36 n BEARINGS AND BELTS March 2024 www.drivesncontrols.com Some tips for maintaining conveyor belts I encourage customers to inspect their belts often to avoid production problems and to prevent unnecessary damage to their equipment. Here are a few tips on preventive maintenance of conveyor belts that you can perform on your own. Preventive maintenance involves detailed inspections of machines to check for parts that are malfunctioning or becoming weak from wear. Early awareness o ers the opportunity to resolve issues before they cause any problems. Corrections can be made more easily and measures taken to prevent production problems in the future. This can result in higher reliability and optimises the conveyor belt’s service life. Some issues to look for are belts that are not running straight, blocked rolls, broken bearings, damaged fabric, or belts that are regularly catching or slipping. None of these necessarily mean that your belt is broken. Although belts are often blamed when a machine breaks down, it may be the case that the bearings or other conveyor components are causing the problem. If the belt appears in good condition, but the problem persists, each part of the machine should be inspected carefully. The value of performing a regular visual inspection cannot be emphasised enough. Simply by examining visible surfaces and parts, you can save your business time, money and labour. You should ask four specic questions when inspecting conveyor belts for damage. 1. Is the belt complete? Start by inspecting the belt itself. Can you see any damage? Are the belt joints in good condition? What do the pulleys, rolls, spindles, proles and sliding bed look like? Are the bearings and rolls complete? A worn bearing could be the reason why a belt runs to one side. Take time to adjust and repair the smallest details. 2. Is the belt centred on the conveyor? For optimal transport of products, conveyor belts should be centred. Check that it is positioned precisely between the rolls. Also, make sure that the belt pulleys, wheels, and rolls are installed and aligned. If they are not, there is a risk that the belt might start running to one side. 3. Does the belt transport products adequately? How does the conveyor belt perform during operation? A belt might work well when it is unloaded, but start slipping under the weight of a load. If a belt slips or rubs at a certain point, the heat from the friction can, in the worst case, melt the belt material. You should, therefore, adjust the belt with and without products on it. 4. Is the belt clean? Some belts are more hygiene-critical than others – for example, those that convey food. It is, therefore, important to clean both the belt and the parts with which it is in regular contact. Uneven surfaces, rips, or cracks are all places where bacteria can potentially thrive. Dirt and substances that get into the belt could lead to product contamination. Therefore, you should always inspect the belt carefully and, if necessary, clean it. How often you need to inspect a conveyor belt depends several factors: the application; the environment that the belt is operating in; the size of the load; and how often the belt is used. Some belts operate better in demanding environments with extreme ambient temperatures, such as ovens. Other belts convey very heavy products or products containing toxic chemicals. Some are designed to resist strong detergents. Each of these factors has an impact and will determine the focus of the inspection. n Preventive maintenance is important to reduce the risk of conveyor belt breakdowns. Anders Nilsson, manager of sales to the food sector in the Nordic region for the belt-maker Habasit, shares some good practices. Regular inspection of conveyor belts will extend their working lives and can help to avoid unexpected breakdowns
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