BELT CLEANERS
Kinder Australia’s finger on the pulse Kinder Australia has brought a novel belt cleaner for cleated conveyors down under. Charles Pratt, Operations Manager at Kinder Australia, explains how a trip to Spain resulted in the valuable finding. WHILE ON A BUSINESS TRIP to visit a business partner in Spain, Charles Pratt, Operations Manager at Kinder Australia, was shown a unique innovation for belt cleaning. The Spanish company had been using a belt cleaner that has a unique “finger” shape that could effectively contour to the belt’s surface as it moved, with a flicking motion. “I’d never seen anything like it in Australia, it was completely unique. I loved how simple the concept was,” Pratt says. The belt cleaner was originally designed by a company in the United Kingdom, after an engineer had been tasked to find a way to improve the cleaning processes of a Chevron conveyor belt. When the engineer ran his fingers down the belt, it inspired him to design a cleaner that used polyurethane strips to reach the difficult areas on a cleated belt. Pratt says that while the cleaner had proved itself internationally, there was a major gap in the Australian market. “The only other suitable cleaner for cleated belts is a brush cleaner, which some customers find too expensive and require too much to set up. Often an electrician is required to properly install as well,” he says. “We were surprised to hear from the company in the UK that they had no customers in the Southern Hemisphere. We have an extensive distribution network in Australia, Asia Pacific, Indonesia, South Africa and South East Asia, so it was a good fit for us. “We made a few phone calls and within a week, we had a contract signed to be the exclusive distributor.” The cleaner, now called the K-Cleatscrape, can be fitted in any
The belt cleaner has a unique finger-shaped design that contour to belt’s surface as it moves.
The cleaner can be fitted in any position from the snub drum backwards and reach the entire width of the conveyor belt.
38 І Australian Bulk Handling Review: January/February 2022
