MOTION SYSTEM TRENDS
Conveyor and material-handling trends
Shown here is a timing belt conveyor from mk North America with welded attachments for indexing and positioning.
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onveyors are at the heart of an array of exciting changes in material handling — from the vast installations of automated warehousing to humbler stations only recently automated. Each conveyor installation has unique design requirements: Food and beverage conveyors might need to survive washdown settings; conveyors in airspace and defense operations may need to be explosion-proof; and conveyors automotive manufacturing facilities may necessitate conveyors with very high load ratings. Recently, two industry experts gave us their input on what’s new in these and other designs … and trending features of the conveyors themselves. One enduring trend includes the move towards flexible conveyor systems — fully assembled and tested solutions that go beyond the functions of traditional belt conveyors.
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Tom Schaffner | Sales and business development manager • mk North America: Customers are looking for flexible automation today; but this was not the case five years ago. Nowadays (with product lifecycles being as short as they are) flexible automation is a necessity. These trends are seen more often in applications that require a conveyor-solution … beyond standard belt conveyors. Stacy Johnson • Dorner: It’s important to recognize how conveyor design is being affected by the continuing trend of flexible assembly lines. When customer demands change and product cycles end, assembly lines must be flexible to accommodate different applications. Supporting conveyor systems need to be just as flexible.
motioncontroltips.com | designworldonline.com
3/12/19 8:22 AM
