Local knowledge and German technology developing equipment for edible oil industry – Zrenjanin's Petkus Balkan produces dryers, silos, seed treatment machines...

The Zrenjanin-based Petkus Balkan, founded six years ago by the local Um-ing and the German Petkus, produces dryers, silos, grain storage facilities and other agrarian equipment, especially for the edible oil industry.

It has recently developed new products as well – a machine for seed treatment and an animal feed mixer, and they've also designed a top-quality sunflower seed peeling machine. Two months ago, they formed a new sector within the company, in charge of electrical works exclusively, which has enabled them to to offer the turnkey system of factory construction to their partners, involving the whole process from the idea to the realization.

We talked to representatives of Petkus Balkan about the realized projects and the future plans for the upcoming period at the recently held Agricultural Fair.

– Our biggest project so far has been the equipping of the treatment center for seed merchandise of the German company KWS in Becej, the biggest such center in the Balkans. This investment, which was realized in late 2014, is worth more than EUR 30 million, and we provided our corn drying equipment and other equipment as part of it – Slobodan Nedeljkovic of Petkus Balkan explains in his interview for eKapija.

Demand for smaller dryers

The target group for Petkus' products is very wide and their customers include both smaller farms and big agricultural collectives. The smallest dryers have a capacity of 5 tons an hour, whereas the largest ones reach up to 50 tons.

– We sell 6-7 dryers a year, which is not a small number. We often carry out entire projects, in line with the consumer's request – design, construction, equipment – and we offer silos, transportation equipment, cleaning equipment. Our partners get a full service and we perform regular maintenance later on as well – says eKapija's interviewee.

As the representatives of the Zrenjanin company told us, there's been an increase in the demand for machines such as those for seed treatment or for small dryers. Petkus Balkan sells a lot of pieces of smaller equipment, mostly to farms.

– A single machine and some additional equipment, for example, for chemical seed treatment, is enough for them to start a business. In the past 2-3 years, there's been a growing demand for such equipment in Serbia, which can be seen from increased sales in this segment – Nedeljkovic says.

One of the reasons for this is that old dryers are currently being replaced with new ones in Serbia, as a lot of them are 40-50 years old. The technology has changed several times in the meantime, and such devices also spend a lot of gas and other energy sources.

– When the time comes to dismantle the old equipment, that's when we come in with our dryers, which consume the least amount of energy in the world. This is German technology. The prices are very affordable, so we've seen a big increase in the sales of dryers in the past year.

From idea to realization

The company has an experienced team, which currently consists of 16 engineers and around thirty production and installation workers. Petkus Balkan has its own facility in Zrenjanin, where they produce smaller machine components, and they've recently developed a machine for seed treatment and an animal feed mixer, using local knowledge. Two months ago, they formed a new sector within the company, dealing exclusively with electrical works.

– We offer the turnkey system of factory construction to our partners, from the idea to the realization. We start by discussing with the purchaser what their plans and wishes are, then we offer the equipment which can help them realize their goals and then we finally develop the construction works and the electrical and gas segment. There's also the option of involving subcontractors, which is subject to agreement.

Petkus plans to realize another 2-3 new projects by the end of 2017. Two construction sites are already active and they say that they are generally satisfied with their operations in Serbia.

– The competition can match us in prices, but not in product quality. Petkus is a big company with tradition and experience. It was founded in Germany back in 1887 and its brand guarantees quality – Slobodan Nedeljkovic emphasizes.

M. A.

Petkus Balkan Zrenjanin

UM-ING Zrenjanin

Petkus

Umicevic Inzenjering

Um Ing

Slobodan Nedeljkovic

Novi Sad International Agricultural Fair

seed treatment machine

animal feed mixer

sunflower seed peeling machine

dryer

silo

grain storage facility

KWS seed treatment center

edible oil industry

oil plants