What is Modular Belt Conveyor and Why Do We Use Them?

Modular wide belt conveyors are highly suitable for wide or bulky products requiring stable handling and to be kept in position even through curves. A typical area for plastic belt conveyors is the transport between case packers, cartoners, in-case fillers, shrink/stretch wrappers, or bulk packers. Here are some products that are usually handled with a wide belt conveyor:

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• Secondary packaging of food and hygiene products
• Pouches
• Soft plastic bags
• Shrink-wrapped products
• Cardboard boxes
• Plastic containers

Primary and secondary packaging applications

Our modular wide belt conveyors with stainless steel beams are specifically designed to fit into demanding primary and secondary packaging applications. It addresses important aspects of today's packing processes: easy to clean, smooth handling of products, safe for operators, robust design, long life, and easy to maintain with a low cost of ownership.

Our stainless conveyors are easy to clean. Both the exterior and the interior are designed to minimize dirt or remaining water after cleaning. Cast stainless steel spacers not only have good cleaning and drainage properties but also make the design robust. Three versions of the stainless steel wide belt conveyor are available:

• Wash down, easy to clean for spillage contact on semi hygienic surfaces
• Wipe off, with covered sides and no slots for medium hygienic requirements on spillage contact surfaces
• Covered return chain, for extra high requirements of cleanliness on dry food contact surfaces

The efficiency at which you can carry out cleaning is a major contributing factor to the production line’s downtime. If the cleaning has to be repeated, it negatively affects the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). Using a modular approach and minimal mechanical fixings, FlexLink’s wide belt conveyors can achieve a typical strip downtime of two minutes (three meters long conveyor). 

For hygiene reasons, we offer a conveyor system based on an easy-to-clean, free-hanging return belt. It is possible to lift the top belt and fold back the outer slide rails for easy cleaning.
 

A modular conveyor is a flat belt conveyor where the belt is comprised of many interlocking modules instead of synthetic fabric.

The modular belt is constructed of robust materials which can tolerate low and high temperatures.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of Modular Belt Conveyor. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.

What are modular conveyors used for?

Modular conveyors are often used in the food industry due to the ease in which the belt can be removed and cleaned. As the belt consists of multiple interlocking modules it allows for air or liquids to pass through the belt.

Modular conveyors are also used to transport:

• Small items such as screws and components
• Plastic boxes and totes
• Heavier items on pallets
• Cardboard boxes and packages
• Irregular packages, parcels and sachets in soft packaging.

Areas in which modular conveyors can be found include:

• Packaging lines
• Cooling and drying applications (air can permeate through belt)
• Assembly lines
• Tray merging or routing
• Warehousing distribution
• Clean rooms
• Pharmaceutical applications

What are the advantages of using modular conveyors?

• Range of material options
• Can transport sharp items
• No tracking issues
• Easy to clean therefore hygienic
• Suitable for chemicals
• Heat and also cold resistant
• Positive drive
• Permeable belt allows air & liquids to pass through
• Suitable for bends/corners
• Suitable for inclines with flights
• Replaceable belt modules
• Quiet in operation at correct speed
• Doesn’t get misaligned from lateral forces
• Variable speed

What are the disadvantages of using modular plastic conveyor belts?

The cost of the belting itself can be quite expensive due to the labour required to create the interlocked mesh.

These conveyors also cannot run at high speeds unlike a traditional flat belt conveyor. without getting loud. In some environments this could be problematic.

Plastic modular belts also have a set pitch, meaning any belt replacement has to be an exact match to suit the existing sprockets.

Want more information on Flush Grid Modular Belt? Feel free to contact us.