Some of the toughest maintenance challenges at manufacturing facilities are presented by large belt-driven conveyor systems, which require gear oil for gearboxes, electric motor grease for motors, and grease for multiple lubrication points – particularly bearings. Improper lubrication and contamination can cause premature wear, or even worse, create unplanned downtime.

To combat the recurring conveyor-related challenges – which include dirt, water, heavy loads, vibration and extreme temperature – high-performance lubricant supplier Lubrication Engineers (LE) South Africa has developed a comprehensive lubrication strategy to help customers manage the risks of conveyor belt wear through correct gear oil selection, grease selection, grease application, contamination exclusion, and visual monitoring and contamination removal.

The load, environment, temperature and speed (LETS) strategy addresses each aspect that its name denotes, and includes a set of questions to help maintenance teams identify which lubrication solutions from within the original-equipment manufacturer’s recommended range will best suit the particular operating conditions.

“We work through these questions with our clients and help them identify the right lubricant and reliability solutions to properly care for their equipment,” says LE national marketing manager Callum Ford.

While implementing the LETS approach with its clients, LE has seen several common problems emerging across conveyor belt applications, including incorrect gear oil and grease selection, as well as problems with grease application.

Inferior or incorrect gear oil can lead to equipment problems and unplanned downtime. Some gear oils become foamy and lose performance in the presence of moisture. Another problem occurs when extreme pressure gear oil is used in gearboxes with internal backstops. Extreme pressure prevents the clutch or sprag mechanisms from properly engaging, resulting in the mechanism slipping.

A helpful solution can be to use the answers from the LETS process to select the gear oil best suited to an application – ideally one designed to combat the effects of high temperatures, water, contaminants and heavy loads. A long-lasting, nonfoaming, turbine-quality oil with antiwear additives will ensure that the conveyor belt equipment works without interruption.

Moreover, if the wrong grease is used, the reliability and life span of equipment may suffer. In most cases, to solve this requires an extreme pressure grease that can withstand heavy loads, maintain performance in a broad range of operating temperatures, seal out water, protect from corrosion and wear, and will not emulsify when water is present.

Incorrect grease application can be a problem, even if the correct grease for the application has been selected. Over greasing, under greasing or not greasing can all cause problems. Many operators have to manually grease lubrication points in hard-to-reach or unsafe areas and end up neglecting to grease those spots.

An experienced lubrication consultant can help determine correct lubrication amounts and intervals, and then help with choosing which single- or multipoint lubrication system will work best in a particular application. Automatic systems are precision lubrication tools that can also be used to improve the accuracy of greasing application, as well as reducing labour time, enhancing safety, reducing equipment failures, and keeping out contaminants.

The essential nature of conveyor belt operations means that their effective functioning needs to be a key focus for plant management and using the correct lubrication solutions with the right application can have far-reaching benefits for maintenance and productivity.