CKF Systems was approached by Cadbury Bournville to provide a replacement case conveyor system for an existing system that was too steep to handle the descending cases in a controlled manner. The existing conveyor sent cases of chocolate bars at 36° down through two floors and through a very congested area.
The solution was to replace the existing conveyor system with two spiral conveyors linked by a series of belt and slatband conveyors. The planning and the management of the project by CKF Systems meant that the system was installed over Cadbury's Christmas break, ensuring that there was no unplanned production downtime.
The new system incorporates all three conveyor lines into one system divided into three lines. Each line is individually monitored so that if any lane is out of action, the remaining lines can continue to run.
The high level slatband conveyors bring all three lines to a common point, allowing the initial spiral conveyor to be installed on the first floor. A second spiral conveyor is installed on the ground floor to feed product through to the final declined belt conveyor.
Line speed is 50m/min and automatic lubrication units were installed on the underside of the spirals' multiflex belt.
Contact: CKF Systems; Tel: 01452 424 565