World Grain - September 2018 - 100

SUPPLIER NEWS

AGI reports record sales, adjusted earnings
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA - Ag
Growth International, Inc. (AGI) reported
record trade sales and adjusted earnings for the
three and six months ended June 30.
The company attributed the results to
continued momentum in international sales,
a robust Canadian commercial markets and
strong portable grain handling sales in the
United States.
Close
Adjusted earnings for the quarter were C$49
million, up from C$40 million in the same period a year earlier. For
the six-month period, adjusted earnings were C$80 million, up from
C$66 million a year ago.
Excluding acquisitions, international sales increased 44%
compared to the prior year, easily surpassing record highs due to
continued strength in EMEA and higher sales in Brazil.
Commercial activity in the Canadian fertilizer and grain segments
remains very high due to the evolution of fertilizer distribution and
expansion of the Canadian grain handling infrastructure.
In the United States, prospects of another large crop and pent
up demand have resulted in recovering sales of portable grain
handling equipment.
"We had an outstanding effort from teams throughout AGI in
the second quarter," said Tim Close, president and chief executive
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consistent margins in an environment of volatile input prices.

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robust market in Canada and record international sales. The broad
based, strong performance across AGI pushed organic growth to
12% in the quarter. The outlook across AGI continues to be positive."
Crop conditions in North America are generally very positive
and recent reports from both the USDA and Statistics Canada are
supportive of market expectations of a large North American crop,
particularly in the United States. Demand for portable grain handling
equipment in the United States remains high due to underinvestment
in recent years and the expectation of a favorable harvest in 2018.
Order backlogs in the United States for both portable grain
handling equipment and grain storage systems remain strong.
Management anticipates that strong Commercial sales in North
America in the second half of 2018 will result from robust demand
in Canada for fertilizer and grain systems, offset by lower year-overyear activity in the United States.
AGI's Commercial backlog in North America is substantially
higher than the prior year. International sales momentum is expected
to continue in the second half due to a strong backlog with particular
strength in EMEA and South America.
The recent addition of Sabe in France is also expected to contribute
to strong international results. Overall, management anticipates sales
and EBITDA related to Commercial equipment in 2018 will be
higher than the prior year.
On balance, management anticipates trade sales and adjusted
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to 2017.

Cimbria to install ECO-Logic dryer
THISTED, DENMARK - As part of its order for a new grain
terminal for Lantmännen Lantbruk in Uppsala, Sweden, Cimbria is
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The dryer features include automatic operation control, and
variable heat recovery of dry air and dust extraction are emphasized
in the integrated dust separator type Dust Guards.
Lantmännen did not want the ECO-Logic dryer heated by fossil
fuels such as oil and gas, so direct electric heating was chosen,
something new in grain dryers of this size.
The heating method has many advantages, not least regulating, while
at the same time ensuring a good and very even distribution of heat
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for the size of the plant, which has a capacity of more than 100 tph.
The fans for aspiration and recirculation are equipped with
frequency converters, so that the power consumption of the large
fans is controlled according to the exact requirements. The dryer
is equipped with automatic control of the recirculation zone, which
is controlled gradually depending on the product, as well as the
temperature and humidity of the grain and dry air.
The dryer installation will be ready for commissioning in the
fourth quarter of 2018.
ECO-Logic is manufactured in standard capacities covering drying
100

requirements from 20- to
250-tph wheat based on a
moisture reduction of 19%
to 15% and can dry all major
cereals. Larger capacities are
available upon request.
For the ECO-Logic dryer,
a hot air mixer was designed
by utilizing computational
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analysis and this air mixer
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C tolerance of the drying air. Cimbria's ECO-Logic continuous flow
The discharge device of dryer. Photo courtesy of Cimbria.
the dryer column ensures an
even discharge of the grain across the entire outlet area of the dryer.
The ECO-Logic grain mixing device has been designed to redirect
the hottest grain so that it changes place with the colder and wetter
grain at the colder part of the dryer to ensure even drying of the grain.
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than a dryer like the ECO-Master.
September 2018 / World Grain / www.World-Grain.com

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World Grain - September 2018

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