5TPD
5 TPD — Village & startup scale
Single-shift operation for first-market entry. Minimal footprint, manual assist at intake and packing.
Quote this tier →Maize · Degerminated grits
Corn Grits Production Line — Clean, Degerminated Grits at 5–50 TPD
From raw maize intake to graded, bagged grits — degerminated, aspirated and sized to the particle range your market actually buys. One line, one contract, commissioned on your floor.
- Factory-direct manufacturing
- Whole-line warranty 〔term TBC〕
- Engineers on site for commissioning
Capacity range
5 / 10 / 20 / 50 TPD configurations
Finished product
Degerminated corn grits, multi-grade; germ and bran as by-products
Grits specification
Granulation, fat and fibre content built to your market spec — 〔figures TBC, locked after sample testing〕
Typical footprint
〔TBC〕 — final layout issued after site survey
Delivery
Staged shipment and installation — 〔schedule TBC〕
Output
What This Line Produces
This line is configured for one job: converting cleaned, conditioned maize into degerminated grits — the product behind ugali, sadza, nshima, pap and the breakfast and brewery trades — while recovering germ and bran as sellable by-products rather than waste.
| Product | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Coarse grits | Largest granulation fraction | Breweries, extruded snacks — 〔range TBC〕 |
| Medium grits | Core commercial grade | Mealie-meal blends, ugali / sadza base |
| Fine grits / meal | Smallest fraction | Direct retail packs, porridge |
| Corn germ | Separated at degermination | Oil pressing feedstock — sold, not wasted |
| Bran / husk | Aspirated off | Animal feed ingredient |
Final granulation targets are set with you against a physical sample of your market's product — we lock the sifting configuration to that sample before manufacturing.
Process
The Process, Step by Step
-
01
Intake & pre-cleaning
Intake hopper, magnetic separator and vibrating cleaner remove strings, stones, oversize and undersize kernels before they can damage downstream equipment. Control point: foreign matter at intake.
-
02
Destoning
A gravity destoner separates stones and high-density impurities by density difference. This step protects roller surfaces and keeps grits free of grit-hard contaminants. Control point: stone discharge check.
-
03
Moisture conditioning
Water dosing and tempering hold time loosen the bran layer and toughen the germ, so degermination cracks the kernel along the right lines instead of shattering the endosperm. Control point: tempered moisture — 〔target TBC, variety dependent〕.
-
04
Degermination
The heart of a grits line. A degerminator opens the kernel and rubs germ and bran away from the endosperm with minimal fines generation. Grits yield lives or dies here. Control point: germ separation efficiency.
-
05
Break rolling
Degermed endosperm passes through break rolls set to crack, not crush — preserving particle structure for later grading.
-
06
Sifting & grading
Plansifter screens split the stock into coarse, medium and fine grits in a single pass arrangement. Screen assignment is your market decision; we build the frame to hold it. Control point: granulation check per grade.
-
07
Aspiration & finishing
Aspirators lift off loose bran and dust; an optional polishing pass brightens the finished grits where the market expects it.
-
08
Weighing & bagging
〔Pack format TBC: 25 / 50 kg bags or bulk〕 with a bagging scale sized to the line's output.
By-products — germ and bran — are collected at dedicated discharge points, not mixed back into the product.
Configuration
Capacity Configurations
All figures describe the configuration frame. Installed power, footprint and operator count are locked at proposal stage — 〔TBC〕.
10TPD
10 TPD — Town mill
Adds continuous intake handling and multi-grade sifting headroom. Two to three operators per shift.
Quote this tier →20TPD
20 TPD — Regional plant
Full degermination-rolling-sifting train with higher automation at packing; space reserved for a second shift.
Quote this tier →50TPD
50 TPD — Urban industrial mill
Largest standard configuration: parallel rolling lines, dedicated by-products handling, industrial bagging.
Quote this tier →Not sure which capacity tier fits your market?
Get Custom Turnkey Solution QuoteQuality
Where Quality Is Checked
- Intake sample Moisture, foreign matter and variety check before maize enters the silo.
- After destoning Stone discharge audit; grits-hard impurities end here or nowhere.
- After degermination Fat content in the grits fraction tracks germ separation efficiency; this is the number that separates real grits from crushed maize. 〔frequency TBC〕
- Post-sifting granulation Each grade checked against the locked market sample.
- Before bagging Final moisture and sieving residue at the packing head.
Raw material
The Maize You Feed It
White vs yellow maize
Both run. White dominates African staple markets; yellow suits feed-adjacent and brewery applications. Sifting and by-product handling are set accordingly.
Hard vs soft endosperm
Flint-heavy African varieties condition differently from soft dent corn. The conditioning and degermination settings change; the line architecture does not — this is a commissioning variable, not a redesign.
Moisture & impurity range
The line performs on field maize with typical tropical impurity loads. Extreme cases (wet-season intake above conditioning capacity) are handled at intake with pre-drying — flagged at survey, not discovered at installation.
Regional reality check
In East and Southern Africa we set granulation against local staple expectations (ugali / sadza / nshima textures). In West Africa grits lines often share the market with garri and rice, so grade structure leans toward the brewing and snack trades. Your market sample decides.
Site
What Your Site Needs
| Building footprint | 〔TBC — issued per capacity tier〕 |
|---|---|
| Clear height | 〔TBC〕 |
| Power supply | 380 / 400 / 415 V, 50 or 60 Hz — confirmed at survey; installed power 〔TBC per tier〕 |
| Water | Conditioning water of potable or treated quality — 〔volume TBC〕 |
| Labour | 2–4 operators per shift depending on tier and packing automation |
| Intake access | Truck or tractor-trailer access to intake pit |
Typical layout drawings are issued after site survey — the figures above are planning values, not commitments.
Equipment
Equipment in This Line
| Vibrating cleaner | Removes oversize, undersize and light impurities at intake |
|---|---|
| Magnetic separator | Catches tramp metal before it reaches rolls |
| Gravity destoner | Density separation of stones |
| Conditioning / tempering unit | Moisture dosing and tempering hold |
| Degerminator | Germ and bran separation with minimal fines |
| Break roller mill | Cracks degermed endosperm to grading size |
| Plansifter / screener | Splits stock into coarse, medium and fine grits |
| Aspirator | Lifts bran and dust from grits fractions |
| Bagging scale | Weighs and fills at packing |
Full machine specifications, drawings and photos: individual machines library.
Engineering rationale
Why a Degermination-First Line — and Not a Straight Maize Crusher
Grits are a graded product, not crushed maize.
If your market pays different prices for coarse, medium and fine, a crusher that produces one uncontrolled particle distribution throws away that margin. Sifting-first architecture protects it.
Fat content is the hidden spec.
Residual germ oil shortens shelf life and ruins brewing performance. Degermination-first keeps fat in the by-product stream, not in the bag.
Rolling beats hammering for particle structure.
Hammer mills make flour fast, but grits need particles that survive cooking without collapsing — break rolls set to crack produce that structure; hammers produce it only by luck.
By-products are revenue.
Germ goes to oil pressing; bran goes to feed. On a 20 TPD line the by-product stream is not a disposal problem — it is a second product line.
Conditioning is where amateurs fail.
Skipping or rushing tempering shatters endosperm into fines and kills grits yield. We hold maize long enough for the bran to release — the hold time is set on your variety, on your site.
Execution
From Order to Running Line
-
1
Scope confirmation
Flow sheet, granulation targets against your sample, equipment list fixed.
-
2
Manufacture & FAT
Line assembled and test-run at our factory; you inspect in person or by video before dispatch.
-
3
Shipment
Containerised, with packing list, spare parts kit and installation drawings.
-
4
Installation
Our engineers install and connect on your site — 〔duration TBC〕.
-
5
Commissioning & training
We run the line on your maize, tune conditioning and sifting to your market sample, and train your operators 〔days TBC〕 before handover with documentation and maintenance plan.
References
Lines Like This, Already Commissioned
Reference installations for maize grits lines are available on request. Send your enquiry and we will connect you with a comparable project.
Documentation
Warranty and Documentation
- Whole-line warranty: 〔term and scope TBC〕
- Key component brands: 〔TBC〕
- CE marking and ISO 9001 quality system
- Material and electrical certificates supplied with shipment; third-party inspection welcome before dispatch
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between a grits line and a maize flour line?
A grits line is built around degermination and granulation control — it produces sized particles plus germ and bran by-products. A flour line is built around particle reduction to a fine, uniform flour. The equipment overlaps at cleaning and milling, but the sifting philosophy and the rolls are set differently. We build both — see the corn flour line page for the flour configuration.
Can one line make both grits and flour?
Partially. With additional sifting surfaces and a reduction pass, a grits line can produce a fine-meal fraction. But if your market demands true fine flour at full output, dedicating a flour configuration gives better yield and tighter fineness control than stretching a grits line. Tell us your product mix and we will be direct about whether one line can serve it.
Which maize varieties does the line accept?
White and yellow, flint and dent, within the impurity and moisture ranges typical of field-delivered maize. Conditioning settings are tuned to your variety during commissioning. Extreme wet-season intake may need pre-drying — we flag that at survey, not at installation.
What voltage does the line run on?
Standard configurations are built for 380 / 400 / 415 V at 50 or 60 Hz, confirmed for your site at survey. Installed power per tier — 〔TBC〕.
Do you send engineers to install?
Yes. Installation, commissioning on your raw material, and operator training are part of handover — 〔days and travel terms TBC〕. The line leaves our factory only after a full test run, so site work is connection and tuning, not problem-solving.
What about spare parts after handover?
Every line ships with a starter spare parts kit and a documented wear-parts list (rolls, screens, elevator belts). Replenishment ordering and lead times — 〔TBC〕.
How do you set the grits sizes for my market?
You send or show us the physical product your market buys — the packet on the shelf. We lock screen assignments to match that granulation before manufacturing, and verify against it again during commissioning.
What's the payment and delivery process?
〔Payment terms TBC — typically deposit with balance before shipment, per company finance policy.〕 Delivery is staged by container with packing list and installation drawings.
Enquiry
Get Your Corn Grits Line Proposal
Tell us your market, target tonnage and the grits grade your customers buy. A processing engineer replies within two working days with a flow sheet, equipment list and budget range.
- Engineering reply within two working days
- Flow sheet, equipment list and budget range
- No obligation, no sales sequence
Or write to sales@grainprocessingline.com