18 



BULLETIN 904, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



than from wet-process germs, because the same quantity of material 

 yields much less oil oyer which to distribute an equivalent operating 

 cost. 



In an effort to determine as nearly as possible the actual cost of 

 producing corn oil, based on the cost of equipment and of operating 

 the same, the figures in Table II are submitted. The cost of the 

 equipment is, of course, an estimate based on present-day prices. 

 The cost of repairs on expellers and the items of labor, power, and 

 productive capacity were obtained from a careful study of the 

 operation of a 4-expeller unit in a typical hominy plant. 



Table II. — Itemized estimate of the cost of the process of producing corn oil. 



Itemization. 



Division of cost. 



Invest- 

 ment. 



Per 

 year. 



Per day 



of 24 



hours. 



Mill equipment, 4 expellers at S4, 000 1 816, 000 



Depreciation and repair (12§ per cent) 



Auxiliary equipment: 



Scales ' 2, 000 



Storage bins 1, 000 



Conveyor to expellers 1 , 000 



Oil conveyors 1 , 000 



Cake conveyor 1,000 



Pumps (2).'. 600 



Filter press ] 1 , 000 



Holding tanks (2) \ 4, 000 



Total 



Depreciation ( 5 per cent ) 



Power, 5,312 k. w. h. per 24 hours 



Labor: 



Oil miller at 50 cents per hour, S12 



Assistant miller at 40 cents per hour, 89. 60. 



Total 



11,600 



86. 66 



5S0 



1.93 

 88.70 



21.60 



118.89 



Production. — Per machine, 3,000 pounds of oil in 24 hours, 12,000 pounds: Cost per 

 pound (§118.89-^12,000), 0.99 cents. 



These figures are intended to show approximately what it costs 

 to expel corn oil in connection with hominy plants where the neces- 

 sary floor space may be arranged for without the construction 

 of an additional building. Overhead charges, such as management 

 and selling organization, are not included. It seems probable that 

 the installation of an expelling plant such as is here outlined would 

 not necessitate any material addition to the pay roll except for the 

 labor required to operate the machines. Although in making an 

 actual cost accounting the charge for overhead expense should be 

 included, the amount thus chargeable would be so difficult to ascer- 

 tain, owing to the fact that the expelling is so involved in the other 

 operations of the plant, that to include it here would be largely guess- 

 work. It is evident that if an independent plant were operated 

 exclusively for the expelling of corn oil the heavy overhead expense 



