Signs Your Factory Needs a New Bucket Elevator

Bucket elevators are used for vertically transporting bulk solid materials and Work In progress (WIP) and have become a staple for efficient material processing for production lines in a variety of industries. Handling both free flowing materials and those with poor flow characteristics, industrial bucket elevators offer high-capacity continuous flow while consuming minimal power and reducing plant floor space requirements.

However, when your bucket elevator ceases to perform as effectively as it should, it’s time to start looking at replacing it to prevent disruptive periods of downtime that impact on the reliability of your production line. But what are the signs that a new bucket elevator is necessary?

Loss Of Performance

A loss of performance is a strong indicator that your bucket elevator isn’t working as efficiently as you need, and immediate action must be taken to remedy the problem. A gradual or sudden reduction in capacity, wasted products from spillage, or excessive unscheduled downtime due to component failure are key symptoms of performance problems that should not be overlooked. Other issues may include; chain stretch, incorrect drive alignment, damaged buckets and inlet/outlet control malfunctions.

Where a bucket elevator has been installed for a long time, a loss of performance may simply be caused by the equipment reaching the end of its lifespan. In older models, particularly if the technology has been discontinued and the parts are no longer available, a replacement bucket elevator would be a more cost-effective decision. Even if the O & M manuals are followed with staff training/shift changeover duties and records kept to manage its maintenance another step would be to contact the supplier to send an engineer and complete an audit of the equipment for review.

Energy And Maintenance Costs Are Increasing

Energy costs are soaring globally, so inefficient or poorly performing machines may simply add to this problem. With an increase in levels of capacity requirements over the years, it may cause aggressive wear on components with increasing energy costs for the drive units and chains which suggest that the material transfer system isn’t performing efficiently. So real cost savings can be achieved by purchasing a new bucket elevator.

If maintenance costs are increasing and you feel that your money could be better spent investing in up-to-date equipment, this is another sign that you should replace your bucket elevator. New equipment will incur far fewer, if any, maintenance costs in the short-term, so you can expect to quickly earn a healthy return on your investment, as other operational efficiencies can be secured.

You Have Insufficient Capacity

Bucket elevators are available in a variety of designs and capacities so, if your current system isn’t achieving the throughput you need from your feed rates for consistent and reliable productivity now or in the future, investing in a new machine could help you to achieve improved profitability.

Contact The Experts For All Your Bucket Elevator Needs

As a leading UK and global supplier of bucket elevators, Gough Engineering has the expertise to design a highly proven bucket elevator solution that meets your needs, in whichever field of industry you work.

You can read about our work with a food production specialist here or find out more about our services by calling us on 01782 567770.

Image source: Canva