The modern rice milling process, done by rice mill plants on a large scale to produce tonnes of edible rice for consumers, is a complex process. Using heavy machinery, the paddy is cleaned and parboiled, after which the husk and bran layers are removed. Then, the rice is whitened, polished, graded, and packaged to finally reach the markets. For this whole process to occur systematically, producers need to ensure that the rice is transported with precision with the least wastage possible. This is where bucket elevator machinery, also called grain elevator, comes into play for the rice mill.
A rice bucket elevator, as the name suggests, helps transport rice vertically, elevating it from one level to another with utmost precision. Let us explore all the ways in which a bucket elevator can improve the efficiency of a rice milling plant.
What Is A Bucket Elevator?
Before we understand why adding elevator buckets can improve the rice mill operations at your plant, let us understand the basics of this machinery.
Widely used in various rice mill production lines, a bucket or grain elevator is a continuous conveying equipment that conveys rice continuously in a vertical way. Though commonly used in rice mill plants, a bucket elevator is also commonly used in handling other grains. You may find it in agriculture facilities and processing plants due to its efficient nature of transporting bulk quantities of grain from one level to another.
The bucket conveyor system contains a hopper, which automatically loads via the tail. Then, after running the head sprocket, it throws the loaded grains. Utilising the motor rotation, the elevator bucket drives the head wheel, shaft-coupling, and conveyor belt and lifts the loaded rice grains in the buckets attached to the bucket belt. Due to this motion, the materials get transferred from the bottom of the rice mill bucket elevator to the desired height and sent into the container.
Bucket elevators are available in various types, depending on the particular production requirement. For instance, the centrifugal discharge elevator uses centrifugal force to transfer the product. Then, a continuous or gravity discharge elevator system, wherein there is no gap between the buckets, moves slowly and is mainly used for fragile and delicate materials. Some other types include positive discharge, chain buckets, Z elevators, etc.
How Does A Rice Mill Bucket Elevator Offer Efficiency?
A common challenge many rice mill plant owners face is the constant struggle to improve efficiency for rice production. When you buy elevator bucket machinery and use it efficiently, in no time, you will start reaping the positive results of this investment. Wondering how? Let us explain this in detail.
A bucket elevator, ideally made of stainless steel, offers durability, which is essential for the mill to run for long without any hindrances. The material does not corrode and also keeps the grain inside free from any impurities. Moreover, the machine is perfectly capable of running on least maintenance.
- The enclosed design of the bucket elevator keeps fragile and light materials, such as food grains, free from various types of contaminants, for instance, dust.
- Even if a free-flow material has a poor-flow characteristic, the advanced motion of an elevator bucket carefully elevates and safeguards the movement of the grain.
- Moreover, a bucket elevator simplifies the whole rice milling process on a large scale by reducing the manual labour of grain elevation. The advanced technology of this machinery allows the smooth transfer of materials to the required heights automatically, all while retaining the quality of the grain.
- Given the automatic procedure, there is negligible breakage, which contributes to high-quality output.
While the above-mentioned factors point towards the efficient procedure of bucket elevators, the unique design of the machine in itself adds to the efficiency of the rice plant.
A high-quality bucket elevator is an ideal investment for rice mill plants for increased effectiveness.
- While there are several kinds available in the market, a vertical bucket elevator design takes up the least space, leaving more room for other rice mill machines.
- Given that any plant consumes a lot of power, a good-quality bucket elevator runs on minimum power consumption and, at the same time, churns high productivity and performance.
- Bucket elevators are easy to clean, maintain, and simple to operate, with no risks involved, making them a highly reliable solution for rice mills.
- Many bucket elevators come with customization features for you to change the belt speed, bucket size, etc., thus using it for multiple purposes as per your requirements.
Conclusion
With the rice mill industry seeing increased competition due to increased rice consumption worldwide, rice manufacturers will be left behind if they fail to adopt the latest machinery. The more efficient, automatic, and cost-effective your rice milling process, the better your output and profitability. Including advanced machinery, such as a bucket elevator, is a way to ensure your grain elevates to the desired heights smoothly. A good bucket conveyor system will keep the rice from breakage and impurities. Moreover, it will be simple to operate and maintain, thus offering maximum efficiency.