MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S. —Registration is now open for the Grain Elevator and Processing Society (GEAPS) and Kansas State University (KSU) Distance Education Program May courses.  The courses are geared toward facility planning and design, preventing explosions and process flow diagrams.

The online courses run from May 14 – June 18, and registration closes May 8. Courses are open to anyone, even if they are not a GEAPS member or a student enrolled at KSU.

The courses being offered include:

  • GEAPS 511: Grain Facilities Planning and Design II — This course provides a practical, real-world foundation for operations professionals responsible for helping plan and design grain facilities. Lectures cover site selection, rail planning, safety, security, roofing, storage and other considerations. Some lectures revisit topics from GEAPS 510: Facilities Planning and Design I in more depth.
  • GEAPS 544: Preventing and Responding to Grain Dust Explosions — The most effective way to prevent grain-dust explosions is to understand in detail what causes them, and then take sustained action to factor down the risks.
  • GEAPS 610: Interpretation of Process Flow Diagrams — This course focuses on interpretation, use and creation of process-flow diagrams, especially in grain handling and processing facilities. It will discuss the purposes, benefits and limitations of flow diagrams, and investigate how diagrams depict processes in facilities devoted to grain-handling, feed processing, grain dry milling and wet-process separation. At the end of the course, students will be required to develop a relatively simple flow chart.

GEAPS and KSU said they are continually looking to improve courses in the distance education program. As a result, several courses are currently being updated, and two courses are being postponed to allow more time for enhancement.

GEAPS 525: Management of Pests in Stored Grain, originally scheduled for May, will be available in August. GEAPS 554: Grain Elevator Equipment/Maintenance, originally scheduled for June, will instead be available in October.

“It is important that our courses provide great value to participants,” said Chris Blair, New Cooperative, Greater Iowa, chair of GEAPS education committee. “It’s unfortunate that we had to push these courses back, but the additional time will help us ensure we are offering the best, most engaging training possible.”

For more information on the courses or to register visit the GEAPS/KSU distance education website.