant Layout

The building is a 6-floor steel structure (~35.5m height).

Instead of horizontal flow, we used vertical gravity flow:

• Top floor → raw material intake
• Middle floors → storage + batching
• Lower floors → pelletizing & packing

This reduced conveyor energy consumption and simplified material movement.

RICHI MACHINERY

Storage & Logistics

The client insisted on separating additives physically. That helped avoid cross-contamination.

RICHI MACHINERY

Environmental & Dust Control

Dust was one of their biggest concerns.

So we added:

• Multiple pulse dust collectors across all key points
• Centralized dust collection lines
• Fully enclosed conveying

Collected dust is recycled back into production — nothing wasted.

RICHI MACHINERY

Investment & Cost

• Total project investment: ~USD 1.1 million
• Equipment cost: ~USD 480,000
• Environmental system: ~USD 60,000

We intentionally kept the investment controlled. Over-designing would have made payback too long.

RICHI MACHINERY

Shipping & Delivery

• Port of departure: Qingdao Port (China)
• Destination port: Port of Belgrade (via Danube inland logistics)

Delivery time was around 35–40 days including inland transport.

RICHI MACHINERY

What happened after startup

The first week wasn’t perfect.

• Moisture adjustment needed tuning
• Pellet hardness varied slightly
• Operators needed training

After about 2–3 weeks, production stabilized.

Now the plant runs steadily. Output matches expectations.

RICHI MACHINERY

Why this type of project makes sense in Serbia

Serbia has strong grain production, especially corn. But a lot of value is lost when raw materials are sold without processing.

Feed production changes that:

• Higher product value
• More stable pricing
• Local supply chain control

We’ve seen more inquiries from the region after this project started running.

RICHI MACHINERY

A practical note for future buyers

When clients come to us now, they usually ask:

• Can we use mixed raw materials?
• How stable is the pellet quality?
• How many workers do we really need?
• What happens if raw material moisture changes?

These are real questions. And honestly, the answers depend on proper process design — not just the machine itself.

RICHI MACHINERY

What we actually provide

This animal feed factory project wasn’t just equipment delivery.

We handled:

• Process design
• Plant layout
• Equipment manufacturing
• Installation guidance
• Operator training
• Spare parts planning

That’s usually where projects either succeed or struggle.

RICHI MACHINERY

Final thoughts from this project

The 20t/h complete feed production line in Serbia is not the biggest plant we’ve built. But it’s one of those projects where everything fits together properly.

No unnecessary complexity. No oversized systems. Just a well-balanced pellet plant that does its job every day.

If you’re looking at a similar animal feed production plant or pelletizing line, it’s worth starting from your raw materials and actual production goals — not just capacity numbers.

Sometimes, the best solution is not the biggest one.