Parcel & Packing

Central Conveyors produce all types of conveyors and conveyor systems for parcel, packing and distribution companies. Technically the task would seem relatively simple - getting a box or several boxes from A to B - but the reality can often be more involving..

Straight parcel and package conveyors

The traditional straight conveyor is a PVC belt conveyor. These are economical, long-lasting and straightforwards. For heavy loads such as pallets, or where a conveyor needs to be multi-zoned for accumulation, a powered roller conveyor is often the preffered system. These are only suitable for solid boxes, however. Loose items, or soft bags, can 'sag' into the gaps between the rollers.

For loose or "floppy" items, an alternative to the belt conveyor would be a plastic modular conveyor, which provides a solid surface to the carried products. It also permits going around bends and curves, to a much greater degree than a curved PVC belt conveyor

Curved and Bend conveyors

You can use a powered roller conveyor for this, which excells in large or heavy items like pallets. For lighter packages, a Plastic Modular Conveyor excels at arbitary-radius bends and curves. You CAN get a PVC belt conveyor to bend, but it is usually limited to 90-degree bends, is less flexible, and cannot do eliptical bends where the bend radius changes over the length of the curve.

Inclined and overhead conveyors

PVC belt conveyors and plastic modular belts can bend in the vertical axis, and hence are very suitable for inclines. Both conveyor types can be given high-grip surfaces or flights to assist move packages up an incline. One variation on this is the mezzanine conveyor, which is used to transport parcels from ground floor to a raised platform or mezzanine floor. In turn, these can be fitted with run-on/run-off accumulation conveyors (typically a simple umpowered gravity roller conveyor) to allow packages to "queue up" once they have reached the top (or bottom) of the conveyor.

Gravity roller conveyors

These are the most economical type of conveyors for transporting rigid parcels and packages. They DO have limitations, however, in that - like their powered bretheren - small or 'floppy' packages can get stuck between the rollers, and refuse to move.

They can form bends and loops, but these have to be "tuned" for the package size to work at full effectiveness, so they can be less succesfull for mixed package sizes. They CAN be used for pallets, but this can require caution to avoid the "runaway train" syndrome where the pallets accelerate down the track, and make an expensive noise when they reach the end !

Notwithstanding this, for rigid parcels they CAN be and economic and effective solution.

Another application for gravity roller units is for unloading lorries into a warehouse. The units can be split into small 2-3m long conveyors, on castors, that can be stored away, and then brought out and linked together when needed.

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CCL can assess your parcel, packing and distribution requirements, help you in the planning of your conveyor layout, and offer all the assistance you’ll require to get from A to B (or C, D and E as appropriate) quickly, efficiently, and cost effectively.

If you would like more information on these conveyor case studies, or any other CCL conveyors or conveyor systems, call us on 01509 974215 today for an informal, no obligation chat. We’re here to listen to your conveyor enquiry and help provide you with complete conveying solutions.