R&D Equipment Company

What R&D Equipment Company does

R&D Equipment Company, Inc. is a Fort Worth, Texas-based industrial equipment distributor and rebuilder serving the oilseed processing, animal feed, and rendering industries, founded in 1981 by Ralph Romero Sr. and since 2021 led by his son Ralph Romero Jr. The company supplies new, used, rebuilt, and guaranteed process equipment across more than 200 equipment categories — covering particle size reduction (hammer mills, flaking mills, roller mills, cracking mills, pellet mills, pre-breakers), mechanical and chemical extraction (expeller presses, solvent extractors), cooking/conditioning, extrusion/expansion, cooling/drying, filtration, separation (centrifuges, decanters, screeners), material handling, and support systems such as boilers and motors. It maintains what it describes as one of the largest US inventories of used oilseed, rendering, and feed process equipment, sourced and represented through authorizations with leading manufacturers in the USA, Canada, and Europe.

The company's revenue mechanics rest on quote-based, project-level equipment sales supplemented by recurring-relationship services: equipment rebuilding to OEM specifications (steam cleaning, sandblasting, precision disassembly, component replacement, motor rewinding, testing), start-up assistance and operator training, process optimization and machine tuning, plant expansion advisory and onsite surveys, onsite paint services, and spare-parts sales. Pricing is opaque and configured per customer application and condition (new/rebuilt/used), giving the firm flexibility to compete on capital cost rather than purely on new-OEM list price. The company's GTM is sales-led — direct phone, email, and website RFQ handling out of its single Fort Worth facility, supplemented by participation in IPPE (Atlanta), FIGAP (Mexico), and an active social-media presence across LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter/X.

The firm is family-owned and privately held with no institutional investors, no parent company, and no disclosed funding rounds. Headcount is in the 1-10 range, the legal entity is R & D Equipment Company, Inc. (Texas incorporation), and customers span enterprise oilseed processors (soybean, cottonseed, coconut, peanut, sunflower, canola), animal feed producers, rendering facilities, and specialty oil processors in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Philippines, and Africa. End-customers are typically B2B industrial processors purchasing capital equipment for plants, making revenue inherently lumpy and project-driven rather than subscription-based.

Name

R&D Equipment Company

Legal name

R & D Equipment Company, Inc.

Website

https://rdequipmentco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

R&D Equipment Company is a family-owned Fort Worth, Texas distributor and rebuilder of new, used, and rebuilt process equipment serving oilseed, animal feed, rendering, and specialty oil plants across the Americas, the Philippines, and Africa.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Process Equipment

NAICS

Agriculture, Construction, and Mining Machinery Manufacturing (3331)

SIC

Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523), Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550)

akta.pro primary industry

Used & Refurbished Farm Machinery (Resale, Rebuild, Remanufacturing) (AFAAAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Farm Machinery Parts, Service & Maintenance Equipment (Spare Parts, Diagnostics, Workshop Tools) (AFAAAAAH)

Keywords

• Process equipment supply
• Oilseed processing equipment
• Animal feed equipment
• Rendering equipment
• Equipment rebuilding services

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Worth

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, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Equipment Sales: Sale of new, used, rebuilt, and guaranteed process equipment and complete plants for oilseed, rendering, and feed industries. Equipment is offered as-is or reconditioned to meet customer specifications and budgets.
2. Equipment Rebuilding Services: Comprehensive equipment overhaul services including cleaning, inspection, precision rebuilding, and testing to restore equipment to peak performance.
3. Technical Services: Start-up assistance, operator training, process optimization, and machine tuning services to help customers maximize equipment performance.
4. Parts Sales: Sale of spare parts and components for process equipment including press parts, motors, and other wear items.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

R&D Equipment Company supplies new, rebuilt, and used industrial process equipment for the oilseed, animal feed, and rendering industries, serving as an authorized representative for leading manufacturers in the USA, Canada, and Europe. The company maintains one of the largest US inventories of used and refurbished process equipment and offers complete plant solutions alongside rebuilding, start-up, training, and process optimization services.

Product overview

R&D Equipment Company is an industrial equipment supplier and integrator offering new, used, and rebuilt machinery for oilseed processing, animal feed production, rendering, and specialty oil industries. The portfolio centers on process equipment categories including particle size reduction (hammer mills, flaking mills, roller mills, cracking mills, pre-breakers, pellet mills), oil extraction (expeller presses, extruders, expanders, solvent extraction), material processing (cookers, conditioners, coolers, dryers, dehullers), separation (decanters, centrifuges, filters, screeners), material handling (conveyors, elevators), and support systems (boilers, chillers, motors). The company complements its equipment sales with services including equipment rebuilding to OEM specifications, start-up assistance and operator training, process optimization and machine tuning, plant expansion and field services, and onsite paint services. Equipment is sourced from leading manufacturers represented across the USA, Canada, and Europe, with an extensive inventory maintained at their Fort Worth, Texas facility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Centrifugal Separators
• Solvent Extractors
• Hammer Mills
• Flaking Mills
• Roller Mills
• Cracking Mills
• Pre-Breakers
• Pellet Mills
• Expeller Presses
• Extruders and Expanders
• Cookers and Conditioners
• Coolers and Dryers
• Filters
• DeHulling Equipment
• Material Handling Equipment
• Boilers
• Spare Parts
• Equipment Rebuilding Services
• Start-Up Assistance and Training
• Process Optimization Services
• Plant Expansion Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduces project delivery times and initial investments while ensuring quality

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Leading North American and European Process Equipment ManufacturerscoreTechnology or IntegrationR&D Equipment Company represents leading process equipment manufacturers from USA, Canada, and Europe. Their technical and process support comes directly from these manufacturers, ensuring cutting-edge solutions and expertise for customers in oilseed, rendering, and feed processing industries.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Bühler Group: Global OEM of process equipment and complete plants for feed, oilseed, and food industries; competes broadly with R&D's represented OEMs and represents the type of large incumbent R&D partners with or competes against.
• CPM (California Pellet Mill): Major OEM of pellet mills, hammermills, and other particle size reduction equipment used in animal feed and oilseed processing—one of the leading manufacturers R&D represents and competes indirectly against through end-customer relationships.
• Anderson International (now Anderson Group): Original manufacturer of expeller presses and related oilseed processing equipment—including the Anderson Duo Expeller that R&D represents and rebuilds; a key upstream partner and indirect competitor through its own sales force.

Direct peers

• International Process Plants (IPP): Global supplier of complete used process plants and individual pieces of process equipment—competes with R&D in supplying integrated oilseed, rendering, and feed processing lines on a turnkey basis.
• Loeb Equipment & Appraisal Co. Reseller and appraiser of used process equipment with significant exposure to food and chemical industries—directly comparable to R&D's used-equipment distribution business.
• Machinery & Equipment Co. (M&E): US-based used process equipment dealer with inventory across food, chemical, mining, and pharmaceutical applications—similar buy/rebuild/sell model and customer base to R&D.
• Perry Videx: Global dealer of used process equipment with a large inventory across chemical, pharmaceutical, food, and related industries—direct competitor in the resale and refurbishment of process equipment.
• EquipNet: Online marketplace and service provider for used industrial assets, including process equipment—overlaps with R&D on resale channels and customer base for used food/agricultural processing equipment.
• Aaron Equipment Company: One of the largest US dealers of used process equipment, with similar buy/sell/appraise/rebuild model and a broad inventory across chemical, food, and pharmaceutical processing—directly comparable in business model and customer type to R&D Equipment.
• Federal Equipment Company: Used process equipment dealer serving pharmaceutical, chemical, food, and related industries with appraisal, dismantling, and consignment services—overlapping with R&D on the used-equipment distribution and rebuild side.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RandDEquipment
• YouTubeyoutube.com/RDEQUIPMENTCO
• Facebookfacebook.com/RandDEquipmentCompany
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rd-equipment-company-inc
• Instagraminstagram.com/rdequipmentco
• TikToktiktok.com/@rndequipmentco?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

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 R&D Equipment Company