CORCORAN Concrete says the adoption of Dodge gearboxes and bearings from Baldor has dramatically increased conveyor ‘uptime’ at its quarry in County Mayo, Ireland.
The decision was made following trials on conveyors in the sand production area of the quarry. These unit’s bearings were failing as often as three times a year and the gearboxes typically lasted only 12 months. To complicate things further, the bearing failures could also lead to gearbox damage.
After making inquiries, the company was recommended to replace the Plummer block bearings supplied with the original conveyor equipment with Dodge ISN components.
Baldor says the ISN bearings feature a combined triple-lip and flinger sealing system, which is very effective against contaminants such as sand and stone dust. It also has an adapter mounting system which means it can be installed onto shafts in 15 minutes in most cases.
The client says the bearing replacements saw an increase in reliability of around three fold.
To counter regular gearbox failures, it was suggested the company use a Dodge Torque-Arm II shaft-mounted speed reducer, because its tapered bushing system makes assembly and disassembly quick and easy.
The client noted a further improvement in reliability.
The company later decided to invest in a new 300t per hour plant for stone chip production plant, developed by Gortavoy Plant. It specified that the conveyors had to be fitted with ISN bearings and Torque-Arm II speed reducers.
The client says the Torque-Arm II speed reducer's use of two-stage helical gearing has also provided a range of benefits. The unit only draws currents of around 40A, while older conveyor systems tend to draw between 70 and 75A. It also operates with up to 96% energy efficiency.
The company was also supplied with only two different sizes of bearings and reducers for all of its equipment. This means it can maintain a store of spare parts for any future maintenance.
Add your comments