HARVEST in Brookton in 2021 is looking to be a more efficient affair, with extensive upgrades planned for the CBH site at the start of next year.
The upgrades were slated for this year, but interruptions caused by COVID-19 meant the project was delayed by 12 months.
CBH head of expansion projects Nathan Hayes said the build size was bigger than most and would be the largest completed by the co-operative next year.
"Currently there would be about 60,000 tonnes of temporary storage at Brookton, but the expansion project is going to add 127,500t of permanent storage," My Hayes said.
"Four open bulkheads will be built over the top of the two existing temporary bulkheads which will add 114,000t, plus at the current site we're upgrading the number of bulkheads with taller walls from which we'll get an additional 13,500t.
"The new bulkheads will be serviced by two conveyors, one with an auger pit and the other an elevator pit, plus the temporary weighbridge will be converted to a permanent one and there will be infrastructure done around roads and asphalt."
At the main site, the conveyors will be upgraded to make sure they all run at 500t per hour, there will be shute work upgrades, both fixed and mobile, to erode some spillage and dust issues and wind guards.
CBH Group Kwinana South zone general manager Carly Heales said Brookton was one of the biggest sites in the zone and it was almost 50 per cent over-subscribed, meaning they need to run a lot of tonnes into port to keep segregations on the site alive during harvest.
"The storage expansion will give us better optionality for our growers and also gives an improved cycle time, moving them through the site a lot quicker, plus it'll allow us to hold tonnes on site to make sure we're getting the right grain to port for our shipping," Ms Heales said.
"I've only been in this role for about the past 12 months but when we look at the expansion of our sites and the key indicators for us, we see that farmers are getting better assets, bigger trucks and we're seeing larger trucks coming in.
"That means we're needing to upgrade our grids and infrastructure to support the growers so they're getting that time back into their paddocks as fast as possible."
In terms of commodities, the Brookton site has accommodated different grain types and the expansion means CBH can provide more segregation services for growers.
The upgrades at Brookton follow similar projects completed this year at Konnongorring, Moora and Watheroo, where 286,000t of permanent storage was added.
The work at those three sites had already started when COVID-19 emerged, whereas Brookton, along with Dale and Hyden, hadn't started and at that point in time CBH was concerned about the potential for a second wave as had occurred in Victoria.
The Brookton project is out at tender and will be awarded after Christmas, with work scheduled to start in February and conclude next August, in time for the 2021 harvest.
