When it comes to conveyors and belts, durability, easy assembly and disassembly, sanitation and versatility are key factors. So is the innovation necessary to improve the qualities that bakeries and snack food manufacturers want and need in a system. Whether it’s stainless steel or plastic parts, open or sealed designs, spiral or straight lines, or vertical or horizontal conveyance your company seeks, you will find them all in today’s diverse marketplace. Here, we break down some of the latest belts and conveyors in this competitive category, which is helping to speed up production of all things edible.

“There is increasing pressure on bakeries and other food processors to maximize corporate profits,” says Kerry Smith, product manager for Ashworth Bros., Inc., Winchester, Va.

Decreasing downtimes and increasing throughput are goals met by the company’s latest innovation, the Advantage RL 75. This hybrid conveyor combines a stainless steel backbone with acetal plastic links for pull strength on spiral and turn-curve applications. The system also features a patented locking system for fast, easy assembly without welding. Stainless steel rods can be installed and removed in seconds using a pair of pliers. And open areas make the Advantage both easy to clean and ideal for any bakery with cooling, proofing and freezing needs. The rod-only belt can be equipped with Omni-Tough steel mesh overlays to convey even the smallest of products. Visit www.ashworth.com for more information.

Benda Manufacturing, Tinley Park, Ill., has introduced several new items, including stacking and unstacking systems, oven loaders and unloaders, and its AccuPlace Reciprocating Systems.

In fact, Benda recently “supplied a major food manufacturer with a series of 60-in.-wide Servo Driven Plastic Belt reciprocators that can accurately place delicate products at a right angle without distorting,” says Terry D. Benda, the company’s president. “The repeatability and accuracy created by the Servo Drives and pneumatically operated pivoting discharge end assembly all are major features of this equipment and are the heart of its operation.” For more information, visit www.BendaManufacturing.com.

The AquaPruf family from Hartland, Wis.-based equipment supplier Dorner Manufacturing includes the new 7600 Series Curved Flat Belt Conveyor, which helps food manufacturers to transfer small products such as cookies, crackers, pastries and other small snacks effectively and continuously around curves.

“Dorner’s curved belt conveyors feature a 5/8-in. nosebar at both ends, allowing for the transfer of items as small as a penny,” says John Kuhnz, food marketing manager..

The 7600 Series also offers a high level of sanitation that Dorner calls “the fastest cleaning times in the industry for wash-down conveyors.” The entire system can be disassembled for cleaning, without tools, in 30 seconds. Visit www.dorner.com for further details.

SpanTech’s WhisperTrax line of conveyors includes models that run at high speeds — both horizontally and vertically — but are extremely quiet. All conveyors from Span Tech, Glasgow, Ky., are plastic chain-based and available in a choice of stainless steel and powder-coated, painted steel constructions. There are powered transfer options, as well, for use with small or delicate products. The company’s conveyors can be taken apart at any link simply by removing the stainless steel rod and separating the chain. For additional details, check out www.SpanTechLLC.com.

KVP, Reading, Pa., has added a high-friction surface to combination radius and straight-running belts to transfer products on production/packaging lines. The IS610 Traction Pro has a 72% open area that allows contaminants to easily drop through the belt, reducing friction. It’s available in polypropylene with a non-marking black on grey or white on white for packaged and non-packaged product handling, and can be used with higher strength acetal and nylon-edge modules for more demanding radius applications.

Visit www.kvp-inc.com for more information.

Wire Belt Co. of America’s two latest conveyor systems address diverse needs, from increased efficiency to optimum cleaning. The Londonberry, N.H.-based manufacturer offers its Compact Grid metal conveyor belting for businesses interested in a lightweight option whose low horsepower requirements result in lower energy consumption in the drive systems. The belting also has a 70% open area, making it easy to clean and protecting product from trapped particles, pathogens and allergens. And, according to Wire Belt’s marketing media specialist, Guy Mitchell, the CompactGrid “is a major innovation for our company and the conveyor belt industry as a whole.”

Wire Belt’s CarrySmart conveyors solves such problems as changing flow direction of a product, spacing between parts, orientation of parts or pieces, adjusting speeds and feed rates and transferring product from one segment of the operation to another. The company’s first Flex-Turn conveyor was created in 1952, and today, Wire Belt manufacturers a wide range of options. For more information, visit www.WireBelt.com.

Berndorf Belt Technology USA engineers and manufactures carbon and stainless steel belts in various widths and thicknesses. It also produces continuous steel belt conveyor systems for transporting food and specialty goods. Its solid steel belts and conveyor systems have proven, “continuous reliability” when used in baking, cooling, deep-freezing, steaming, drying and transporting applications. Berndorf is ISO and EMAS certified. For details, visit www.Berndorf-USA.com.