What Modern Process Equipment Corporation does

Modern Process Equipment Corporation (MPE), founded in 1957 and headquartered at 3125 South Kolin Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, is a privately-held, family-owned industrial process equipment manufacturer with 101–250 employees. The company designs, builds, and integrates precision particle size reduction equipment and bulk-powder conveying systems for the food, chemical, mineral, pet food, and distillery industries, with coffee processing as its anchor vertical. Its core product platforms are the Gran-U-Lizer family of corrugated roller mills — sold in multiple series (LPP 6.5, 600 F, 700 F, IMD 888, IMD 1052, IMD 1060) covering capacities from laboratory/pilot scale (a few kg/hr) up to 25,000 kg/hr — and the Chain-Vey family of tubular drag conveyors engineered for gentle, declassification-free conveyance of bulk powders. Supporting intellectual property includes Individual Motor Drive (IMD) roll configurations, push-button roll gap adjustment, spring-loaded roll protection against foreign objects, and clean-in-place conveyor variants for food-grade applications.

MPE monetizes through three revenue streams: (1) hardware sales of grinders and conveyors (disc-style, roller-style, and Chain-Vey systems), (2) spare parts and aftermarket support including exchange programs, and (3) Process Systems Integration — custom turnkey design and integration of particle size reduction, pneumatic transport, coffee degassing, and process automation solutions delivered as a single scope. Pricing is project-quoted rather than list-priced; customers engage via request-for-quote on a multilingual website (12 languages) or via direct enterprise field sales. End customers include Nestle, Folgers, JDE, Keurig Green Mountain, Colcafe, Mondelez, Kraft Heinz, Smucker's, Wrigley, Nabisco, Purina, BASF, Evonik, Maker's Mark, Caribou, and Westrock, alongside specialty names such as Death Wish Coffee, Wicked Joe Coffee, Ballast Point, Premier Bird Foods, and Pacifikava. The company markets through three 2026 trade shows (Petfood Forum Kansas City, Interpack Düsseldorf, IAOM Cincinnati), case studies, technical articles, and the corporate website, which also lists open positions indicating ongoing engineering and sales hiring to support expansion in specialty coffee, RTD beverages, distilling, and pet food.

Name

Modern Process Equipment Corporation

Legal name

Modern Process Equipment Corporation

Website

https://mpechicago.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1957

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Modern Process Equipment Corporation is a privately-held, family-owned Chicago-based manufacturer founded in 1957 that designs precision corrugated roller mills (Gran-U-Lizer), tubular drag conveyors (Chain-Vey), and turnkey process systems serving coffee, food, chemical, mineral, pet food, and distillery processors worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Industrial Process Equipment Sales: MPE generates revenue through the sale of industrial processing equipment including coffee grinders, Chain-Vey tubular drag conveyors, Gran-U-Lizer roller mills, and FCM (Food, Chemical & Mineral) grinders. Equipment ranges from laboratory-scale (LPP 6.5) to large production-scale systems (IMD 1052/1060 Series).
2. Process Systems Integration: Custom turnkey industrial processing systems design and integration services, including pneumatic transport, coffee degassing, and complete process automation solutions.
3. Spare Parts and Aftermarket: Replacement parts, exchange programs, and technical support services for installed equipment.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Modern Process Equipment Corporation designs and manufactures industrial precision particle size reduction and conveying equipment, including Gran-U-Lizer corrugated roller mills, Chain-Vey tubular drag conveyors, and disc-style and roller-style coffee grinding systems. The company also provides turnkey process system design and integration services combining grinding, conveying, pneumatic transport, coffee degassing, and automation into complete processing plants for food, chemical, mineral, coffee, distillery, pet food, and snack industries.

Product overview

Modern Process Equipment Corporation provides a comprehensive portfolio of industrial processing equipment centered on three core product lines: (1) precision coffee grinding equipment including the new SRM.MAX (world's smallest roller-style espresso grinder), disc-style grinders (GPX, GP-140), and roller-style grinders; (2) Gran-U-Lizers precision roller mills available in IMD (600, 700, 800, 900, 1052, 1060, 888) and F (600, 700) series, offering particle size reduction from 4 to 325 mesh for food, chemical, and mineral applications; and (3) Chain-Vey tubular drag conveyors designed for gentle conveyance of bulk powders. The company also provides process system design and integration services, combining grinding, conveying, and automation into turnkey solutions. The product architecture follows a modular approach where customers can select specific grinder models (Gran-U-Lizers or disc-style), conveyor configurations, and integrate them into complete processing systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Chain-Vey: Industry leading tube conveyor specifically designed for transporting food, chemical and other bulk powder products without product degradation or declassification.
• Gran-U-Lizers

Products and services

• Gran-U-Lizers Precision Roller Mills Precision roller mill grinders with corrugated rolls that cut and shear product down to specific particle sizes from 4 to 325 mesh (4,760 to 50 microns) for food, chemical, and mineral grinding applications. Models range from the LPP 6.5 laboratory and pilot unit (for process validation and qualification) to large-scale production systems like the IMD 1052 (52-inch rolls, 2,000–25,000 kg/hr) and IMD 1060 (60-inch rolls, 2,000–25,000 kg/hr) series, featuring Individual Motor Drives (IMD), water-cooled rolls, and 18 to 60-inch roll sizes serving industrial food processors and chemical manufacturers.
• SRM.MAX Roller-Style Coffee Grinder The world's smallest roller-style coffee grinder designed specifically for espresso applications, delivering roller-grinder quality in a compact form factor for small-format coffee operations.
• Disc-Style Coffee Grinders (GPX, GP-140) Disc-style grinders providing a high degree of versatility in size reduction across a broad spectrum of materials, offering greatest value for smaller-capacity gourmet coffee processing operations.
• Chain-Vey Tubular Drag Conveyors Industry-leading tube conveyor system specifically designed for transporting food, chemical, and other bulk powder products without product degradation or declassification, featuring gentle conveyance and clean-in-place tiers (Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3) with applications spanning bakery, breakfast cereal, brewery, distillery, coffee, peanut and tree nuts, pet food, powder and bulk solids, snack foods, and recirculating aquaculture systems.
• Process System Design & Integration Services Innovative dry process solutions for particle size reduction, classification, storage, transport, mixing, and turnkey automation with guaranteed design and integration performance, combining grinding and conveying equipment into complete process plants. Past projects include coffee processing plants, sugar handling systems, aerospace OEM part supplier processes, peanut processing for a leading CPG brand, biscuit snack brand production, kava root drink production, exotic animal feed production (Premier Bird Foods), RTD coffee (Westrock), and specialty coffee production (Wicked Joe Coffee).
• Activated Carbon Grinder Industrial grinding equipment configured for activated carbon, charcoal, and coke from sources including coconut shells, coal, and wood, achieving uniform particle sizes to increase production yields and lower costs.

Quantifiable outcome

• $38,145/year energy savings when using MPE Gran-U-Lizer instead of cage mill for 30,000 lb/hr grain processing

Named customers22 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cablevey Conveyors: Cablevey is a direct competitor to MPE's Chain-Vey line, manufacturing tubular drag cable conveyors for food, chemical, and bulk powder handling. Closely comparable on the conveying side of MPE's portfolio.
• Spiroflow: Spiroflow supplies tubular cable and disc conveyors for bulk powder and ingredient handling in food, chemical, and packaging industries. Directly comparable to MPE's Chain-Vey tubular drag conveyor product line.
• Schutte Hammermill: Schutte is a US manufacturer of hammer mills and size reduction equipment for grain, food, and chemical industries. Closely comparable to MPE in industrial grinding applications, especially in North America.
• Hosokawa Micron Powder Systems: Hosokawa is a leading supplier of particle size reduction equipment (mechanical mills, air classifiers) for chemical, food, mineral, and pharmaceutical applications. Directly comparable to MPE's Gran-U-Lizer FCM grinding line.
• Bühler Group: Bühler is the global leader in food processing equipment, including roller mills (Dolomit), grinders, and pneumatic conveying systems for grain, coffee, and feed. Directly comparable to MPE for industrial coffee and food grinding capital equipment.
• Sturtevant (Indpro Solutions): Sturtevant manufactures size reduction equipment including rotary crushers, grinders, and air classifiers for chemical, food, and mineral processing. Direct competitor to MPE in industrial particle size reduction.
• NETZSCH Grinding & Dispersing: NETZSCH manufactures grinding mills (agitator bead mills, stirred media mills) and dispersion equipment for chemical, food, and mineral industries. Competes with MPE in industrial precision grinding capital equipment.
• Pallmann Industries: Pallmann is a German manufacturer of size reduction machinery (shredders, mills, granulators) for chemical, food, and mineral industries. Comparable to MPE's Gran-U-Lizer grinding equipment portfolio.

Broad incumbents

• Tetra Pak: Tetra Pak is a large global food processing and packaging equipment incumbent serving dairy, beverage, and food manufacturers. Broad incumbent peer across industrial processing and ingredient handling systems where MPE operates.
• GEA Group: GEA is a global broad-line supplier of food processing equipment, separators, homogenizers, and plant technology. Overlaps with MPE in food/chemical processing plants and turnkey systems, though GEA operates at much broader scale and portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/modern-process-equipment-134048939980822
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/modern-process-equipment-corporation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Modern Process Equipment Corporation