Top Five Benefits of Custom Material Testing for Bulk Solids in Manufacturing

To remain competitive, industrial manufacturers understand the importance of efficiency, reliability, and precision in their processes in bulk material handling. The performance of bulk solids—whether powders, granules, or pellets—directly impacts productivity, product quality, and operational efficiency.

Many bulk solid handling manufacturers rely on custom material testing to unlock optimal performance in handling, conveying, and packaging solutions tailored to your materials' unique properties. Magnum Systems’ test lab in Lenexa, KS, serves manufacturers in industries ranging from chemicals and food to life sciences and agriculture. Custom material testing is a proven method to ensure optimal performance in bulk material handling and processing systems. Magnum Systems’ test lab in Lenexa, KS, offers manufacturers a valuable opportunity to test and fine-tune their systems to meet their unique needs.

Why Custom Material Testing Matters

Every bulk solid behaves differently based on its composition, origin, and the environment in which it is processed. Off-the-shelf solutions often fall short, leading to inefficiencies, downtime, or costly retooling. A testing partner can eliminate these risks by providing data-driven insights for system design and operation.

Magnum’s testing facilities consolidate pneumatic conveying and packaging testing under one roof, streamlining the process for clients and ensuring comprehensive evaluation in real-world conditions. The lab is equipped to assess various material properties, including flow characteristics, bulk density, particle size, adhesiveness, cohesiveness, and degradability. This capability is especially valuable for chemical, food, and agriculture manufacturers, where material variability can be significant.

Let’s take a look at the top five benefits of custom material testing:

1. Optimized Equipment Design and Selection
Using a test facility allows you to evaluate the behavior of bulk solids under varying conditions, such as flow rates, moisture, and particle size. By testing physical characteristics, the test lab can identify how well a material handles, whether in conveying or packaging, or determine what additional equipment is needed to ensure efficient flow from vessels.

This data ensures that the equipment used for conveying, filling, or packaging is ideally suited to the specific materials being handled. By partnering with a quality test lab, such as Magnum Systems’ test lab in Lenexa, KS, manufacturers can leverage expert insights to select or design equipment tailored to their particular requirements, minimizing waste and maximizing operational efficiency.

2. Improved Performance and Process Efficiency
Inefficient material handling can result in costly production delays and increased operational expenses. Custom material testing allows manufacturers to identify potential bottlenecks and challenges before they occur. Magnum’s test lab is equipped to simulate real-world conditions, helping companies fine-tune their processes for smoother, faster, and more efficient production cycles in key industries like agriculture, food, and chemicals.

“A recent test compared the friability and average particle size reduction of two similar materials after pneumatic conveying at a specified rate,” Ben explains. “The first material tested experienced significant breakage, which was found to be intolerable for the facility's downstream processing.

“The second material, conveyed at an equal mass feed rate and with convey parameters, resulted in a nearly 80% reduction in breakage,” Ben adds. “The test lab was able to identify potential issues and benefits of changing materials without the actual production facility needing to stop operations for testing.”

3. Reliable Results For Enhanced Product Quality

Maintaining product integrity and consistency is crucial for industries like food and chemicals. Our testing facilities evaluate how materials respond to pneumatic conveying and packaging, helping you maintain a consistent quality product and meet your industry’s stringent standards.

“Poorly calibrated systems can negatively affect product consistency and quality,” says Ben Adwell, Magnum’s Test Lab Manager. “Custom material testing ensures precision in material flow, mixing, and packaging, resulting in a higher-quality end product.”

4. Reduced Downtime and Maintenance Costs

Manufacturers can proactively prevent equipment wear, blockages, or breakdowns by identifying and addressing potential equipment issues using a material testing partner. Magnum’s test lab helps uncover hidden vulnerabilities that could lead to costly downtime and maintenance down the road. This preventative approach helps save time, money, and resources while ensuring the system operates at peak performance.

“One test we perform is a permeability and fluidization of the material,” says Ben Adwell. “These test results can be used to more closely identify which type of conveying would best suit or what kind of packaging equipment would work best with your material."

This permeability and fluidization test can also identify potential issues, such as material stratification, that could result in inconsistent material feed and lead to quality problems. Identifying this potential pitfall upfront will determine what type of equipment to use to avoid that possibility altogether, potentially saving thousands of dollars.

5. Tailored Solutions Across Diverse Industries

Every material behaves differently, and no two industries have identical requirements. Material testing allows Magnum to develop solutions that cater to the specific properties of materials, from fine powders in the chemical industry to grains and seeds in agriculture. By accommodating these unique material characteristics and real-world application needs, our test lab offers tailored, industry-specific solutions to future-proof your facility's success.

Why Choose Magnum Systems?

Magnum’s test lab offers the facilities and expertise to support manufacturers seeking reliable and efficient material handling solutions. With capabilities to simulate various operational conditions and test equipment functionality, the lab helps eliminate guesswork in system design and showcases our commitment to excellence, resulting in our customers’ success.

“Testing a material in a customer’s facility can be extensive, requiring equipment downtime, logistics planning, and countless hours of background work that take up valuable personnel and resources,” Ben says. “Having an outside group perform preliminary testing can have a large potential for savings for your company.”

Take the next step—contact us today and discover how our testing facilities can transform your manufacturing processes.

Magnum Systems podcast series, AIM!

Check out our podcast page.

Custom Material Handling: The Role of Application Engineers

Understanding Material Characteristics in Bulk Material Handling Design

Five Ways To Limit Product Breakage With Your Pneumatic Conveying System

MATERIAL TESTING

Understanding Pneumatic Conveying Systems with Magnum Systems’ Dave Wollenberg