Contract manufacturing and research and development firm AVEKA Group Inc. has started work on an expansion project at the AVEKA Nutra Processing (ANP) plant in Waukon, IA, the company announced in a recent release. During the effort, the company will install a recently acquired commercial spray dryer and other equipment and add new processing and warehouse space. 

“Five facilities and over 25 years of operation later, AVEKA was again feeling the strain of increased demand for its specialty milling, blending, and classifying services. One particular service that was seeing an especially high area of growth was large scale spray drying,” the company said.

A Dahmes Stainless Inc. spray dryer will be installed at the facility to expand the company’s drying capacity by 25%, or 1500 lb/hr. A new one-story 15 ft by 50 ft liquid processing area at the site and two new 25,000-gal liquid storage silos will be installed at the Waukon plant, improving the company’s food grade capabilities. AVEKA will also add 60 ft by 100 ft of warehouse space to the Waukon plant. 

The Waukon site manufactures food and beverage products and nutraceuticals. 

AVEKA broke ground on the project on Nov. 1, 2019. Construction is expected to reach completion by July 1, 2020. The company plans to hire six new employees, including spray dryer operators and other support staff, as a result of the expansion.

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