- Conveyor Industry Looks for Recovery
in 2002
- Turnkey Portasilo System for Hubron
- Top Picks at Amazon.com
- Ask Joe Column!
- Batch Controller Receives NTEP
Certification
- Powder and Bulk Dot Com had over 40,000+ visitors in April!
- Improvements to Dumping Station
Increase Safety & Capacity
- Hot Messages from the Help Forum
- Call For Photographs!
- From the Job Fair
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From
the Editor
Hi Everyone,
Our goal is to provide information to
improve your business by using the resources available on the
Internet.
NAPLES, FLORIDA -- The Conveyor
Equipment Manufacturers Association (CEMA) reports that, after six
consecutive years of record-setting growth, booked and billed sales
were down for the conveyor industry as they were for most industries
in 2001.
Booked sales totaled $5.5 billion for
2001, and shipments totaled $6.8 billion. Shipments outpaced booked
orders by 20% and were down only slightly from the prior year record
of $7.3 billion according to Fred Sytsma, CEMA President, who
announced the results at the Association’s annual meeting in
Rancho Mirage, California, in March.
While shipments for unit handling
conveyors (light to medium) increased by 3% and shipments for
trolley (light to medium) increased by 35%, shipments in all other
unit categories (unit conveyors-heavy duty, trolley-heavy duty, tow
conveyors, unit components and conveyor chain) were down 22% on
average. Bookings were down an average of 34%.
Bookings and shipments for bulk
conveyor accessories increased by 20% from 2000 levels. However,
shipments and bookings for all other bulk categories (screw
conveyor, bulk components, bulk systems and bulk equipment) were
down an average of 20% and 25%, respectively.
Founded in 1933, CEMA is the national
trade association of leading North American conveyor equipment
manufacturers. CEMA tracks seven classes of unit handling equipment
and five classes of bulk handling equipment. Executives representing
CEMA member companies attending the annual meeting expected a
partial recovery of business during 2002.
CEMA also makes available to both
member and nonmember companies, safety labels for all types of
conveyor equipment as well as useful technical information and
manuals. For further information on CEMA or its member companies, or
to order safety labels or technical information, visit our web site
at http://www.cemanet.org.
...Includes
Silos and Pneumatic Conveying
Turnkey Portasilo System for Hubron
Portasilo Bulk Handling Systems has
installed and commissioned a complete new turnkey bulk storage and
conveying system for Hubron Limited, Manchester, which automates an
existing manual handling system on site and increases throughput
rates.
The
Hubron Group is a specialized manufacturer of black plastic
masterbatch, used in a wide range of plastics applications, and a
supplier of elastomers, functional compounding materials and a range
of related products.
The complete project for which
Portasilo acted as principal contractor included the supply of six
storage silos, ten vacuum pneumatic conveying lines and a positive
pressure lean phase conveying line.
Five of the six silos were
manufactured in aluminum alloy and each stores fifty tonnes of
polymer with a stored bulk density of 600kg/m3. The sixth silo was
manufactured in mild steel and stores fifty tonnes of calcium
carbonate with a stored bulk density of 1,100 kg/m3. These materials
are used in the process of manufacturing masterbatch. All six silos
are fitted with continuous measurement utilizing load cells fitted
at the silo base. These load cells ensure that Hubron staff can
effectively control their inventory stock.
The five polymer silos feed a
combination of seven process hoppers via ten conveying pipes using
vacuum lean phase conveying. Each line is rated to transfer polymer
at rates of up to 3,000 kg/hr. Route selection is made using a ten
line manifold allowing easy change over from destination to
destination.
The mild steel calcium carbonate silo
uses a positive pressure lean phase conveying system to feed four
receiving hoppers. Diverter valves fitted in to the conveying line
provide route selection.
In order to ensure that the silo
discharges in a controlled, reliable manner a Portasilo Rotoflo
Discharge Valve is fitted to the calcium carbonate silo. This
successfully overcomes a common interface problem for many engineers
in the bulk handling industry; that of feeding from a storage silo
into a positive pressure pneumatic conveying system.
"Covers
the properties of flow, friction, and fluidization of uniform
granular materials. Discusses mixing and segregation of
heterogeneous materials..."
"...a hands-on resource
examines the fundamental engineering processes of particulate
technology - explaining particle definition, measurement and
characterization, the properties of assemblages, the
intricacies of transport phenomena, and unit operations."
We Need Your Guest Articles!
Do you have an area of expertise in bulk materials, have you solved a difficult materials problem? Share your knowledge with others and promote yourself
by contributing an article to the Ask Joe! Column. For more information, please contact Joe Marinelli
at: Joe@SolidsHandlingTech.com
Fieldbus
Connectivity
Batch Controller Receives NTEP
Certification
Whitewater, WI - To stay on the
cutting edge of gravimetric control technology, AccuRate announces
that its new DISOMAT B Plus Batch Controller has received the
Certificate of Conformance for Weighing and Measuring Devices
through NTEP (National Type Evaluation Program).
After
completing the evaluation, the DISOMAT B Plus was awarded
certificate number 01-099 for complying with the NTEP standards. The
DISOMAT B Plus Controller is used as a weight indicator,
gain-in-weight batch controller and a loss-of-weight batch
controller for all single feeder batching applications.
Some additional features of the
DISOMAT B Plus include:
Large LCD screen
All system parts can be exchanged
with no need for recalibration
Fieldbus connectivity
Large keypad
Ease of use
Quick measurement for fast
processes
NTEP conformance, a large LCD screen
and fieldbus connectivity make the DISOMAT B Plus an excellent
addition to the AccuRate controller family. The control is also
available in a variety of housing units.
AccuRate, a Unit of SCHENCK AccuRate,
is a global supplier of bulk solids metering equipment and systems
including MECHATRON Volumetric and Gravimetric Screw- feeders, DEA
and DMO Weigh feeders, Multicor and DLM Dry Material Flow meters,
SacMaster Bulk Bag Discharging Systems, BEMP Belt Scales and
SolidsFlow Louvered Vibratory Feeders.
For additional information contact:
Mr. Mike Karas SCHENCK AccuRate
Toll free: (800) 558-0184
Fax: (262) 473-2489
Web site: http://www.sarinc.com
40,000+
Visitors!
Powder and Bulk Dot Com
had lots of visitors in April
A
over, 40,000+ professionals visited
our web site last month!
That's over 1,900+ people per business
day! They are looking for equipment and services
you offer! Banner advertising is a great way
to make your company stand out and reach these savvy material handling pro's.
Want a Rate Card? It's Easy! Click here to visit our Banner
Ad Rate information page.
"Process
Up To 20,000 lb/hr"
Improvements to Dumping Station
Increase Safety & Capacity
OKLAHOMA CITY -- SMICO Manufacturing
Co., LLC, makers of vibratory screening equipment since 1935,
introduces the DF MAX Batch Scalper, which provides one of the
highest production rates of any dust controlled batch dumping
station on the market.
Available
in 3x4 and 3x6 models, the DF Max can process up to 20,000 pounds
per hour, more than twice the volume of similar models.
"By using the SMICO rectangular
screen rather than a circular design, we've greatly increased the
total screen surface area and created higher throughput," said
SMICO president Randall Stoner. "We've also added an optional
hydraulic drum or tote lift with a clean seal discharge spout, which
helps in safety and dust reclamation. The DF MAX is well suited for
manually dumping 50 pound sacks, but by incorporating the lift,
super-sacks and 55 gallon drums can be easily dumped, increasing
your volume."
The ergonomic design of the DF MAX
includes a waist-high bag shelf, hinged product zone cleanout panels
with quick-release clamps, dual side doors for easy access to filter
chamber and the dust filter cartridges for quick change out. The
self-cleansing filter system is outfitted with an adjustable timer
that controls the pulsing jet-air blasts, which knocks loose trapped
particles that are then reclaimed.
From the operating floor, all
important functions are within arm's reach of the operator. Its
small footprint, low-profile horizontal vibrating screen, and
discharge outlet location options make the DF MAX a flexible
solution for many situations where high volume, safety and
efficiency are important. Industrial, 3A Dairy, FDA, and other
sanitary standard finishes are available.
For more information contact:
Mr. John R. Murray SMICO Manufacturing Co., L.L.C.
500 N. Macarthur Blvd.
Oklahoma City, OK 73127
Telephone: 405-946-1461
Fax: 405-946-1472
Email: jmurray@smico.com Web site: http://www.smico.com/
Help
Forum
Hot Messages from the Help
Forum
People post their requests for help and offer their
suggestions to others in our open forum.
Mr. Russell needs help with
pneumatic conveying:
We have a number of conveying lines
for plastic pellets, fluff, or chips. Occasionally, line clogs occur
which are directly attributable to either the performance of the
receiving bin vent, or the condition of the air intake filter.
I would like to add an early warning
system, which monitors the velocity in the conveying line, and tells
the technicians when the feed conditions have become marginal.
Solids in the airflow are tough on
pitot tubes, so I am looking for an alternate method. I have thought
about measuring the pressure differential across the air mover, but
I am not sure if this would give me what I need.
(Click
here to post a reply)
We're trying to
discharge powder out of a small hopper (0.25m3 on load cells) onto a
screw, with a hopper that wasn't designed for the material.
We would prefer not
going to the expense of re-manufacturing the hopper, has anyone out
there got any ideas on possible solutions to prevent bridging? A
skimmer valve has been installed though doesn't appear to be very
effective.
(Click
here to post a reply)
Share your expertise with others in the Help
Forum.
Photos
Wanted
Call For Photographs!
This
week's homepage photo is of the Ventilex pilot plant during a
customer trial. Ventilex manufactures fluid bed dryers, fluid
bed coolers, flash dryers, Bokfard™ steam sterilization and
decontamination systems, and jet-bag air filtration equipment.
Photo courtesy of Mr.
Tom Schroeder of Ventilex USA
We would love to have your photo of a bulk materials
process, packaging, conveying or handling "action shot" for our home
page. Send your photograph and description to: news@powderandbulk.com
Jobs
From the Job Fair
Applications/Sales Engineer
ISL USA is searching for an
Applications/Sales Engineer. This individual must be/have:
1. Self motivated
2. Experienced in managing outside sales representatives
3. Willing to travel
4. Located or willing to relocate to the Charlotte, NC area
5. Marketing skills
6. Design and field experience in discharging/metering powders from
hoppers & IBCs
7. Project management skills
Mr. Andy Nix
ISL USA
369 Hands Mill Rd,
Rock Hill, South Carolina, SC 29732
The Job Fair is a free service of Powder and Bulk Dot
Com. You can post job opening for managers, engineers, sales,
reps or other talented people you need. ...Or one can post their resume for companies who are looking to add talented
people to their staff.
Do you have a position you need to
fill?? visit the
Job
Fair.
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"Covers
the properties of flow, friction, and fluidization of uniform
granular materials. Discusses mixing and segregation of
heterogeneous materials..."
