UPGRADES and enhancements to CBH Group's Watheroo receival site, about 45 kilometres from Moora, are almost complete and will be finished in time for this year's grain harvest.
The work includes construction of two open bulkheads that will have a total capacity of 70,000 tonnes, which will replace the current emergency storage on-site.
A new elevator pit is also being installed, along with a conveyor loading system with a 500t per hour capacity.
CBH area 4 manager Chad Atkinson said the conveyors would improve the timing for trucks, meaning farmers could get in and out of the facility more quickly.
"The real key to this upgrade is that what we had here before could only offer certain wheat segregations and lupins, but a lot of the growers these days grow barley," Mr Atkinson said.
"When crops get to average or above average it puts a lot of pressure on the Moora site, so we put emergency storage at Watheroo two years ago for barley to take the pressure off and offer a better service to local growers.
"By making that permanent it means that we can offer a malt barley, feed barley, all the wheat services and lupins every year which cuts down the distance local growers are having to travel."
WCP Civil was awarded the contract build and the work also includes new drainage systems and basins, road widening and new power which allows the site to run off mains.
Mr Atkinson said the area around Watheroo has had some of the highest crop growth rates in Western Australia over the past 10 years.
"It had been identified that this part of the State had been under-invested in over a number of years and a review was done regarding storage capacities and the needs of growers changing," Mr Atkinson said.
"There were six sites that were identified as needing expansions or enhancements done and we owned the land for Watheroo already so it was an easy build to get done."
Work started in March and will be complete by mid-September.