Wenger Technical Center marks 50th anniversary

This year marks the 50th anniversary for the Wenger Technical Center, and a recent accreditation from the International Accreditation Service (IAS) for Testing Laboratories brings even more to the celebration.

According to accreditation documents, the Wenger Tech Center has met the requirements for several American Association of Cereal Chemists (AACC) and American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) standards, including accredited tests for moisture measurement, starch gelatinization analysis, phase transition analysis, and rapid viscosity analysis.

“This is just further verification of our ability to test and analyze anything from breakfast cereal and pet food to aquatic feed and textured vegetable protein products,” says Rhonni Mitchell, Tech Center laboratory technician. “We have a wide range of testing equipment to aid us in analyzing raw materials and finished products, as well as nearly two dozen test procedures we can run within the lab.”

Founded in 1965 as a research plant in which Wenger could demonstrate its equipment and develop new processes, the Wenger Technical Center has grown into a world-class facility for research and development. In 1985, the Wenger Technical Center was acclaimed as the most complete and largest extrusion research lab in the food and grain processing industries. Equipped with the latest in research and production scale extrusion and drying equipment, the center can assist with a wide range of services, including demonstrations, product planning and development, process evaluation and testing and lab analysis.

“Through the Technical Center, we’ve been able to share what we’ve learned as a company over the last 80 years and to help our customers develop new products and processes,” says Lafe Bailey, co-CEO and president of sales and business development at Wenger. “However, it’s not just about hardware and test facilities. We’re able to help customers weave their way through the process much faster than they could do it alone. Plus, our technicians assist with the interpretation of results, help track product quality and even help set up the process, transferring technology to the customer’s facility.

“So I, for one, can say we’re proud of the recent IAS accreditation, and even more proud of the Tech Center’s 50-year history and the chance to celebrate another anniversary.”