CONVEYORS
The slide-out design of Martin Engineering’s
STS system is engineered so the blade
cartridge can be accessed safely and replaced
by a single worker
unpleasant and potentially dangerous task for
workers,” said Daniel Marshall, Product Engineer
for Martin Engineering. “We developed the STS
system so operators could work on the product
safely from outside the chute wall, without
breaking the plane of entry.”
The system was originally developed for an
international client who needed a safer method
for workers to replace cleaner blades on the
company’s large conveyor system. After field-
testing, operators found
that the STS design
lowered the chance of
injury and required
fewer workers to
perform maintenance,
contributing to greater
overall process
efficiency.
Made of rigid steel,
the STS manifold is a
circular mandrel fitted
with a square shaft on
which the blade
cartridge is attached.
Dual tensioners
separately adjust either
end of the patented Constant Angle Radial
Pressure (CARP) blade on the primary cleaner
and the cushioned reversible blade on the
secondary cleaner, for a tight, consistent seal on
the belt.
Designed for conveyor speeds up to 6.1 m/s
and belt widths from 457 to 3,048 mm, the STS
system is well suited to heavy-duty applications.
The rugged QC1 Cleaner XHD primary cleaning
blade removes the bulk of the carryback,
equipped with a polyurethane formulation to
match the application. Primary cleaner urethane
blades come colour-coded to suit specific
applications and are set in a multi-hole cartridge,
allowing the sliding blade rack to be lined up
with the material path for effective cleaning. The
SQC2S Secondary Cleaner uses a tungsten tipped
blade on a rigid polyurethane base or rubber
buffers, which allow the system to handle belt
reversals and rollback with no damage to the belt
or splice.
“Part of innovation is not only better
mechanical performance, but also improved
workplace operations,” said Marshall. “We’ve
found that, in our pursuit to engineer a safer
component, efficiency naturally follows.”
The STS design eliminates many of the factors
that expose workers to potential injury. To
remove the blade cartridge, operators bring the
conveyor to a full stop and make sure that no
loose material is near the header. Once the area
is deemed safe, using appropriate lockout/tagout
procedures, they simply disengage the blade
cartridge from the tensioner and pull it out far
enough to remove the quick release pin. The
blade is replaced, pin reset, rack pushed back
into position and the tensioner re-engaged. A
single experienced maintenance technician
can typically perform the replacement,
resulting in a total reduction in the man-hours
invested.
“Though the STS is currently geared toward
heavy-duty conveyor systems, we’re working on
expanding the technology to accommodate more
of our product line,” Marshall revealed. “Our
Material Handling Systems
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