Conveyor belt specialist Jeremy Clark shares his essential dos and don'ts when buying industrial conveyor belts.
You can find more information on our web, so please take a look.
Conveyors are indispensable but expensive pieces of equipment. With operating budgets under continuous scrutiny from senior management, it is all too easy to make a costly mistake when buying conveyor belts. Here, conveyor belt specialist Jeremy Clark shares what he considers to be the most important dos and don'ts when buying industrial conveyor belts.
Check the specifications
Never assume that the specifications of your conveyor belts are correct. Most conveyors have been in operation for a number of years. During their lifetime they are likely to have been operated by several different managers and maintenance personnel. It never fails to surprise me to find that mistakes have been made by the original builders of the conveyor when calculating the belt specification best suited to the conveyor. Likewise, subsequent attempts to solve problems such as rapid wear and ripping and tearing, may have resulted in the wrong specification of belt being fitted. The same applies if the material mix or volumes have changed significantly. It is imperative that the belt specification always matches the conveyor design and the materials being conveyed.
For example, belts that are too thick for the design of the application can cause problems such as excessive rigidity (lack of troughability) and steering and handling difficulties. The same applies to tensile strengths that are too high. It is important to remember that for every step increase in tensile strength, the pulley and drum diameters need to be increased by 25%. The belt carcass may fail due to dynamic stress if this action is not taken. Quality belt manufacturers and their service partners who supply and fit their belts, will have experienced engineers. When provided with sufficient information, they can verify the belt selection.
Select belts based on durability
Always select belts based on their durability, suitability and longevity (whole life cost) rather than for short-term 'economic' or budgetary motives. Experience shows, without doubt, that the price of the belt will invariably be reflected in both its quality of performance and the length of its working life. I regularly see cases where a good quality belt can produce a working life of more than five years compared to low-grade belts that have been purchased on the basis of their low price but need regular repairs and then have to be replaced after only a year or two, often less.
The biggest source of low-price, low-grade belting is, of course, the Far East, primarily China. Their prices may be very tempting, but it is important to understand how those prices are achieved. The 'lower labour costs' argument is a fallacy because the labour element accounts for as little as 5% of the production cost. The true reason for the difference in price is that raw materials make up to 70% of the cost of producing a conveyor belt. Consequently, the only way to manufacture a low-price belt is to use low-price (low grade), unregulated raw materials. There simply is no other way. Cost-cutting practices include using cheap, low-grade carbon black made by burning old car tyres, the use of 'bulking fillers' such as clay instead of good quality polymers and using low-grade inner synthetic plies. The two best indicators of poor quality rubber are its low price and its pungent smell. Good quality rubber rarely has any smell at all. As the old saying goes, price is what you pay but cost is what you spend.
Choose belts in the standard stock range
Always (unless significant quantities are involved), choose belts from within the manufacturers standard stock range whenever possible Any deviation from the standard specification of a belt held in stock means that the belt would have to be made to special order, invoking higher production costs and potential minimum length order quantities. It also increases the delivery lead time, which can be especially bad newsif a belt needs to be replaced inan emergency.
Only buy belts when you are totally confident of their provenance (manufacturer's origin) and where the manufacturer clearly states the level of anticipated performance rather than simply claiming to have been tested to a certain standard. Unfortunately, in today's market, with the exception of Fenner Dunlop in The Netherlands and North America, nearly all manufacturers now supplement their production with imported belting, mostly from the Far East. My advice is to always ask for certified confirmation of the actual place of manufacture.
Consider the belt edge
Avoid over-specifying the type of belt edge. This may surprise you, but it can have a very significant impact on belt costs, repairs, maintenance, lost production and lead times. Many years ago, moulded edges (fully covered in rubber) were the standard because cotton was used as the reinforcing fabric in multi-ply belts. A moulded edge was therefore essential to prevent moisture penetrating the cotton fabric and causing it to rot. Since the introduction of synthetic ply fabrics using polyester and polyamide, this problem effectively no longer exists. Despite this, many conveyor operators and their buying departments continue to specify moulded edges, even though they do not provide any structural or performance advantage and can actually be susceptible to damage if the belt wanders off-track.
Nowadays, the most commonly used type of belt edge is the 'cut & sealed edge' or simply 'sealed edge', which is sufficient to prevent moisture being drawn into the carcass from the edge by capillary forces. Although the synthetic fibre plies are barely affected, moisture can ultimately cause vulcanising problems when making splice joints. A sealed edge also enables a belt to be used in very wet conditions and makes it better suited to long-term storage outdoors.
The reason why it is important not to over-specify the type of belt edge is that manufacturers need to manufacture belts at the optimum width and length for cost and production efficiency. Consequently, standard width stock belts are usually made as wide as the manufacturing machinery will allow, creating huge rolls known as 'slabs'. These are then cut and sealed to create a range of narrower widths. For example, using metric measurements in this case, 400 meters of 2,200mm wide belt 'slab' would be manufactured and then be slit (cut) to produce 400m of 1,000mm wide belt and 400m of 1,200mm wide. This is why the vast majority of rubber multi-ply belting held in stock by manufacturers, distributors and traders has sealed edges. Moulded edges can only be created when a belt is manufactured in isolation and to an exact width. Consequently, the manufacturer is unable to achieve optimum production line efficiency, the cost of which has to be reflected in the selling price.
Ensure the belt is UV and Ozone resistant
Never order a conveyor belt without first obtaining written confirmation from the supplier/manufacturer that the belt being supplied is fully resistant to ozone and UV. As every manufacturer of rubber products will know only too well, at high altitude ozone (O3) acts as a protective shield by absorbing harmful ultraviolet rays but at low altitude, it becomes a pollutant that attacks the molecular structure of rubber. Ground level ozone increases the acidity of carbon black surfaces with natural rubber, polybutadiene, styrene-butadiene rubber and nitrile rubber being the most sensitive to degradation. The reaction that occurs is known as ozonolysis.
The first visible sign is when cracks start to appear in the surface of the rubber. Further attacks then occur inside the freshly exposed cracks, which continue to grow steadily until they complete a 'circuit' and the product separates or fails.
Ultraviolet light from sunlight and fluorescent lighting also has a seriously detrimental effect on rubber because it accelerates rubber deterioration by producing photochemical reactions that promote the oxidation of the rubber surface resulting in a loss in mechanical strength and wear resistance. This is known as 'UV degradation'. The combination of ozone and UV has a seriously limiting effect on the operational lifetime of a rubber belt, regardless of geography or type of climate.
Fortunately, ozone and ultraviolet damage is easy to prevent. Unfortunately, laboratory testing consistently reveals that some 90% of belts tested according to EN ISO /1 procedure B static ozone resistance test are not resistant. In fact, the vast majority typically start to crack within the first 6 to 8 hours of the 96-hour test duration. This is because the anti-ozonants needed to protect the rubber have been omitted from the rubber compound mix because of cost so always insist on ozone & UV resistance when selecting any rubber conveyor belt.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website HIHERO.
Choose specifically engineered belts
Choose belts that are specifically engineered for the conditions they are required to cope with. This is especially important on sites where rip, tear and impact damage problems occur. Attempting to solve the problem by fitting belts with thicker covers and heavier carcasses is invariably a mistake. Simply using more of the same material will not provide the solution. As mentioned earlier, thicker, heavier belts can also cause other problems including lack of troughability, steering and handling problems and dynamic stress due to the pulleys and drums now being
too small.
The most economical solution is to fit a conveyor belt that has been specially designed for the purpose, such as Fenner Dunlop's UsFlex, Nova X and Ultra X range belts that are proven to last up to four or five times longer than conventional multi-ply conveyor belts. The initial buying price might be appreciably higher, but the cost will be substantially less over the working life of the belt, with the added benefits of far less repairs, change-out costs and disruption to output.
Choose the right belt supplier
Always choose a belt supplier who you can rely on to be accountable in the event of a problem. It is important to have a supplier that will readily provide a high standard of professional technical support and who has a good reputation for quality. This, I feel, should always be an essential part of the criteria when choosing a supplier. A tall order perhaps, but they do exist.
Conveyor systems are the lifeline for many industrial bulk material handling operations and when your conveyor belt is not performing to your expectations anymore, it may be time to review your specifications and look into Fenner Dunlop belting options. When selecting a new belt for your conveyor system, it is important to think about your production goals and how a conveyor belt can help you achieve them. Before committing to a new conveyor belt, be sure to ask the following questions.
1. Where was this conveyor belt manufactured?
Knowing where a belt is made can give you an insight into its quality. For example, imported conveyor belts are often not produced in the same plant every time (even if the local supplier or distributor is the same). Some plants have high production standards and follow a quality management system, while others do not. As a result, consistency of the belt can vary greatly from purchase to purchase. In addition, even belts built in the US often contain finished fabric carcasses shipped from outside of North America, which can deteriorate in overseas shipments via changes in humidity and moisture conditions. Inconsistency in quality and performance can lead to costly downtime and loss of production security.
Our Answer: When you purchase a belt from Fenner Dunlop, we can tell you exactly where it was made because we manufacture our own belts in North America, which allows us to control every step of the vertically integrated production process. All of our fabric belting carcasses are engineered in our state-of-the-art weaving facility in Lavonia, Georgia. Production is then passed on to our conveyor belt manufacturing plants in Port Clinton, Ohio, Toledo, Ohio, and Bracebridge, Ontario. Specialized attention is given to each belting order to ensure that we produce the highest quality conveyor belts that will assist you in reducing operation costs, maximizing uptime and improving revenue.
2. Which type of conveyor belt is best for my industry application?
If you are having issues with constant damage to your belt or are simply not seeing ideal end results, maybe the belt is not suited for your particular bulk material handling application. You wouldn't put a belt without an oil resistant cover on a system that handles grain or wood products and you wouldn't put a light duty belt on a system that could be more susceptible to puncture damage under a primary crusher. This may seem like common sense, but it is easy to feel overwhelmed when making the decision to purchase a new belt.
Our Answer: Fenner Dunlop is proud to serve a variety of markets and we design and manufacture the widest range of conveyor belts in the world. With sales, service, and technical personnel in conjunction with our world-class distribution network stationed throughout the Americas, we can visit your facility to learn more about your production goals and operational challenges. Based on your unique needs, our experts can help you decide which cover compound and carcass combination is the best for your conveyor system. Value engineering is our model.
3. Is this conveyor belt easy to maintain?
There are several factors that can influence the upkeep of a conveyor belt, like the type of belt and what it is used for. To ensure maximum performance results from your conveyor belt, it is important to conduct regular assessments of the conveyor system and perform regular mechanical maintenance. Tramp material buildup and failing components can lead to a multitude of serious reliability issues.
Our Answer: When you purchase a conveyor belt from Fenner Dunlop, our knowledgeable technical sales and services teams as well as our world-class distribution partners are available to help you get the most out of your belt. Our expert capabilities range from troubleshooting to splice training to after sales support. We also offer condition monitoring services to assist the long-term performance of the product and your investment. No other conveyor belting provider can offer the depth of knowledge and resources provided like Fenner Dunlop can. Your success is our success.
4. How long will this conveyor belt last?
If your current belt suffers from premature wear, deterioration, constant rip, tear, puncture and impact damage resulting in downtime for your operations, purchasing a belt that is built to last is essential.
Our Answer: Fenner Dunlop manufactures the longest lasting conveyor belts in the world. We understand that the carcass is the most important part of the conveyor belt and we design, manufacture and test all of our fabric carcasses in house to ensure greater impact and superior rip and tear resistance and superior ply adhesions for your application. We are proud of our expertise in not only the standard weave designs but also patented straight warp and dual crimp warp weaves. Plus by using our Belt Wizard software modelling, we can predict the life of a specific Fenner Dunlop product on your application whilst also ensuring the product characteristics are an ideal match for your installation.
5. What makes this conveyor belt unique?
With so many drastic conveyor belt claims floating around on the internet, it may be hard to determine what is true and what is not. When selecting a belt, it is important to do your research to ensure that you are selecting the right belt for your conveyor system.
Our Answer: You can purchase a conveyor belt from Fenner Dunlop with confidence because we have done the research for you. For over 150 years, our engineers have been constantly improving our materials and processes resulting in belts that consistently outperform the competition in rigorous applications. Plus we are mindful of the materials used in our belts to create a more robust product, while minimizing our impact on the environment.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Multi-Ply Conveyor Belt.
Want to purchase a conveyor belt from Fenner Dunlop?
Comments
Please Join Us to post.
0