NCEFE - NATIONAL CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE FOR FOOD ENGINEERING

Koolmill and the NCEFE aim to be recognised as Global Thought Leaders within the cereal processing industry, through the creation of a Global Centre of Excellence for Cereal Processing based at the NCEFE in Sheffield.

Koolmill has the technical knowledge and industry expertise, while the NCEFE has the scientific and academic rigour to quantify performance. Together, fluid modelling software is being used to generate virtual models of our chambers, which when compared to high speed video is validating our unique hypothesis. The NCEFE also has extensive knowledge, expertise, and industrial connections that can extend use of Koolmill technology and help generate additional value from the creation of new ingredients and biproducts.

The NCEFE has access to a wide array of analytical equipment which will be utilised to validate and quantify performance improvement and potentially to identify areas of interest for potential further research projects. The NCEFE also have the capability and Academic reputation to provide an independent evaluation of the wider economic, social, and environmental impacts of the project outputs.

Through the recently completed Newton Fund, AG-Tech Challenge: Next Gen Rice Milling Project Koolmill, the NCEFE and 4 other consortium partners have brought about the third generation of rice milling. Taking it from an antiquated and wasteful past to an automated, data-driven, and efficient future. At its simplest, the technology pioneered through this partnership is a high-performance rice mill in a box, driven by real-time data to ensure optimal performance and automated mill management. The scalable technology developed is suitable for both modern, large-scale, commercial milling operations as well as the 1.5 million neglected SME millers who are currently excluded from upgrading machinery due to cost and capacity limitations.