Lovejoy Conveyor Coupling Puts Safety Front and Center
Imagine a 20,000 pound gearbox assembly falling on a worker
Downers Grove, Ill.-February 18, 2008-If a coupling were to fall off the head shaft of a pulley, anywhere from 3,000 to 20,000 pounds of motor/gearbox assembly material could fall onto a worker or another piece of equipment.
A report from U.S. Centers for Disease Control said that there were 9,902 non-fatal and 96 fatal injuries in the sand and gravel industry alone during a 10-year period.
One way companies can safeguard their work force and protect their capital investment is by installing Lovejoy Inc.'s Sier-Bath FARR Gear coupling, designed specifically for the rugged requirements of high horsepower underground and surface belt conveyors.
The Sier-Bath Gear coupling provides a belt-and-suspenders provision in the form of a keeper plate, that is bolted onto the end of the shaft to protect against an interference fit failure. This keeper plate holds the assembly together long enough to halt operations and prevent potentially severe damage.
The coupling improves safety and reliability and reduces costs for heavy-duty conveyor systems in industries that include mining, power generation, cement, and bulk food processing. The coupling's size range accommodates smaller operations that move 500 to 1,000 pounds of media, such as a simple mixer drive in a baking operation, and aggregate operations moving tons of material every hour.
The coupling allows the gear drive to be mounted directly to the conveyor, eliminating the need for a foundation and a conventional low-speed shaft coupling.
The bolt-on design of the drive also lends itself to fast installations requiring no alignment. The low-speed shaft, bolts directly onto the conveyor shaft by means of FARR coupling on the two shafts. Simple, piloted fits and bolt-on mounting connections eliminate the need for time-consuming alignment of both input and output shafts during installation and periodic maintenance - a profitable time-saver compared to conventional couplings. In addition, the coupling eliminates shaft misalignment as a cause of failure and downtime. Even scheduled maintenance time and costs are reduced.
Made from 4140 alloy steel, the coupling consists of a male and female-piloted coupling assembled with Grade 8 bolts and Grade "C" prevailing torque nuts. The 4140 alloy steel material provides the part with increased yield and tensile strength compared to conventional AISI 1045 material, commonly used in alternative gear coupling choices. Ten sizes of the Lovejoy/Sier-Bath Gear coupling offer a broad range of torque capacity, from 94,500 in-lbs to 7,700,000 in-lbs., in standardized designs. Lovejoy offers up to a 15 in design size.
About Lovejoy, Inc.
Lovejoy, Inc. is the world's premier supplier of shaft couplings and other power transmission components. With the largest product selection in the industry, extensive expertise in coupling knowledge, engineering and custom designs, Lovejoy offers optimal solutions for their customer's applications. To learn more about Lovejoy's complete line of couplings and ROSTA products, visit their Web site at www.lovejoy-inc.com, email inquiries to info@lovejoy-inc.com, or call the corporate office at 630-852-0500.
Lovejoy, Inc. is certified under the ISO-9001:2000 International Standards for Quality Management. Lovejoy, Inc., World Headquarters offices are at 2655 Wisconsin Ave., Downers Grove, IL 60515, USA.
Contact:
Krister Meister
Lovejoy, Inc.
630-852-0500
kmeister@lovejoy-inc.com
