Revitalized, reengineered, and relabelled, Gates's new generation of Super HC MN and Tri-Power V-belts offer improved performance and better availability with excellent value.

Gates (NYSE: GTES), a leading global provider of application-specific fluid power and power transmission solutions, is significantly upgrading its line of bandless V-belts to create more valuable opportunities for customers. The Super High Capacity (HC) Moulded Notch (MN) V-belt composition will be changed from prototypical chloroprene rubber (CR) materials to ethylene elastomer (EE) compounds. In addition, the company commenced manufacturing its EE Tri-Power™ V-belts in Europe in July, offering shorter lead times and increased availability.

The narrow cross-section Super HC™ MN caters to customers seeing increased load capacity for new drive designs, while Tri-Power is the classical section V-belt that’s perfect for existing pulleys and drives. Having pioneered EE bandless belts, Gates® introduced one of the first maintenance-free versions — Quad-Power™ 4 — to the market in early 2016.

The launch of the new-generation Super HC MN and Tri-Power bandless V-belts portfolios in Europe provides further benefits for a whole host of applications. In addition to a longer service life due to higher wear resistance, V-belts with Gates EE formulation can be used where extreme temperatures are present. They can operate from minus 51 degrees Celsius right up to 121 degrees Celsius; traditional chloroprene belts generally go up to only 60 degrees Celsius.

The greater power density of the flexible, notched Gates belts is a major advantage. It reduces stress on equipment by creating industrial belt drives with narrower sheaves. In fact, the 15% increased capacity (across size ranges and versus banded belts) provides the option of using compact drives thanks to a significant decrease in minimum pulley diameter. Another plus: Belt edges are machined for even sheave groove contact, making for smooth running.

Instantly recognisable, these high-load carrying V-belts come into the market with striking new Gates labelling. The addition of icons and color coding on the new label design ensures global customers have at-a-glance access to critical measures of product excellence like static-conductivity ratings and oil resistance. Gates Super HC MN and Tri-Power V-belts are suitable for a wide range of general industrial applications, from beverage bottling plants to mixing and grinding facilities.

In an effort to improve availability and offer a competitive product, both varieties are being manufactured in Europe. A reflection of the Gates in-region/for-region manufacturing approach, the localising of production and distribution guarantees high efficiency.