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Sidney
Factory Pile
Grounds Increases Capacity
By Lois Kerr
 The
Sidney factory pile grounds instituted two changes in operating
procedures for the 2001 sugarbeet harvest. Thanks to the two
larger pilers moved from California to the Sugar Valley pile
grounds at Fairview this summer, the Sidney factory yard inherited
two pilers formerly located at the Sugar Valley site. With the
addition of these two pilers, the Sidney yard has seven pilers in
operation, which allows for greatly increased beet receiving
capacity. This extra capacity permitted the Sidney factory yard to
run on one main daylight shift this year, rather than running two
shifts as it did in previous years. As well, the Sidney factory
yard added a comprehensive computer system to the scale houses,
which enabled scale house crews to process trucks in less time.
Larry Riggs, Holly Sugar agriculturist in
charge of the Sidney factory yard receiving station, feels both
improvements helped the factory yard process beets faster and
saved time for growers as well. “We had one main day shift of 11
hours this year,” Riggs remarks. “The reason we could do this
was because we had two extra pilers.”
He continues, “Over the years, many
growers have wanted to go on one shift, but pilers are very
expensive so in past years we never added the additional equipment
needed to run just one shift. However, with factories closing down
in California, we had the opportunity to move two large pilers
from California to Sugar Valley, and then move two smaller pilers
already at Sugar Valley from the Fairview site here to the factory
yard.”
Riggs points out that although the factory
yard operated with one main shift this year, larger growers had
the option to haul beets 24 hours a day. “Most growers ran from
7 a.m. until 6 p.m., but a few large growers ran 24 hours a
day,” Riggs comments. “We gave growers the opportunity to use
less equipment, as it’s a lot less expensive to hire an extra
driver for a second shift than it is to buy a new truck.”
Not only did the factory yard increase its
efficiency in unloading beets, but it also greatly improved
efficiency at the two scale houses by installing a computerized
weighing system. “We renovated the scale houses to accommodate
the computer system,” Riggs says. “This system speeds up
receiving and simplifies accounting.”
Each scale house has three computers: a
master computer, a computer at the in scale and a computer at the
out scale. Riggs explains that the computers speed up the
receiving process in several ways. “It’s so quick,” he
remarks. “Before, everything was hand written. Staff had to
write the receiving station number, contract number, daily
delivery number, truck letter and sign the form. Now all the scale
house crew has to do is punch in the contract number and the truck
number. We save 20 to 30 seconds per truck.”
When the Sidney factory yard sees 1,000
trucks per day at the peak of harvest activity, 20 seconds per
truck adds up quickly. “We save hours of time that trucks
don’t have to sit on the scales,” Riggs notes.
He adds, “We particularly notice the
savings during the morning rush at 7 a.m. Trucks are lined up to
come through the scales, and this system enabled us to get the
trucks into the pilers more quickly.”
Besides the speed factor, the computer
system also provides other valuable information. “Drivers come
back through the scale and tell us at what piler they dumped their
beets,” Riggs remarks. “With this information, we know exactly
how many tons of beets are in each pile.”
He continues, “Growers who have trucks
contracted on a per ton basis will know at the end of the season
how many tons each truck hauled. This computer system also speeds
things up at the accounting office.”
Riggs explains that the staff had to shut
the computer system down once a day to change the date and back up
the information. “We had to shut down at some time to clear out
and change over days and backup the information,” Riggs says.
“We did our changeovers in late evening.”
Sugar Valley at Fairview had this same
computer system installed a few years ago, and it has served the
Fairview receiving station well. “Sugar Valley has had this
system for two years and has worked the bugs out of it,” Riggs
comments.
Although both pile grounds use the same
system, Riggs points out one difference at the Sidney factory
yard. Unlike Fairview, drivers dumping beets at the Sidney factory
yard must enter and leave by the same scale house. “Due to the
proximity of the scale houses, drivers at Sugar Valley can enter
at one scale house and leave by the other,” Riggs says. “The
factory yard doesn’t have that capability. We have too many
underground gas and electric lines, plus the distance between our
two scale houses is so great that we can’t link the two
locations. It isn’t cost effective. Therefore, drivers have to
come in and go out the same door.”
Riggs expects to see the Savage, Powder
River, Culbertson and Pleasant View receiving stations all become
computerized in the future.
Pictured: Margaret Lind using the new
computer system at the Sidney factory yard. |