Belt misalignment places stress on the rollers, idlers, and other conveyor components, leading to increased maintenance and repair costs. In the worst cases, it can even lead to catastrophic accidents, endangering the well-being of employees and further escalating financial losses.
Therefore, addressing conveyor belt misalignment promptly is crucial to minimize damages and ensure a smooth operation.
When belts go off track, this can lead to a range of problems, including reduced efficiency, increased maintenance requirements, and potential safety hazards. Addressing this issue requires a comprehensive approach that encompasses regular inspections, proper training, and the use of advanced tracking systems.
By tackling belt mistracking head-on, industries can minimize downtime, optimize productivity, and ensure a smooth flow of materials, ultimately improving operational reliability, availability, and profitability.
Identifying the causes is the first step! Usually, there are two categories of root causes as to why belts mistrack:
Operating conditions: rolling components have an influence on the belt but for a rolling component to steer the belt correctly, it must be clean. When carryback builds up on return rolls, that tends to cause the belt to wander. You want to make sure you have belt scrapers/cleaners installed and that they are maintained and tensioned correctly.
Equipment conditions: a bent, loose, or misaligned rollers/structures. For a rolling component to steer the belt correctly, it must also be aligned., Also, besides the alignment, you’ve got to make sure that all rolling components are in contact with the belt. Your belts can rise up if they’re over-tensioned. If you have too much stretch on the belt, it can contain heat.
Martin Engineering’s belt alignment products provide immediate, continuous precision adjustment that keeps conveyor belts perfectly tracked, even withstanding the stress caused by wider, thicker belts carrying heavier loads at high speeds.
Our belt tracking products prevent edge damage, extend belt life, reduce spillage, and minimize wear and tear on equipment. Plus, we manufacture trackers that can sense the direction of the belt movement and make the adjustments needed to keep reversing conveyors correctly centered.
Get to know some of our equipment:
Martin® Tracker™: Improved tracking reduces edge damage, spillage, and maintenance expense. Continuous precision adjustment of the patented parallel steering/training system keeps the belt tracking properly.
Martin® Tracker™ Reversing: Provides precision adjustment of hard-to-track reversing conveyors. The Martin® Tracker™ Reversing features sensing rollers and lever arms on both ends of the unit, besides employing a stainless-steel lamella or paddle wheel to sense the direction of belt travel and activate the sensing rollers on the proper end of the unit.
Martin® Roller Tracker™: Easy to install and with low maintenance, it is a vibration free rolling action with a design that meets customer needs. With no contact with the edge of the belt, it also operates on reversing belts.
Don’t let belt mistracking escalate to irreversible problems, count on Martin’s specialists to assist your site. Contact us today.