What are Conveyors ?

A conveyor is a horizontal, inclined, or vertical device for moving or transporting bulk material, packages, or objects in a path predetermined by the design of the device, and having points of loading and discharge, fixed or selective. Conveyors can be either gravity powered or live.

A simply put - A conveyor is a device that is used to transfer material from point A to point B with/without intermediate loading and unloading points.

Some historical information about conveyors:

The history of the modern conveyor dates back to the late 17th century. These early conveyor systems were typically composed of a belt that traveled over a flat wooden bed. The belt was usually made from leather, canvas or rubber and was used for transporting large bulky items. It wasn't until the end of the Industrial Revolution that conveyors came to be used for a broader range of applications. Hymle Goddard of Logan Company patented the first roller conveyor in 1908. Its initial applications were not very popular, and it wasn't until it was introduced in the automotive industry that it was able to prosper. In 1919, the first powered and free conveyors were introduced into the mass production of automobiles. The conveyor quickly became a popular means of transporting heavy materials within manufacturing facilities.

The application of the conveyor branched out to coal mining in the 1920s, where the technology underwent considerable changes. Conveyor belts were designed made of layers of cotton and rubber coverings. During the manufacturing increase of World War II, manufacturers created synthetic materials to make belting because of the scarcity of natural components. Today's conveyor belting is made from an almost endless list of synthetic polymers and fabrics and can be tailored to any requirements. Possible uses of conveyors have broadened considerably since the early days and they are used in almost any industry where materials have to be handled, stored or dispensed. The longest conveyor belt currently in use operates in the phosphate mines of the Western Sahara and is over 60 miles long.

Benefits of Conveyors:

• Conveyors offer a wide range of benefits, many of which are readily apparent.
• Huge savings in labour costs.
• This can be understood with a simple example:
• A conveyor of length 10 mtrs running at a speed of 20 mtr/min conveying units 0.5 mtrs x 0.5 mtrs x 0.5 mtrs, weighing 5 kg/unit, has a conveying capacity of 1,920 units/hr.
• For a similar manual transportation at least 32 workers would be required to achieve a similar capacity.
• Whereas a conveyor would use only 2 workers; one for loading units on the conveyor and the other for unloading them.
• Thus the net labour saving in this example would be 30 labour - hrs/hr of work.
• Highly efficient & reliable solution for material transport.
• Brings project to the worker rather than a worker having to travel to a project.
• Augment quality control processes.
• Increased worker safety - can be used for transporting heavy or hazardous products.
• Continuous transferring devices unlike lifts or shuttles which transfer only a certain quantity of material at a time.
• Timed delivery of units on an assembly line help in maintaining workers' efficiency.
• Ability to negotiate horizontal, inclined or vertical transfer paths.