Stainless steel boning and trimming belts with a non-food grade black rubber V-guides are still in use in the meat industry. These guides produce a black powder that eventually migrates to the surface requiring intermittent costly wash downs. They also require periodic replacement which is a difficult and expensive repair. The challenge in retrofitting, is mainly in providing a stable belt that can run on the very large set of pulleys at either end such as a diameter of 700mm. In order to maintain width rigidity, the belt selected was a 4mm thick H material. The H material is the hardest of our flat belt options. Because of the sharp bones and knives in the working environment H material was the natural choice for the heavy jointing work performed on and around the belt. This material resists scratching and is impervious to fats and fluids released by the portions. The 4mm version was chosen for its ability to hold the wrap around the narrow-gauge wheel pulleys without lateral deformation. Food grade guides were welded on the base in place of the fast-wearing degrading rubber guides which drive and track the belt.
Volta Belts in Crackers & Bagels Production
The maintenance manager says: “Although a Volta belt is more expensive than the plied belt, at the end it turns out cheaper – because the cheap turned out to be expensive for us!”
