Industries and manufacturing firms strive to get the best systems to ease their work, primarily in transporting and distributing goods within and out of the firm. They aim at ensuring efficiency and high speed, with minimum congestion that can be brought about by human error and weaknesses.
The roller conveyor is one of the most impressive systems in manufacturing and, mainly in the Warehouse. Since its invention, it has helped ensure high efficiency in goods distribution, packing, and transportation.
The following article will examine the roller conveyor, examining its uses and benefits.
What Are Roller Conveyors?
Roller conveyors are systems tailored to accumulate, distribute, and transport goods or products between various points in a warehouse or firm. Roller conveyor can also connect different production zones to a single warehouse.
Roller conveyors are designed to ensure efficiency and reduce time wastage, especially when handling repetitive loads. They are a perfect substitute for manual handling and distribution of goods which is always full of human era and limited.
What are The Main Components of Roller Conveyors?
Roller convey is made up of the following components;
The Legs and the Metallic Structure
The legs and the metallic structure help in supporting the roller. They also determine the travel direction of the circuit. The metallic structure is made of different materials determined by their weight.
Rollers
Rollers are the metal cylinders installed in the metallic structure and then joined with tow bearings and metal axis. Rollers vary depending on the kind of conveyors. For example, some types of conveyors may have chains or belts. The primary function of the rollers is to transport goods or products.
Electrical Components
The electrical components allow the movement of goods along the circuits. They include power boxes and motors.
Curves
Different methods are used to create curved movements—for example, turntables, lengths of a curved roller, and fitting chains into the conveyor units.
Safety Components
These elements help monitor the condition of goods in transit in the roller conveyor. For example, the sensors. They help to provide all the necessary information about the goods, which is transmitted immediately to the linked device or software.
Uses of Roller Conveyor
Receiving, Distributing, and Forwarding Goods
In most warehouses or manufacturing firms, roller conveyors are permanently installed in the dispatching and reception area. Whether you want to distribute small packages or pallets, conveyors are suitable in such areas.
Rollers conveyors prepare goods for loading. For example, before loading, the conveyor channel must be enabled. Depending on the ideal route or orders, they are put in the loading areas. Additionally, roller conveyors play a significant role in the reception of goods. It’s good to note that good reception varies depending on the type of goods and their sources. However, the roller conveyor can efficiently help to sort them out and receive any kind of goods.
Further, roller conveyors can also ensure the automation of the loading and unloading of goods. At the dock, the goods received can be automatically unloaded using the in-built conveyor and then distributed immediately.
Roller Conveyors are used to Connecting Different Zones in the Warehouse.
Various circuits can be installed with roller conveyors to connect different zones in a warehouse. These rollers can help ensure a continuous flow of goods in the Warehouse between those zones. Usually, these rollers will have a single destination and origin point.
Roller conveyors can be used to connect several regions of a warehouse using a variety of circuits. The plug & play technology makes even the simplest ones easy to integrate into common warehouses.
For example, roller conveyors can connect the production areas with the storage areas in the Warehouse. This means they can be stored immediately once goods are produced and packed.
Roller Conveyors Help to Connect The Picking Point To The Storage Station
Roller conveyors are designed to connect the storage area and the picking point. For example, a simple circuit can be connected to move between shelves, where operators can pick or order products from the shelves. They then put them on the roller conveyor, which delivers the goods directly to the dispatching area.
Further, the complex circuit conveyors are also used to help unload the various boxes received in the dispatching area.
Connecting Different Floors in The Warehouse
Roller conveyors are the perfect solution to height differences in any warehouse. You can do this through bridge conveyors connected or combined with belt and roller conveyors, which are then used to transport goods from one floor to the other. Another method is the use of pallet lifts, which have conveyor units. They operate with a similar principle to that of a typical lift. The last method is the use of spiral conveyors. These conveyors run upwards and downward, ensuring a good flow of goods within different floors.
Final Thoughts
Roller conveying systems are significant in warehouse organization, automation, and production. They are well-designed to ensure efficiency and meet specific needs. Though this article has broadly examined roller conveyor systems, there are other types of roller systems, such as chain-driven rollers, zero-pressure rollers, and line shaft rollers. Your roller conveyor requires frequent and better maintenance than any additional equipment or machine. In addition, it ensures the safety of those interacting and using the conveyor.
