CompuWeigh Corporation • 203-262-9400 • http://www.compuweigh.com
"One of our expansion projects proposed having an unmanned outbound scale. This layout in Beltrami (MN) would have been extremely difficult to accomplish without a system like the SmartTruck product.”
That’s the estimation from Karla Lindquist, controller for West Central Ag Service based in Ulen, MN (218-596-8821). The northwest Minnesota cooperative installed SmartTruck automated truck receiving systems from CompuWeigh Corp., Woodbury, CT (203-282-9400), at both Beltrami and Ulen in the fall of 2017.
The new installations took place during or shortly after major expansion projects at both West Central locations in 2017-18 (see page 60).
According to Lindquist, West Central was familiar with CompuWeigh through its rail loadout controls at Ulen. The coop also knew about SmartTruck because of an on-site demonstration performed at Ulen.
As the Beltrami expansion was planned, Lindquist and Location Manager Bryan Mueller toured several other automated truck receiving installations and talked with their staffs about the pros and cons of the systems.
“Two of the biggest appeals of the SmartTruck product were its ability to interface with AgVance, our grain and accounting software, and the flexibility of the product to accommodate our needs,” she says.
Lindquist reports that the SmartTruck installation went smoothly at both locations, but West Central faced an additional challenge at Beltrami in coordinating that installation with an ongoing construction project. “We had to keep this project on track with the rest of the construction process, and having the installation timed with our corn and soybean harvest was key to getting the plant up and running,” she says.
At Ulen, the challenge was minimizing any disruption to the flow of trucks at the tail end of the 2017 harvest.
Lindquist notes that the CompuWeigh staff was helpful and professional in getting the installations done.
At both locations, the SmartTruck system automatically reads the RFID tag when the truck approaches the first point of contact (i.e., probe or inbound scale depending on the facility layout). The last load hauled (i.e. producer and split percentage) for that truck is displayed automatically on an outdoor message board for the driver to confirm. If the same as the last load, no changes are made. However, if different, the driver informs the probe attendant of the change, and the updated producer/split combination is displayed for the driver to confirm.
At the same time, the load is sampled and graded, and the truck’s gross weight is recorded. The truck then is directed automatically to the optimal dump pit based on the commodity and grade factor rules the facility has set for each dump pit that day, further reducing possible human error.
Once the truck is unloaded, the truck proceeds to the outbound scale where the RFID tag once again is read. The tare weight automatically is recorded, and a scale ticket is printed on a CompuWeigh outdoor ticket printer for the driver to take.
“Even though both of our facilities have the same SmartTruck product in service, and the setup is similar,” Lindquist comments, “each location has its own server that operates independently of the other, so each facility can see only its transactions. But we can cross-program the tags, so if a producer delivers to both of our facilities, that grower only needs to have one tag for all West Central deliveries.”
Lindquist says that West Central Ag Services has been pleased with the decision to install the SmartTruck system.
“All change comes with an adjustment phase, but I think our growers have caught on quickly,” she says.
“The SmartTruck system has helped reduce the stress load on our control shack personnel, especially during harvest and when samples require additional testing. It also has helped with the efficiency at the scale, as drivers rarely have to get out of their trucks to know what’s going on.”
Reprinted from Grain Journal May/June 2018 Issue
