Seed
Harvest Doesn’t Wait
Seeds are living organisms. They can’t tolerate extreme heat or cold. They can’t be exposed to contamination from other varieties. And harvest schedules don’t move for anyone. Keen Project Solutions brings the seed-specific expertise and careful planning those realities demand.
Care and Craftsmanship
To ensure seed purity, kernel cleanout is critical. The fit and finish of conveyors and transitions between machines must be precise so operators can see inside, clean out the equipment and confirm that no seed from a previous run remains to contaminate the next lot.
We know seed quality is critical and gentle handling must be part of the equation from the moment seed enters our customers’ production facilities to the point of distribution in a tote or bag. Our engineering team applies years of experience to developing state-of-the-art designs that incorporate the latest in optical screening, seed treating and drying technology.
Our team has extensive experience and training on the nuances of handling different seed types, including cleanout standards for product changeovers. Through our in-house certified millwright apprenticeship program, we’ve also built a field workforce with specialized training in seedsmanship practices, safety standards and construction methods for seed operations. Seed-specific instruction is part of the curriculum — something you won’t find in a standard millwright apprenticeship program.
“Keen Project Solutions put together a great team for [our] soybean precleaner project. I’m well pleased with the Keen professionals that completed the design, purchased equipment, managed construction, managed safety and helped in the commissioning of the new seed processes. Keen provided good seedsmanship skills in the installation of spouting, transitions, equipment, etc.”
— Satisfied Seed Customer
Cost and Schedule Certainty
Seed projects often come with firm deadlines and closely managed capital budgets. Our project managers work closely with the client and engineering teams to track both throughout the project, with regular updates along the way. When a project is trending under budget, clients can put that capital to work elsewhere rather than waiting until closeout.
Just as important, the schedule has to hold. Harvest is coming whether the project is ready or not, so planning and coordination have to account for changing conditions without losing sight of the deadline. That discipline is especially important on renovations in operating facilities, where work has to be carefully coordinated around ongoing production and employee safety. Preparing for the short harvest window brings clarity to the solutions we propose.
Dust Control and Particle Flow
How seed moves through a system can affect quality, throughput and equipment wear. Keen uses particle flow analysis to simulate that movement and evaluate areas such as transitions, bucket loading and seed treating before changes are made in the field. We also bring dust collection expertise to facilities where airborne dust is a concern. Each of these capabilities can help identify where changes to equipment or system design may improve performance.
Project Experience
- Greenfield sites
- Brownfield sites
- Capacity expansions
- Renovations
- Ongoing maintenance
Seed Processes and Systems
- Receiving
- Conveying
- Conditioning and cleaning
- Color sorting/optical screening
- Treating
- Drying
- Husking/shelling
- Packaging
- Bulk storage
- Dust control
- Sampling
- Mixing/blending
- Warehousing/conditioned storage
- Labs/research and development
Seeds We’ve Handled
- Corn
- Wheat
- Soybean
- Sunflower
- Rice
- Cotton
- Oats
- Sweet corn
- Canola
- Beans
- Alfalfa
- Pennycress
- Various vegetables (e.g., tomato, pepper, broccoli, spinach)
- Cover crops
Ready to improve, expand or build a seed facility? Let’s talk about what you need to accomplish.