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Old Agricultural Building and Equipment PlansBill Wilcke and Kevin Janni, Minnesota Extension EngineersAre you interested in tracking down an old MidWest Plan Service (MWPS), USDA, or land-grant university building or equipment plan that you remember seeing in the past, but can’t seem to find? Some old plans are now available via the web due to efforts by MWPS and by the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department. In the past, engineers working for MWPS, USDA, and land-grant universities developed and distributed plans that farmers and contractors could use to build livestock buildings; grain, hay, and feed storage facilities; and other farmstead facilities and equipment. But many of the agricultural engineers who had the interest and expertise to develop detailed plans have retired, and most plans have become outdated as building codes, lumber specifications, and the scale of agriculture have changed. Additionally, it was time consuming and expensive to develop detailed plans, which in many cases were modified by farmers and builders anyway. As a result, the MWPS, USDA, and most universities have stopped developing and distributing plans. But the ideas and concepts that were expressed in those old plans are still useful for some farmers today--especially small-scale farmers, and we continue to get requests for plans. To help meet the demand, MWPS and the NDSU Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department have started scanning old plans and making them available on their websites. You can download plans from the MWPS website at no charge and then print them using your own printer. Some plans on the NDSU site can be can be downloaded at no charge, or you can order paper copies from the NDSU Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department. There is a charge of $2 to $4 for paper copies. Ordering information is available on the web site. The web address for the MidWest Plan Service site is: www.public.iastate.edu/~mwps_dis/mwps_web/fr_matls.html The web address for the NDSU site is: www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/abeng/plans If you use any of the plans from these sites, or from other sources, keep in mind that the plans should be used only to generate ideas. You should not build directly from the plans unless you or someone who is working with you is qualified to update the plans. The MWPS site includes the following disclaimer: This plan provides conceptual information only. Neither Midwest plan service nor any of the cooperating land-grant universities, or their respective agents or employees, have made, and do not hereby make, any representation, warranty or covenant with respect to the specifications in this plan. Additional professional services will be required to tailor this plan to your situation, including but not limited to: assurance of compliance with codes and regulations; review of specifications for materials and equipment; supervision of site selection, bid letting and construction; and provision for utilities, waste management, roads or other access. The NDSU disclaimer is as follows: These plans provide conceptual information. Periodic changes in the National Design Specifications for Wood Construction, changes in building materials, snow load variations and the serious impact of deviations from the plan make it imperative that professional services be utilized to tailor these plans to your situation. |
The information given in this publication is for educational purposes only. Reference to commercial products or trade names is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement is implied.
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