This one is high among those critical choices that can make or break your plant’s productivity.

With competitive price and timely delivery, HIHERO sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

Seriously. No food manufacturer can effectively optimize a plant’s conveyors without taking a hard look at which belt material should be used in a given area.

And be honest. Don’t you just want your belts to run properly and not have to worry about them?

The consequences of making a poor selection can include belt breakages, unscheduled downtime, lower yield, higher costs, material degradation, and foreign material contamination.

To avoid some or all the above, food processors and equipment manufacturers must choose belt materials wisely. How? To find out, we asked the experts who develop, test, and recommend belt materials for our food business customers.

What are the key factors in choosing the right conveyor belt material?

Application

Does the belt need to withstand heavy impacts? What about temperatures, which can range from frying to freezing? Will the belt be submerged in a dip tank?

Examine your specific application and determine what the belt will be put through at that point in the processing line. Doing so can help answer a lot of critical questions about which material is best.

“Potato processing plants, for example, are a unique environment where it’s crucial to focus on the specifics of the application,” says Drew Downer, Intralox ThermoDrive Mechanical Engineer.

Raw product could come into the plant with sand or dirt on it from outside. Coming from the peeler, potatoes give off starch that’s put into the application. The product may go through a bath of boiling oil, and eventually get covered with seasonings and spices. Each application brings different temperature, physical, and chemical considerations.

“The belt material you choose must be tailored to withstand the impacts associated with each application,” says Downer. Ask yourself, what’s unique about this specific application that’s different from other areas of the plant?

Environment

Sometimes, the answer is obvious. (Don’t put belts that are known to be flammable near hot stuff!) Besides ovens, there are numerous environmental factors inside a food plant to consider.

For more sidewall conveyor belt(in,vi,ar)information, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.

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“The actual environment the belt will be in is going to determine what materials are even possible to be used,” says Stephen O’Connor, Intralox Material Specialist. “I start with asking, what is this belt going to see temperature-wise? What about chemistry? What are the other needs and specifications such as mechanical strength? Could there be expansion of the belt material due to moisture?”

Think about how cleaning solutions can affect your belting, too. Imagine a meat, poultry, or seafood processing plant that must sanitize its belts nightly. Its sanitation crew has used the same sanitizer for a while, which hasn’t been a problem for the plastics in their belts. Suddenly, they’re given a different sanitizer to use. The new product calls for lower concentration, but the team is unaware and continues to use it at the higher concentration level.

“Even small adjustments in the actual chemistry of your cleaner could completely change how your belt performs after a cleaning,” says O’Connor.

For guidance, lean on the expertise of your belting partner. They have the knowledge and insight to recommend what material will work seamlessly and run reliably in your environment.

Product

Is there something unique about the product being conveyed? For example, let’s say your facility processes foods that can be sticky. Some polymers are better suited to release product at a transfer. In this case, choosing the right belt material can help increase yield and reduce carryover.

Similarly, abrasive ingredients such as sugar or cornmeal can wear and degrade belts that aren’t made to hold up against rough or grainy foods. But there are materials created specifically to withstand these types of challenging products.

Your product is always top of mind for you, so keep it top of mind when selecting your conveyor belt material. Since the belt has direct contact with food, its physical and chemical properties should weigh into your decision on which material to use.

Your plant has everything to gain by using correctly specified conveyor belt material.

Before your next belting purchase, think of its application, the area’s environmental conditions, the specifics of the product being conveyed, and even how the belts will be stored prior to operation. It’ll be time well spent. Why?

Better performance, longer belt life, higher product yield, less maintenance, lower costs, and reduced chances of breakdowns are some of the benefits you can expect from choosing the right conveyor belt material.

Of all the potential issues that can arise in a food processing facility, your choice of belt material doesn’t have to be the cause of one. Consult your belting partner and equipment manufacturer early in the process. They can work together and with you to make the right selection.

Then, in the words of legendary inventor Ron Popeil, you’ll be able to “Set it and forget it.”

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Cold Resistant Conveyor Belt.

The Problems Should be Paid Attention to When Choosing and Purchasing Sidewall Belt Conveyor

 Sidewall belt conveyor is suitable for transporting easily scattered powder, granular, small block, paste and liquid materials. It has the characteristics of wide range of use, small footprint, large throughput and high efficiency.
1.In the process of transportation, the base belt of the conveyor mainly bears the tension, which plays an important role in its use effect. If the rigidity is small, the conveyor belt will produce transverse deformation and cause the phenomenon of spreading materials. Generally, the number of core layers is at least 6.
2.Look at the cleat and skirt, according to the conveyor throughput to select, determine the skirt height, cleat spacing size, effective belt width size and other factors. Sidewall belt conveyor can work in 0° ~ 90° dip angle environment. Reach the transmission angle that cannot reach, further reduce the project cost, shorten the transportation distance, save manpower. 3.Sidewall belt conveyor over 70 degrees angle should be used to cover the belt, (the benefits of using cover belt to prevent leakage caused damage to the base belt; At the same time, it can also increase the volume of materials).
4.The requirement for the pulley of the sidewall belt conveyor is much higher than flat belt conveyor, in the case of the same type of belt,it is much larger than the pulley used on flat belt.
5.Base belt: the base belt of the sidewall belt conveyor mainly bears the tension, but its transverse rigidity also plays a great role in the use of performance and effect. If the rigidity of the conveyor belt is too small, the conveyor belt will produce transverse deformation and lead to the phenomenon of spreading materials. (If CC-56 cotton canvas core layer conveyor belt is selected, the tearing strength is 56N/mm, the number of core layers is at least 6 layers -- including 6 layers, the thickness of upper rubber = more than 4.5mm, the thickness of lower rubber = more than 1.5mm).
6.Cleat, skirt: when choosing cleat and skirt, the throughput of conveyor should be considered first, such as skirt height, cleat spacing and effective belt width.