Practical engineering guide to planning farm feed stores and silage structures for sealing, layout, steel spans and IPARD context.

How Should Feed Storage and Silage Structures Be Planned?

In dairy and fattening farms, production continuity does not rest only on the barn or the milking building. Correct storage of roughage, concentrate feed and silage shapes daily feed preparation, feed quality and operating cost. Feed stores and silage structures are therefore quiet but critical parts of an agricultural facility.

A poorly placed store creates needless tractor traffic. A silage unit with weak sealing can cause feed loss and environmental risk. At Atlasya Insaat, based in Foca and Izmir, we design feed and silage structures together with barn, milking and feed mixing flows.

Treat the Feed Store and the Silage Unit as Different Functions

On many sites the two sit side by side, yet they serve different jobs. The store usually protects dry or concentrate feed, additives and packed goods. The silage unit needs compaction, fermentation control, effluent management and a low oxygen environment.

Even when they touch, structures with separate foundations are often counted as separate buildings in support and permit files. That split clarifies structural design, drainage, vehicle manoeuvre and cost items. It is healthier to define which volume serves which task early, rather than forcing everything under one roof without a clear brief.

Feed Store Types: Open, Semi Open and Closed

Open or canopy stores help fast loading of roughage and frequently used materials. Without control of rain, wind and ground moisture, losses rise. Semi open systems close one face for more protection, but surface water and vehicle entry still need care.

Closed stores suit concentrate feed, additives and goods that must stay dry. Door widths, forklift or mixer wagon turning, ventilation and fire precautions belong on the same plan. Floors must match transport loads and cleaning; thresholds and ramps should fit the real vehicles.

On the site plan the store is a logistics node between incoming feed trucks and the internal mixing line. Trucks should not have to enter milking or animal movement zones. That protects both hygiene and safety.

Silage Structures: Sealing, Slope and Walls

The silage unit must hold compacted feed in a controlled environment while managing effluent. The floor should be sealed and sloped toward a defined collection point. Letting liquids spread across the yard harms feed quality and environmental control.

Side retaining walls hold the silage mass and resist machine loads. In TKDK practice references, wall heights often start near 1.8 m and thicknesses near 20 cm. Final sizes must follow silage height, compaction method, soil class and structural calculation.

Concrete quality, joint details, corner reinforcement and the floor to wall seal reduce losses. Covers or sheeting should limit rain and oxygen, in line with the farm operating routine.

Layout: Distances to Barn, Milking and Feed Mixing

Feed and silage structures should not be pushed into a leftover corner of the site plan. Daily mixing and distribution distances should stay short, while truck entry and exit use a clean service road. If barn feeding lines, the mixing area and stores share one crowded corridor, bottlenecks appear.

On milking farms the hygiene boundary is sharper. Feed truck routes and milk logistics should not collide. That balance should be read with our guides on milking facility building planning and agricultural facility site planning.

Atlasya’s Fresh Milk Farm and feed mixer construction work show how linking storage to the preparation line supports continuous production.

Steel Structures and Storage Spans

In closed feed stores, wide spans cut internal columns and ease vehicle movement. Steel offers fast erection, clear spans and room to expand later. Door axes, roof gutters, downpipes and loading ramps are part of the same structural choice.

On the silage side, steel often appears in roofs, canopies or side buildings, while the sealed volume is built with a concrete floor and retaining walls. Seeing that split clearly simplifies materials and cost lines. For a wider frame see our article on steel agricultural structures and our steel construction services.

IPARD and Support Note

Under TKDK IPARD Measure 101, storage buildings and systems for silage handling, on farm feed preparation, distribution and storage may appear among eligible headings. Call texts, provinces and eligibility lists change over time. Confirm current rules on the TKDK site and the Application Call Guides.

Describing the feed store and the silage unit as separate structures clarifies drawings and cost tables in a support file. Conditions change by call; final eligibility depends on project specific authority review.

Checklist Before Construction

Clarify daily and seasonal feed need, silage capacity and store volume.
Separate truck entry, mixer turning space and barn feeding routes on the site plan.
Make the silage floor sealed and sloped; define an effluent collection point.
Set wall height and thickness by structural design and operating method.
Keep rainwater, wash water and silage effluent from mixing uncontrolled.
Leave an expansion strip for later capacity growth.

Good Storage Carries Continuous Production

A well planned feed store and silage structure is more than a side building. It protects feed quality, reduces labour, simplifies yard traffic and gives a clear technical frame for support files.

Within agricultural engineering, Atlasya Insaat integrates farm storage and silage units into barn and milking flows. With 40 years of experience, our aim is practical solutions that carry today’s production and leave room for tomorrow’s growth.

To discuss feed storage, silage units or agricultural facility planning, use our contact page, write to info@atlasyainsaat.com or call 0530 602 65 87. Foca, Izmir.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the feed store and silage unit share one building?

They can sit side by side, but function, sealing and vehicle traffic differ. Solutions with separate foundations are often treated as separate structures. An early split clarifies both operations and the technical file.

Why should the silage floor be sloped?

Slope moves effluent and wash water to a controlled collection point. A flat, permeable floor can raise feed loss and weaken environmental control.

How are wall height and thickness chosen?

Capacity, silage height, compaction method and soil conditions decide. TKDK practice references often cite about 1.8 m height and about 20 cm thickness; exact sizes follow project calculation.

How do feed and silage structures appear in an IPARD file?

Under Measure 101, storage buildings and silage or feed preparation storage systems may be eligible depending on the call. Check the current eligible expenditure list in TKDK guides.

Sources

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Feed Storage and Silage Structures: A Planning Guide