UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



s^W^Wl 



Contribution from the Bureau of Animal Industry 

 JOHN R. MOHLER, Chief 



Washington, D. C. 



July 16, 1920 



CITY MILK PLANTS: CONSTRUCTION AND 

 ARRANGEMENT. 



By Eknest Kelly and Clarence B. Clement, Dairy Division. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 

 Statement of present conditions — 1 

 Primary considerations in establish- 

 ing a plant 2 



Hints to prospective builders 3 



Location of plant 4 



Classes and types of plants 6 



Construction of plant 9 



Size of building and number of 



stories :_ 9 



Type of building 9 



Materials of construction 10 



The cold-storage room 12 



Arrangement of plant 12 



Handling the milk at entrance. 12 



Page. 

 Arrangement of plant — Continued. 

 Milk pumps compared with ele- 

 vators 14 



Loading delivery wagons 1G 



Unloading delivery wagons 19 



Division of rooms 19 



Size of rooms : 21 



Arrangement of rooms 24 



Arrangement of equipment and 



machinery 25 



Effect of arrangement of plant 



on labor requirements 27 



Sanitary requirements 30 



Cost of plant 33 



Conclusions 34 



STATEMENT OF PRESENT CONDITIONS. 



The market-milk industry has assumed enormous size and im- 

 portance. By market milk is meant milk consumed in the fluid state, 

 as distinguished from milk used for butter, cheese, condensed milk, 

 and other products. It is estimated that in 1917 more than 16 billion 

 quarts of market milk were consumed in the United States, which at 

 10 cents a quart would have been worth more than If billion dollars. 

 Of course much of this milk was used on farms and in small towns, 

 but probably not less than one-third was used in the larger cities. 

 The greater part of the city milk was handled by so-called " middle- 

 men " in city milk plants. These milk plants represented an invest- 

 ment of about 100 million dollars in buildings and machinery. The 

 cost of land and delivery equipment would bring the total to con- 

 siderably more. 



Such an important business entails a great responsibility. In- 

 fants, children, and invalids, as well as healthy adults, depend to 



15880? 



-20— Bull. 849- 



