IN-PLANT MATERIALS HANDLING 43
Spiroflow introduces new conveyor range
proven range of aerome- chanical conveyors but operate with reduced clearances and running speeds.
T
he new CABLEflow conveyors are based on the company’s
Spiroflow Systems has introduced a new range of tubular cable drag conveyors
CABLEflow conveyors
are based on Spiroflow’s range of aeromechanical conveyors
Excelso Coffee &
Tea roasts more than two million pounds of coffee a year that it packages into hundreds of different blends. This equates to 10,000 pounds or three million cups of coffee each day. Through a sister company, Atlanta Coffee Time, Excelso supplies coffee in the Atlanta metropolitan area to office workers and to vending machines strategically locat- ed throughout the city.
Low maintenance Designed for applications requiring gentle
handling, and those requiring conveying to and from multiple points in a circuit, CABLEflow conveyors transfer friable bulk products with little or no damage, said the company in a statement. Spiroflow says this makes the conveyors ideal for conveying coffee beans.
Dust-free operation Among the benefits of the new conveyors
are totally enclosed dust and contamination free handling, operation in three planes to allow complex circuits and elimination of transfer points using only a single drive, the capability to be metered or flood fed, han- dling hot or temperature sensitive materials, and above all minimum product attrition due to gentle conveying action. Other benefits include minimal material residence and build-up and operation under pressure differ- ential or insert purge. Spiroflow reports that for the last 14 years,
a well-known provider of coffee and condi- ments to offices, vending machine outlets and private label sales has been using one of its aeromechanical conveyors to transport flavoured coffee without replacing any parts. The Model PC3 aeromechanical conveyor
was installed by Spiroflow Systems at Excelso Coffee & Tea Company at its Norcross, Georgia production facility in 1994. Operating intermittently eight hours a day, five days a week, the conveyor is used to convey flavoured coffee from a V-Ribbon blender to a storage hopper for packaging into coffee pouches or packages.
requirements "When Excelso called and said they needed a replacement wire rope for the conveyor for the first time in 14 years, we were amazed at the life of the rope," said Mathias Lee, Vice President of sales at Spiroflow Systems. "Normally, these ropes need to replaced every five to seven years depending on the application. What’s more phenomenal is the fact that no other replacement part has been required for the machine. This is as much a tribute to Excelso regarding the operation and care of their equipment as it is a testa- ment to the robust construction of our aero- mechanical conveyors."
After-sales support Allan Shaw, Vice President of Excelso Coffee
and Tea Company, said the company select- ed the Spiroflow AMC after a thorough analysis of the various suppliers and types of conveying systems. "We mainly selected Spiroflow because of their years of experi- ence and record for excellent after-sales support," noted Shaw. "We also needed a totally enclosed system that is dust free and wouldn’t alter the integrity of the flavoured coffee." The aeromechanical conveyor installed at
Excelso is of a 3in diameter tubular design. It is one of the most efficient methods of con- veying materials such as coffee because of its gentle, dust-free and clean handling prop- erties. Constructed of stainless steel to counter any flavour retention from previous batches, the machine can be washed with water or other cleaning solution through a
valve at the top outlet and a drain on the bot- tom. At Excelso, according to Shaw, the equipment is virtually self-cleaning. It consists of a continuous loop wire rope
assembly with evenly spaced polyurethane discs that move at high speed within parallel steel tubes. At each end, the rope assembly runs from one tube to another around specif- ically designed sprockets. One of these sprockets drives the rope and discs while the other sprocket provides tension to the rope. Tube clamps are used to support the conveyor.
Self-cleaning The action of the rope assembly travelling at
high speed creates an air stream running at the same velocity. As the flavoured coffee is fed into the air stream, it is conveyed to the storage hopper where the beans are cen- trifugally ejected. "It’s a tight, well operated system that is virtually self-cleaning," said Mr Shaw. "We have been extremely pleased with its performance in getting the flavoured coffee to the storage hopper for final pack- aging." The coffee flavouring operation at Excelso
consists of the Spiroflow conveyor, the V-rib- bon blender and a storage hopper. The V- Ribbon Blender is also made of stainless steel to eliminate any flavour retention from the last batch and is tightly sealed. Its opera- tion is completely computerized and auto- mated. The blender is five feet tall and each ‘leg’ is 8in in diameter. The flavouring syrup is pumped gradually
into the rotating blender in a fine, aerated mist that covers about two to three per cent of the surface area. Once the syrup is added, the blender continues to tumble the flavoured coffee for several minutes to ensure even mixing. Once this operation is complete a manu-
ally operated hatch on the bottom of the blender is opened and the flavoured coffee is discharged into the conveyor, which takes it to a storage hopper. It is transferred to the hopper through a slide gate and a flexible hose. C&CI
and provided C&CI an update on the performance of one of its existing aeromechanical conveyors
May 2011 C&CI
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