Client Needs: Replace a 304 stainless steel conveyor that was failing periodically and causing delays in production.
Products Used: A larger diameter, heavy-wall carbon steel screw conveyer.
Result: Delays at this point of production removed. Reliable around the clock functionality.
"The conveyor looks great and it looks like it will work great for us. Thank you all for working with me on this project and I hope we can work together in the future. We have several projects in the next few years that we will need more of this type of equipment. "
Amalgamated sugar was experiencing fatigue failures of screw conveyors made from 304 stainless steel. The center pipe of the screw would fatigue and develop cracks over time leading to eventual failure causing interruptions to production. The main problem was a screw conveyor that received wet beet pulp from a dewatering screen. After the sugar is diffused from the beet pulp, the pulp is gathered and sold as cattle feed reducing waste from the process of producing sugar.
Annik recommended using a larger diameter, heavy-wall carbon steel center pipe with stainless flights for the screw sections. The larger diameter, heavy-wall pipe would much stiffer and resistant to deflection under load. Carbon steel is also much more ductile than 304 stainless steel and more resistant to fatigue.
Due to the length of the screw conveyor, one internal hanger bearing was required. Based on other areas of the plant, Amalgamated Sugar chose to use brass for the hanger bearing material. Brass is a unique material for a hanger bearing. Typically, bronze is a more common material for screw conveyor hanger bearings.
Other than the center pipe of the screws, all of the construction of the new KWS screw conveyor was 304 stainless steel for corrosion resistance and ease of cleaning. The covers of the screw conveyor were bolted on 12-inch centers to prevent any leakage and for safety purposes.
