Australasian Mining Review
Issue link: http://ebook.aprs.com.au/i/37922
207 Conveyor Belting Do you really know what you are buying? The importance of correct conveyor belt selection can be the difference between record uptime or unbearable downtime. A simple reality is that without conveyor belts – production stops W hen viewed holistically, the total cost of a conveyor belt comes down to a number of factors. However two of major importance for purchasers should be: 1. Quality: Is that saving on the purchase cost really worth the downtime in the event of a premature failure? 2. Construction: Is this belt really designed to meet the actual demands? With the advent of new compounds and construction techniques, there are more options available than ever before for your conveyor belt selection. Consultation with the belting manufacturercan reward plants with lower costs-per- ton, increased uptime and a safer work environment. Having an appreciation of the individual components of a belt is the key to successfully understanding how the belt will perform. The biggest cost contributor to any conveyor belt is the top and bottom cover. Their main task is to protect the fabric or steel cord carcass of the conveyor belt. Without this armour of rubber the belt would likely not last its fi rst revolutionin mining applications. Regardless of where in the world a conveyor belt is made, there are consistent factors which manufacturers have no control over. Raw natural rubber is a rare commodity and attracts a premium price. Conveyor belt fabric and steel cords are produced by a limited number of manufacturers globally, and, the basic way of constructing a belt is the same regardless of location. Whether the belt is made in Asia, America or Europe, the process of making the belt is not highly labour intensive and is in some ways semi-autonomous. This leaves only one factor that can control the price of the belt, its quality. Reducing the quality of carcass protection ultimately leads to a reduction in service life or even unexpected failures. The science of developing conveyor belt compounds and constructions is not a dark art as some would lead the industry to believe. There are terms bantered around by traders such as “meets the standard“ or “equivalent to” for off the shelf belt. In reality, these standards are a minimum set by governing bodies to protect smaller industries against unscrupulous suppliers advertising one thing, and supplying another. Much like many other products around us, rubber is a blend of different materials which eventually creates a product with the specific properties you require. The major components in conveyor belt rubbers are: Natural and Synthetic rubber, fillers, hydrocarbons and performance additives. By altering the combination of these components, or substituting them for inferior products the price and quality can be reduced. The addition of properties or technologies such as Oil Resistance, Low Rolling Resistance, Ozone/UV Resistance, Cut and Tear Resistance, Fire Resistance, Static Dissipative, Acid/Akali Resistance, Low Abrasion Loss, Low Stretch, Rip Stop Mesh may add to the initial cost of a belt. However it will provide financial benefit over years of operation. Part of mining industry best-practice should be to log the history and usage of conveyor belting. Working closely with your conveyor maintenance partner can be helpful in understanding the types and reasons of failure and to calculate the actual cost of maintenance. Adding that to the real cost to production (loss of production, idle personnel, penalties on failures to deliver on contract sales) – even at a small operation it can result in costs of tens of thousands of dollars per hour – helps you in appreciating the total costs of your conveyor system. For sites to have a conveyor maintenance service provider who is also a conveyor belt manufacturer it will open the doors to truly have a cost efficient conveyor belt solution by combining the site requirement with latest manufacturing technologies. Specific properties can be built into a conveyor belt to maximise service life and reduce your total cost of ownership. Large Conveyor Maintenance Service companies who also supply and manufacture conveyor belt can bring the advantage of immediate and unfiltered access to their research and development laboratories, production lines and compounding engineers. Working closely together with its local and global onsite service teams, this single company can provide solid solutions with the knowledge and experience of many different conveyor systems from around the world, handling different materials. Being limited to frequent failures caused by off the shelf solutions is not necessary anymore. For more information please contact REMA TIP TOP Industrial Australia on 02 9772 4899 or email info@rema-tiptop.com.au. By Dale Kong (REMA TIP TOP Industrial Australia PTY LTD) [Conveyor System] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ issue 2.2