IT specialists of one of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, JV Nibulon LLC, together with the IT-Enterprise team, have completed the restart and digitalization of the quantitative and qualitative accounting of the elevator network, the grain trader’s press service reported on its Facebook page.
According to the report, the project to optimize quantitative and qualitative accounting included improvement of business processes for grain accounting, additional processes for logistics management and costing.
“The establishment of a new efficient version of the quantitative and qualitative accounting business process made it possible to automatically track the movement of grain, its key indicators, and the funds spent on processing and transportation from the moment it arrives at the elevator to the shipment to the end consumer. This allows us to calculate the exact cost price and, accordingly, the profitability. And most importantly, we understand what impact can be made at each stage to improve financial and service performance,” said Nibulon’s IT Director Mykola Riasko.
The ultimate goal of the project is to switch to a fully digital elevator model, the principle of which is based on managing and coordinating all processes with digital systems. This concept is gradually being scaled up to all 23 Nibulon elevator complexes.
“If we describe the results of the quantitative and qualitative accounting digitalization project in three theses, firstly, it is the simplification and automation of business processes, and the acceleration of their passage. Secondly, it is the accuracy of accounting, which ensures the clarity and relevance of the company’s financial position. Thirdly, it is more customer-oriented, as the process of providing services has become better and faster,” emphasized Ryasko.
Nibulon added that the digitalization project also contributed to the unification of accounting processes at all branches of the company and improved integration with equipment and third-party systems, which ensured effective management of business processes.
JV Nibulon LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, capacity for simultaneous storage of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever volume of 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
The founder of TAS Group of Companies (TAS), Sergey Tigipko, has announced new business areas for the group: the purchase of a seed plant and elevator with a storage capacity of 40 thousand tons, and the construction of apple processing plants and a railcar building plant.
“We are buying a seed plant and an elevator with 40 thousand tons of storage. We are building a railcar manufacturing plant in Kovel for the European railroad. We are building a plant for processing apples from scratch into apple concentrate,” said Tigipko at the 10th Kyiv International Economic Forum (KIEF).
TAS Group was founded in 1998. Its business interests include the financial sector (banking and insurance segments) and pharmacy, as well as industry, real estate, and venture capital projects.
“TAS Agro, a member of the group, cultivates 83 thousand hectares in Vinnytsia, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Kherson, and Dnipro regions, where it grows soybeans, sunflower, rapeseed, wheat, barley, and corn. In addition, the agroholding is engaged in dairy farming (up to 5.5 thousand heads of cattle) and owns six elevators with a one-time storage capacity of 250 thousand tons.
One of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, JV Nibulon LLC, has modernized two elevator complexes in Mykolaiv region, the grain trader’s press service reported on its Facebook page.
According to the report, a second transshipment line was built at the Vradiyevsky agricultural complex, which doubled the capacity and changed the scheme of acceptance and shipment. Nibulon expects that instead of 50-80 tons per hour, the complex will be able to unload 150-180 tons per hour.
In addition, the second auto-loading point at this branch was re-equipped: the size of the loading pit was significantly increased, a modern shed with roller shutters was built, transport equipment was replaced, and an automatic process control system was installed on the new equipment.
The agro-industrial complex also expanded the area of concrete roads, which gave farmers a complete route from the laboratory through the weighing room to the loaders. The improvements have significantly reduced the time for unloading grain and enabled us to work with several crops simultaneously.
At the Kolosivsky Elevator branch, the company increased the productivity of the process of unloading grain onto trucks by installing two bins with a capacity of 40 tons each. They allow for quick accumulation and shipment of grain. Four pieces of transportation equipment under the first and second truck unloaders were also replaced.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, a capacity for simultaneous storage of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever volume of 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
KMZ Industries (Karlivka Machine-Building Plant, KMZ, Poltava region) has fulfilled another export contract for the comprehensive supply of equipment for the construction of an elevator complex in Romania, according to the plant’s website.
“We manufactured and shipped silos, transportation and gravity equipment to the customer in a timely manner,” the statement said.
The supplied equipment includes two conical silos with a diameter of 5.5 m and eight tiers with a capacity of 210 tons of wheat grain each, two elevators with a capacity of 50 tons per hour, an elevator tower, two chain conveyors with a capacity of 50 tons per hour, a conveyor gallery and a set of gravity equipment.
The press service notes that the facility is actively undergoing installation work and this season the silos will receive the first grain stored there before being sent for processing.
“The peculiarity of Romanian farmers is their desire to avoid earthworks as much as possible, so the acceptance of agricultural products at their elevator complexes is carried out using an above-ground silo and elevators without burial. In particular, at the request of the customer, all metal structures (elevator tower, gallery, supports) were also designed and manufactured by KMZ Industries,” Oleksandr Tkachenko, Head of Exports at KMZ Industries, was quoted as saying in the statement.
According to him, the logistics of shipping elevator equipment from Ukraine to Romania is well established, and there are no problems with it.
“The delivery time may still be affected by the lack of truck drivers authorized to cross the border and queues at border crossings, which makes transportation take more than a week.
Therefore, both Romanian customers and Ukrainian producers take these factors into account to avoid the risk of extending the construction time,” Tkachenko added.
As reported, KMZ Industries carried out the first comprehensive supply of a set of elevator equipment for a farm in Romania in 2020, as part of the contract concluded after winning the tender.
KMZ Industries is the largest manufacturer of elevator equipment in Ukraine and produces a full range of equipment, including silos, grain dryers, transport equipment and separators, as well as provides automation and installation services. According to the company, it has sold more than 5,000 facilities. In 2012, the company acquired the assets of Brice-Baker (UK), one of the leading suppliers of elevator equipment in Europe, and in April 2021 announced a merger with the elevator business of Variant Agro Bud LLC.
According to the Clarity Project, in 2023, KMZ reduced its net profit by 3.9 times compared to 2022, to UAH 15.8 million, with revenue falling by 20% to UAH 650.2 million.
The plant ended the first quarter of this year with a net profit of UAH 35.4 million, 3.9 times more than in January-March 2023, and revenue increased by 3.3% to UAH 71.7 million.
KMZ Industries (Karlivka Machine-Building Plant, KMZ, Poltava region) has agreed with the Ukrainian subsidiary of Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, ARX (the largest insurance company in Ukraine), to insure its elevators against military risks to reduce the risks of losses for agricultural producers, the company’s press service reported on Facebook.
“Today, Ukrainian farmers continue to build and expand capacities at their own risk (…), as the consequences of arrivals can be of different scales. Since 2022, our specialists have carried out a number of repair and restoration works at elevators damaged by debris, and therefore we know how big business losses can be due to this factor,” KMZ Industries Deputy CEO for Development Borys Rybachuk explained, as quoted in the statement.
He emphasized that although KMZ Industries, thanks to the experience gained during the military invasion of the Russian Federation, offers its customers solutions that will optimize and reduce the cost of repairs for farmers, the availability of insurance can fully or partially save them from financial costs in the event of an insured event.
KMZ Industries expects that the war risk insurance service will be relevant and in demand among both small farms and large companies, as they will be able to obtain insurance coverage for a small payment compared to the indemnity limit.
The Property Insurance against Military Risks service provided by ARX covers loss or damage to the insured property solely as a result of direct and/or indirect impact from missiles, UAVs of any type, aircraft munitions, air and missile defense equipment, and any of their fragments.
The annual insurance fee is calculated individually, taking into account the location, area and value of the property.
ARX Insurance Company is a part of the international Canadian insurance group Fairfax Financial Holdings, which has been operating in the Ukrainian market for 26 years, 11 of which have been under the AXA Insurance brand.
KMZ Industries manufactures flat-bottomed and conical-bottomed silos, flour storage silos, Brice-Baker (British-designed) and DSP (Ukrainian-designed) shaft grain dryers, transportation equipment (elevators, chain, belt and screw conveyors), grain cleaning separators, assembles and automates elevator equipment and technological processes at grain storage facilities.
Dragon Capital Investments Limited (Cyprus), whose ultimate beneficiary is Tomas Fiala, owns 80% of KMZ shares, while Variant Agro Bud LLC owns 20%.
One of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, Nibulon JV LLC (Mykolaiv), is launching a large-scale modernization of its elevator business, which will include automation, unification of services and mechanisms to ensure quality standards, the grain trader’s press service reported on Facebook.
“Additionally, the capacities of Khmilnyk, Vradiyevsky, Kolosivsky elevator and Transshipment Terminal branches will be significantly expanded,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday.
According to the grain trader, the second stage of the elevator will be built at the Khmilnyk branch (Vinnytsia region), where the total investment will amount to $3.9 million, and will be equipped with four new tanks and transportation equipment. In addition, two STRAHL grain dryers will be installed to increase the drying capacity to 2200 tons per day (from scratch) to attract agricultural producers to cooperate. Previously, this branch served the needs of Nibulon’s own agricultural production exclusively.
Investments in the modernization of Vradiyivskyi (Mykolaiv region) will amount to $800,000. The company will double its capacity and change the scheme of acceptance and shipment, which will allow it to work with several crops at the same time and reduce waiting time for the grain trader’s partners.
“Kolosivskyi elevator (Mykolaiv region) will also get a second wind, with the company allocating $265 thousand for the reconstruction of the first stage. The focus is to double the productivity of grain receiving and shipping,” the agricultural holding said.
In addition, the transshipment terminal in Mykolaiv will receive $720 thousand in investments to build a new gallery that will allow it to receive cargo from water transport and transfer it to rail transport and then to the Bessarabian branch. With Mykolaiv port hub blocked, this will help reduce logistics costs on the way to Izmail ports.
“We are planning to automate all elevators and equip them with sensors that will record the service life of the equipment and automatically transfer this data to a single control center. As a result, we expect to increase the efficiency of the elevator business through optimization and automation, reduce the cost of services through the rational use of resources and increase salaries for the branch teams,” Nibulon summarized.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, a one-time storage capacity of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
