Questions to Ask When Selecting a Conveyor System

Investing in a new conveyor system, an industrial material transfer or handling application, is nothing to be taken lightly. Conveyor systems are large, complex machines and as much care should be taken in selecting the right one as one would expect when buying a new car, or other major investment. And just like when buying a new car, there are some baseline questions you should ask when selecting a new conveyor.

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These questions can be broken down into two main categories. The first is questions you need to ask yourself so that you know what information to have handy when you begin to shop around. The second is questions to ask the conveyor manufacturers and suppliers you talk to so that you know you’re getting your system from a company whose work you can trust.

Here’s a quick primer along with a handy infographic on what these questions usually look like, and how to select the right conveyor system for you. 

Preparation: Questions to Ask Yourself

The first question you should ask yourself is, “What will this conveyor system be used for?” Knowing the application of the system is a necessary, if somewhat obvious, first step in determining the right one. Automated conveyors for food processing applications will have a very different set of requirements than those intended for robotics integration or to simply move small boxes down a packaging line.

Moving on to greater specifics, subsequent questions to have on-hand include the following:

• What material or materials will be transported? Will specialty belting be required? How wide will the belt need to be?
• How much space will the conveyor system occupy? How long does it need to be?
• How fast will the conveyor need to be? How much load will it need to accommodate? These are important ways to determine how strong a motor your system will need.

Depending on the details of your own application, you may need to ask other questions (or answer those asked by your preferred conveyor manufacturer or supplier).

Questions to Ask When Choosing a Conveyor Supplier

After you’ve established what you need, the next step is figuring out which companies are capable of supplying it, and which of those you think will offer the best product with the best return on your investment.

Depending on your needs, conveyor suppliers may offer you a pre-existing conveyor system design, or a custom solution. In either case, be sure to ask the following questions:

• Is the system modular? How difficult will future modifications be?
• How difficult will installation be? How much will it cost? How long will it take?
• What is involved in terms of maintenance? How easy will belt repairs or replacements be? Will specialized labor be involved? How easily can replacement parts be obtained?
• Has the supplier worked on similar systems in the past? Can they provide any references or case studies?

A reliable, trustworthy conveyor system supplier will be able and willing to help you with these questions and others that may be necessary depending on your specific needs.

If you’re in the market for a new conveyor system, or are getting ready to be, get in touch with the team at mk North America. A worldwide leader in modular conveyor systems, custom designs, and other specially engineered material handling solutions, mk North America will guide you through every step of the conveyor design and selection process.

Call (860) 769- or  fill out the form below.

Here are the 5 most important points to ask about:

1. How strong is the bond?

One of the most important factors to check when choosing a conveyor belt is its strength. To choose the right strength of tape, you need to know the load the tape will be subjected to. How many tons per hour (t/h), lifting height, length of conveyor, engine power and angle of inclination. Whether it’s a soft or abrupt start also matters. For particularly heavy loads, belt manufacturers can help with calculations.

You can quickly check how strong a conveyor belt is by looking at the product designation itself.

Example:

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A tape could be labeled ‘EP400/3 – 4+2’, where letters and numbers describe different elements. Here’s a brief explanation:

• The first numbers in the product designation, in this case ‘400’, describe strength in terms of newtons per millimeter (n/mm)
• The number just behind the slash, the ‘3’ number stands for the number of layers
• The numbers ‘4+2’ describe how much rubber there is on each side. top layer (‘4’), and how much rubber is on the underside of the tape (‘2’).
• The letters stand for the type of fabric/material in the belt. In this case ‘EP’, which is the most common in standard belts, is made of polyester-polyamide.

There are countless combinations of qualities, for example: 250/2, 315/3, 500/3, 630/4, /4, /5 etc. The number combinations give an overall indication of strength.

The actual strength can be documented in the test certificate for each roll, which states how much force is required before the tape breaks. You may want to take a look at this to check the actual strength of the tape.

2. How much wear and tear can it withstand?

Another very important quality indicator that you may want to check is how much wear and tear the conveyor belt can withstand. It is often referred to as ‘abrasion’ in the test specification, and describes how many cubic millimeters (mm3) are worn off in a fixed test cycle. (PS! This is tested in practice by using a machine in which they put a sample piece and sand it with certified abrasive media). Here, the quality indication is the opposite of wear resistance (n/mm). So a lower number and number of cubic millimeters worn off means a more wear-resistant belt.

For example, the standard DIN norm for a Y-quality tape is 150 mm3. This means that the belts should have an ‘abrasion’ or wear that is lower than this level. Note that there is a very large distance from the maximum ‘abrasion’ in Y-quality, which is 150 mm3, down to the best belts within Y-standard, which are often between 110 and 120 mm3.

3. Does it fit the drum?

The diameter of the drive and turning drum must be considered before choosing a conveyor belt. With small diameter drums, you should not choose a conveyor belt that has too many layers of cloths. A thick conveyor belt with many layers should not be bent too hard. Then the different layers of rubber can be separated from each other. This happens if you have too small a drum diameter.

Example:
If you need to haul a lot of mass on a steep uphill slope, you need a strong conveyor belt. Such a tape will have several layers of fabric, perhaps up to 4 layers of rubber. Then it has great thickness. If you then have a small drum, the four layers start to separate and the strength disappears.

4. Do I need a special tape?

We have examples of trials with special tapes and specially adapted constructions of tapes that have multiplied their lifespan. In situations where the load is high, there are alternatives with extra good rubber that should be used.

If you have a belt that is directly under a large crusher, where there is a fall of heavy stones or you have a conveyor of several hundred meters, you may want to consider an alternative and choose a belt with stronger rubber, multiple layers and thick cores.

Read more:
Avoid conveyor belt misalignment in 10 simple steps

In such cases, you can check the ‘tensile strenght’ of the tape in the inspection certificate. This will give you a good indication of what the tape can withstand in terms of shocks and heavy loads.

5. What are the manufacturer’s quality requirements for the tape?

Conveyor belts with quality rubber from European manufacturers have significantly stricter quality requirements than the standard DIN norm. Well-known brands have modern factories and established production routines. This ensures that the quality is consistent every time a conveyor belt rolls out of the factory. In addition, they test the wear factor and strength of their conveyor belts. Some also provide a test certificate to guarantee that what you get is of the quality they promise.

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When ordering, you may often only specify the desired quality, width and thickness of the tape.

You may want to provide additional details about, among other things:

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• quantity (tons per hour)
• what kind of mass to be transported
• the specific usage situation