PEMA Partners with Kansas State University’s Bulk Solids Innovation Center

Sept. 4, 2020 (Falls Church, Va.) – The Process Equipment Manufacturers’ Association (PEMA) and the Bulk Solids Innovation Center (BSIC) at Kansas State University are pleased to announce the establishment of a partnership. “PEMA members will have access to unique educational, consulting and testing services through this partnership,” explained PEMA President Rod Henricks. “Likewise, PEMA members will be a first line resource for the BSIC when needs arise.”

Opening five years ago, BSIC is the only university facility and staff in North America dedicated to helping industrial companies with education, consulting, testing services, and research related to bulk solids. BSIC’s 12,000 square feet facility includes six laboratory rooms with test bench equipment for measurement and characterization of material properties, while providing additional room for client research projects. BSIC features a full-scale bay with a large variety of equipment for testing and studying hopper flow, chutes, conveying, filtering, flow aids, blending, separating, and the like. The facility is filled with state-of-the-art equipment and instrumentation, most of it donated by more than 25 companies, many of which are PEMA members.

BSIC Services Available
The Bulk Solid Center provides essential services to industrial companies, and therefore all of its services are fully operational, even during COVID-19 shutdowns. The following services are available to assist industrial companies.

• Material Testing Services – Tests are used to evaluate material properties and make recommendations relative to storage, flow, conveying, segregation, mixing, fluidization, air filtration, and more. Test examples include flow function, wall friction, particles size and shape, moisture analysis, and wear/abrasion.

• Full-Scale Research and Consulting Projects – BSIC provides facilities and university staff expertise to help companies troubleshoot material or process issues, conduct trial runs, or plan how to scale-up from the lab or pilot plant.

• Education Short Courses – BSIC short courses, valued for the combination of theory, practical application, and hands-on learning, and not available at most colleges, will be offered again in-person in 2021. BSIC is launching an online Bulk Solids Academy in November. These online courses will be comprised of 50% lecture and 50% demonstrations on real equipment, with discussion and questions and answers.

PEMA-BSIC Partnership Benefits Industry and the Center
Through this partnership, PEMA members will receive discounted education; access to material testing, consulting, advice, and troubleshooting; access to equipment testing facilities; a place where customers can do full-scale testing or scale-up of processes; and information on latest technology or trends. Using the resources provided by BSIC, and independent laboratory, will provide additional credibility for PEMA members, and with permission, PEMA members can use the BSIC name and logo on their websites and in advertising to demonstrate this affiliation.

PEMA members are, and will continue to be, a valued resource for BSIC. BSIC will seek counsel first from PEMA members when it needs help, advice, or equipment to help solve a customer’s specific issue. Additionally, PEMA members will be BSIC’s first source for new equipment for the Center and for course instructors.

PEMA
Formed in 1960, PEMA brings together companies that supply equipment and systems that are used by process industries including but not limited to: food, chemical, pharmaceutical, waste water treatment, paint and coatings, agribusiness, ceramics, metals, plastics, wood, pulp and paper, environmental, building products and mining/minerals. Learn more about PEMA at www.pemanet.org.

BSIC at Kansas State University
The Kansas State University Bulk Solids Innovation Center provides innovative solutions in bulk solids storage, flow, conveying, and handling. The Center provides a wide range of value-added solutions and services to enhance efficiency and productivity to variety of industries - food, chemicals, minerals, pharmaceuticals, and plastics. From research, education, training, access to technology, and bench to full-scale testing of dry bulk solids, this unique Center identifies and solves real-world industrial problems. The Center is the only one of its kind in North America. It is a collaborative partnership of government, for-profit, and non-profit entities including Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus; the City of Salina, Kansas; the Salina Chamber of Commerce; and many additional industry contributors. Learn more about BSIC at https://bulk-solids.k-state.edu/index.html.

BSIC Staff
Todd Smith, a former PEMA executive and board member, has been employed by K-State as the BSIC manager for the past year. Smith has 35 years of industrial experience with bulk solids handling at Coperion K-Tron and MAC Equipment (now Schenck Process). Other key staff members include director Raju Dandu, who has been a professor of engineering at KSU-Polytechnic for 25 years; and BSIC Lab Manager Kevin Solofra, who has 25 years of lab and industrial experience in heavier industries such as glass and ceramics. Contact Todd Smith at toddsmith@ksu.edu.

Contact: Dawn M. Shiley, CAE
dshiley@pemanet.org
703-538-3542