How every HatchMatch poultry calculator works

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• usable area = gross floor area × (1 − 4% service and equipment space)
• birds per m² = applied live-weight cap ÷ target live weight
• indicative capacity = usable area × birds per m²
• conservative scenario applies a 3 kg/m² margin below the entered limit; no scenario ever exceeds it

Planning outputs

• planning cap applied (kg/m²)
• usable production area (m²)
• birds per m² at target weight
• indicative capacity range (birds)
• slaughter live-weight output (t)

Biological assumptions

• Target live weight is a buyer input, not a strain guarantee.
• Capacity is at depletion; the placement count must additionally allow for expected mortality.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• The kg/m² limit is entered by the buyer and treated as a hard ceiling.
• Limits differ by jurisdiction, housing system, ventilation capability and export-market scheme.

Engineering assumptions

• 4% of gross floor area is reserved for service room, control room and equipment ends.

What this tool cannot do

• Not valid for enriched cage, colony or aviary systems, which are sized on usable tier area, perch length and nest provision rather than floor area.
• Does not evaluate whether the ventilation system can actually sustain the density on a design day.
• Does not present any universal birds/m² recommendation.

What must be confirmed

• the competent welfare and permitting authority
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator
• a poultry veterinarian or production specialist

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• usable production area = birds ÷ scenario density
• gross floor area = usable area ÷ (1 − 4% service space)
• length = gross area ÷ width
• indicative fans = (width × 2.6 m × 2.5 m/s → cfm) ÷ 21,250 cfm per fan at working static pressure

Planning outputs

• usable production area
• gross floor area
• density assumption
• house length
• indicative tunnel fan count

Biological assumptions

• Density is a buyer input; the tool does not select a density for any strain or bird type.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• The entered density must be checked against the binding welfare limit before it is used.

Engineering assumptions

• Fan sizing assumes a 2.6 m sidewall and a 2.5 m/s target air speed as a screening default.
• Fan airflow is derated 15% from free-air catalogue capacity to a working static pressure of roughly 25 Pa.

What this tool cannot do

• A screening layout only — it produces no structural, foundation, drainage or fire design.

What must be confirmed

• an independent ventilation, structural or electrical engineer
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• cross-section = width × sidewall height
• airflow (m³/s) = cross-section × target air speed
• airflow (cfm) = m³/s × 2118.88 × scenario factor
• fan count = airflow ÷ (25,000 cfm free air × 0.85 static-pressure derate)

Planning outputs

• cross-section
• tunnel airflow (m³/s and cfm)
• peak airflow required
• 48-inch fan count at working pressure

Biological assumptions

• Air speed is a heat-removal target; it does not by itself guarantee any bird performance outcome.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Minimum air-quality requirements (ammonia, CO2, moisture) are a separate calculation not covered here.

Engineering assumptions

• Cross-section is a simplified rectangle and ignores trusses, curtains and obstructions.
• Fans are never sized on free-air capacity; a 15% derate to roughly 25 Pa is applied first.

What this tool cannot do

• Does not size inlets, does not model static-pressure distribution, and does not cover minimum or transitional ventilation modes.
• Requires the manufacturer's actual fan performance curve before any purchase decision.

What must be confirmed

• an independent ventilation, structural or electrical engineer
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• pad face area = airflow (m³/s) ÷ design face velocity (1.5 m/s for 6-inch pads, 2.0 m/s for 4-inch)
• temperature drop = (dry-bulb − wet-bulb) × pad saturation efficiency
• inlet temperature = dry-bulb − temperature drop, never below wet-bulb
• suitability flag raised when the wet-bulb depression is under 6 °C

Planning outputs

• pad face area
• pad efficiency
• inlet air temperature drop
• humidity suitability verdict
• water flow

Biological assumptions

• Cooling relieves heat load; it does not guarantee any mortality, intake or growth outcome.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Heat-stress management is a welfare obligation and needs an alarm and backup plan, not just pads.

Engineering assumptions

• Saturation efficiency assumed 75% (6-inch) and 65% (4-inch), to be confirmed against pad manufacturer data.
• Water flow 3 L/min per m² of pad face while pads run.

What this tool cannot do

• Evaporative cooling is not assumed suitable in every humidity condition — the tool flags low wet-bulb depression instead of returning a misleading drop.
• Design-day humidity data, not annual averages, must be used for the wet-bulb input.

What must be confirmed

• an independent ventilation, structural or electrical engineer
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• envelope loss = area × U-value × temperature difference
• total load = envelope loss × 1.2 (minimum-ventilation air exchange allowance) × scenario factor
• brooders = total BTU/hr ÷ 40,000

Planning outputs

• envelope loss
• total heat load (kW and BTU/hr)
• indicative brooder count

Biological assumptions

• Brooding target temperatures depend on bird age and strain and are not set by this tool.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Chilling and overheating are both welfare risks; the design needs controls and alarms, not capacity alone.

Engineering assumptions

• A flat 20% allowance covers minimum-ventilation heat loss; it does not model infiltration or litter moisture.

What this tool cannot do

• Not a fuel-sizing, flue, gas-train or fire-safety calculation.

What must be confirmed

• an independent ventilation, structural or electrical engineer
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• survivor feed = birds × (1 − mortality) × target × FCR
• mortality feed = birds × mortality × target × 0.4 × FCR
• total feed = survivor feed + mortality feed
• conservative FCR +0.10; optimistic FCR −0.05

Planning outputs

• effective FCR
• survivors
• total feed (t)
• feed per bird placed

Biological assumptions

• A strain guide FCR is a target under guide conditions, never a guaranteed result.
• Birds lost to mortality are assumed to have eaten 40% of a full cycle's intake, because deaths cluster in early life.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Feed restriction programmes for breeders are not modelled.

Engineering assumptions

• Feed wastage, delivery interval and safety stock are not applied; add them before sizing silos.

What this tool cannot do

• Feed products and feed-mill projects are out of scope and are routed to FeedMatch; only in-house feeding equipment is a HatchMatch scope item.
• Does not produce a silo volume — bulk density must be stated explicitly for that.

What must be confirmed

• a poultry veterinarian or production specialist
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• drinker demand = birds × litres per bird per day × scenario factor
• cooling demand = pad area × 3 L/min × hot hours × 60
• peak-hour draw-off = daily drinker demand × 1.5 ÷ 24

Planning outputs

• drinker demand
• cooling demand
• total daily demand
• peak-hour drinker flow

Biological assumptions

• Per-bird intake varies sharply with house temperature, age, strain, feed form and water quality.
• The figure entered is a planning range, not a guaranteed consumption.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Continuous access to clean water is a welfare requirement; storage must cover supply interruptions.

Engineering assumptions

• Peak-hour factor 1.5× the daily average.
• Cooling water at 3 L/min per m² of pad face.

What this tool cannot do

• Does not size pumps, treatment, line diameters or nipple flow rates.

What must be confirmed

• the selected equipment supplier or integrator
• an independent ventilation, structural or electrical engineer

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• average hens present = hens placed × (1 − mortality ÷ 2), i.e. linear depletion
• total eggs = average hens × cycle weeks × 7 × average HDP
• peak daily eggs = average hens × peak HDP; where no peak is entered, average + 8 points capped at 96%

Planning outputs

• effective HDP
• eggs per hen placed
• total eggs
• peak daily eggs

Biological assumptions

• Hen-day production curves are strain and management dependent; breeder-company objectives are targets, not guaranteed results.
• Linear depletion is a planning simplification — real mortality is front- and back-loaded.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Housing system and enrichment requirements affect achievable output and are not modelled here.

Engineering assumptions

• Grader and packer capacity must be sized on peak daily output, never on the cycle average.

What this tool cannot do

• Does not apply cracked, dirty or downgraded egg rates unless the calculator page collects them separately.

What must be confirmed

• a poultry veterinarian or production specialist
• the selected equipment supplier or integrator

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• revenue = survivors × live weight × price
• feed cost = survivors × live weight × FCR × feed price
• gross margin = revenue − feed − other OPEX
• payback = investment ÷ annual gross margin; reported as 'Not reached' when the margin is zero or negative

Planning outputs

• cycle revenue
• cycle gross margin
• annual gross margin
• directional payback

Biological assumptions

• FCR, mortality and cycles per year are buyer inputs and are not guaranteed by HatchMatch.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Cycle length and downtime must respect welfare, biosecurity and cleaning requirements.

Engineering assumptions

• Assumes every cycle in the year performs identically.

What this tool cannot do

• Gross margin only — excludes depreciation, interest, tax, replacement CAPEX and working capital.
• A calculator output alone never establishes that a project is profitable, viable or bankable.

What must be confirmed

• an independent financial advisor
• a poultry veterinarian or production specialist

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• average hens present = placement × 97% where no mortality input exists (linear depletion)
• revenue = eggs × egg price + spent-hen value
• gross margin = revenue − feed − other OPEX
• payback = investment ÷ annualised margin; 'Not reached' when the margin is zero or negative

Planning outputs

• cycle revenue
• cycle gross margin
• annualised gross margin
• directional payback

Biological assumptions

• HDP and feed per egg are strain and management dependent buyer inputs.

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Housing system determines both cost and permitted market access; confirm before fixing a system.

Engineering assumptions

• Pullet rearing CAPEX and replacement scheduling are not included.

What this tool cannot do

• Gross margin only — excludes depreciation, interest, tax and replacement flocks.
• Not a viability or bankability verdict.

What must be confirmed

• an independent financial advisor
• a poultry veterinarian or production specialist

Inputs and units

How it is calculated

• base = bird places × cost per place × country factor
• adders = base × (freight% + site works% + owner's cost%)
• total = (base + adders) × contingency factor (conservative +20%, expected 0%, optimistic −10%)
• planning range = total ±30% (Class-4 accuracy)

Planning outputs

• equipment and building base
• freight, duty and clearing
• site development
• owner's cost and engineering
• contingency
• total project CAPEX
• cost per bird place
• planning range
• indicative equity and financing need

Welfare and regulatory assumptions

• Housing systems with higher welfare specifications cost more per bird place.

Engineering assumptions

• Cost per bird place is an editorial planning band, not a quotation from any supplier.
• Excludes land and working capital unless the buyer adds them.

What this tool cannot do

• Equipment price is never presented as total project cost.
• The equity and debt split is an illustrative 30/70 sizing only. HatchMatch is not a lender and any financing is subject to third-party approval.

What must be confirmed

• the selected equipment supplier or integrator
• a quantity surveyor or civil contractor