CompuWeigh Corporation • 203-262-9400 • http://www.compuweigh.com
Shortly after the Trupointe Cooperative 2.5-million-bushel elevator and rail terminal in Sidney, OH (937-492-5254) became Sunrise Cooperative through a merger in 2016, its managers did what many do after adding an existing elevator to its roster. The cooperative decided to add a second truck scale, a 72-foot Brechbuhler pit-type model, to separate inbound and outbound traffic.
Sunrise didn’t stop there, though. Along with the new scale serving inbound traffic, the cooperative decided to automate the entire grain receiving operation with a SmartTruck system from CompuWeigh Corp., Woodbury, CT (203-262-9400).
“This is something Sunrise has installed at other Ohio locations, including Clyde, Crestline, and Clarksfield,” says Location Manager Ethan Swepston, adding that he personally became familiar with SmartTruck at a previous position with Cargill in Indiana. “Receiving had been our biggest choke point, when we acquired the elevator.”
During the installation in the summer of 2016, CompuWeigh sent out Vice President-Sales Kevin Dooley. He did a site survey and determined the best traffic flow for trucks. Then he oversaw the system setup, formatting a variety of color-coded computer screens designed for ease of use, and undertook employee training, a process that took about a week.
Area Energy & Electric, Sidney (937-498-4784), served as electrical contractor during the project. Everything was completed and SmartTruck up and running by the 2016 harvest.
Today, incoming trucks are probed with a new InterSystems truck probe, then proceed to the new inbound scale for weighing.
After the sample is weighed, moisture-tested, and graded, the SmartTruck system’s SmartChoice feature determines where to send the load, and its SmartView digital display board directs the driver to one of three receiving pits.
After the load is deposited into the correct receiving pit, the driver returns to the facility’s older scale, now serving as an outbound scale, for tare weight. A CompuWeigh printer adjacent to the outbound scale provides the driver with a scale ticket. During the entire process, the driver does not need to leave the truck and can return to the field as quickly as possible.
When Grain Journal visited the site in late October 2017, Swepston reported that the SmartTruck system continues to perform well during its second harvest. Both employees and producers are pleased with its performance.
“It’s easy in and out of the elevator, with less climbing in and out of the truck,” he says. “That means customers can spend more time in the field. Reduced processing time at the elevator helps get them through the line more quickly.”
Sunrise reports that during the 2017 harvest to that point, drivers averaged 6.4 minutes from entering the property to leaving it.
Reprinted from GRAIN JOURNAL November/December 2017 Issue
Location Manager
Ethan Swepston
