Pet Food & Animal Nutrition Manufacturing worked example

Kibble Drying Energy with dryer connected electrical load of 30 kW: a worked example

This scenario runs the kibble drying energy calculation on the strong side: dryer connected electrical load of 30 kW, with every other input held at its documented default. Use it when kibble drying energy in pet food and animal nutrition manufacturing is up for an upgrade and you want a defensible savings story.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Dryer connected electrical load: 30 kW (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 12)
  • Dryer runtime for the batch: 8 hr (unchanged)
  • Blended electricity rate: 0.12 $ / kWh (unchanged)
  • Kibble units dried during runtime: 1,000 units (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Total kibble drying energy cost = kibble drying energy connected load × kibble drying energy runtime × blended electricity rate) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 28.8 $ / unit for total kibble drying energy cost, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 240 kWh for kibble drying energy used.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 0.03 $ / piece for energy cost per unit.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 3.6 $ / hr for hourly kibble drying energy cost.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where dryer connected electrical load sits at 12 kW and the headline result is 11.52 $ / unit, this scenario comes in 150% above the baseline at 28.8 $ / unit.
  • Use it when benchmarking energy per unit, evaluating a dryer efficiency project, or attributing utility cost to a specific formula or run. Treat this as a target state: the delta against the baseline quantifies what the improvement is worth before you commit to chasing it.

Results at a glance

  • Total kibble drying energy cost: 28.8 $ / unit (headline result)
  • Kibble drying energy used: 240 kWh
  • Energy cost per unit: 0.03 $ / piece
  • Hourly kibble drying energy cost: 3.6 $ / hr

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Kibble Drying Energy calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.