Conveyor solutions extend beyond original equipment
Driving conveyor systems
Suppliers to conveyor original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are accommodating this evolution in conveyor solutions, while still supporting the OEMs traditional offerings.
“On the last couple years, we have noticed an increase demand on accumulation conveyor systems as well as standard belt conveyors,” says Alex Kanaris, president for Van der Graaf (VDG), Brampton, Ontario. “For VDG that has been a positive challenge by justifying new investments in [research and development] (R&D) and production technology.”
Among the components that VDG supplies to conveyor OEMs are drum motors, a one component conveyor drive where the motor, gear drive and all moving parts are enclosed inside the drum, the company says.
Kanaris explains that containing all the moving parts within a conveyor drive system has become an important product attribute in the name of warehouse safety.
“The new technological advancements in the conveyor drives is a drive design that have no external components outside of the conveyor frame,” he says. “All drive components like electric motor and gear reducer components [are] to be housed within the head roller and make it difficult for anybody [who] works around the conveyor to be physically injured.”
Kanaris encourages beverage operations managers to consider the value that drum motors can offer to their flow chain. “The advice that we can give to the operation managers is to select drum motors as conveyor drives and benefit of the safety, efficiency, and maintenance-free operation that the drum motors drives provide,” he says.
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