DESIGN OF A POST-FRAME BURLEY TOBACCO CURING STRUCTURE FOR WIRE-FRAME RACKS

Abstract The purpose of this research was to develop a post-frame structure to utilize wire-frame racks in the curing of burley tobacco in nontraditional growing areas. Since the 2004 federal tobacco quota buyout legislation, burley tobacco production has moved into the piedmont and coastal plain regions of North Carolina, where there was no existing burley curing infrastructure. This presented a unique opportunity to build curing infrastructure based on the most efficient and least costly alternatives. The current trend for mechanically harvested burley tobacco utilizes the cut-notch method. Wire-frame racks are used by many growers as part of an infield curing structure for cut-notch harvested plants. Incorporating wire-frame racks into a post-frame structure provides greater protection from adverse weather than a typical in-field wire-frame curing structure. All of the in-field advantages and mechanisms of wire-frame racks are retained with this design. A 2-tier test building was designed and construct...