5 fascinating uses of conveyor belt systems

Conveyor belts are fairly recent innovations, having only been in existence since the 19th Century. Despite this recent emergence, they have become highly recognizable features of the modern world. Here are five uses of conveyor belt systems that are prevalent today.

Manufacturing

Henry Ford pioneered the use of conveyor belts in manufacturing when he opened the Model T production line in the 1920s. Conveyor belts are crucial for production line manufacturing because they allow parts to flow between groups of workers who are only trained to complete one task without the workers needing to rush around working on different stationery products.

Luggage

You will undoubtedly have encountered conveyor belts if you have had to pick up your hold luggage after a flight. The luggage infrastructure that has developed in major airports relies heavily upon conveyor belt systems. Ground staff load luggage from aircraft onto truck-mounted conveyors. The luggage is then transported to a terminal and fed into another conveyor belt system which routes items towards predetermined conveyor carousels in arrivals lounges. This system can differ slightly and is known as a Baggage Handling System in the air transportation industry.

Transportation

Conveyor belt type systems are frequently used to transport people. Escalators, for instance, are essentially conveyor belts optimized for vertical travel. Jesse W Reno patented the first working elevator in 1892. It was introduced in 1896 and displayed as a novelty ride on Coney Island – a popular destination for the holidaying residents of New York City. The elevator soon developed a more practical set of applications transporting people effortlessly between levels in Manhattan skyscrapers. Several styles of architecture – such as American mall architecture – rely heavily upon escalators and conveyors as transportation features.

Mining

The longest conveyor belt in the world is used in the mining industry. A 61-mile long conveyor belt system transports phosphate from mines in the interior of western Sahara to the coast, where it is loaded onto ships and exported from the small African nation.

Mining was also the industry in which conveyor belts were first used. In 1905, the Irish mining engineer and inventor Richard Sutcliffe patented the first conveyor belt – which he designed to be used in transporting coal underground. Previously, coal had to be carried out of mines in carts pulled by donkeys and presumably very unhappy human beings. The first underground conveyor belt was installed in the Glass Houghton Colliery in 1906 and started a trend of simplifying mine work using modern machinery. The Glass Houghton conveyor belts could handle 500 tons of coal per day. Sutcliffe also had the great commercial advantage of being the only producer of replacement conveyor belts for several years – allowing him to become a successful businessman.

Recycling

Conveyor belts are used to move material through the various stages necessary in the recycling process. As recycled waste moves along a conveyor belt inside a plant, it is sorted, shredded, melted, and baled. Conveyor belts make this process far more efficient.