Google search for en-masse chain elevators.

These machines are widely used for wood chips. ■

Mr. sbrayton,

At Dos Santos International we specialize in sandwich belt type high angle conveyors. Dos Santos Sandwich Belts have been used very successfully in many wood chip handling applications throughout the world but particularly in the USA and Canada. These have replaced blow lines and drag type conveyors to realize great savings in power consumption and in chip quality preservation. In the first commercial application, many years ago a 60 HP Dos Santos Sandwich system replaced a 500 HP blow line from the chip screens to the digester feed.

Please call me (see contact info below) to discuss your application and to obtain a DSI proposal for your requirements.

Joe Dos Santos ■

You might also consider a flat belt conveyor with high rubber cleats and flexible side walls. The conveyor is gentle on the wood chips and can be totally enclosed and quite clean. It would be economical and appropriate for the small volume of wood chips you are elevating. I've used these quite successfully. Try `googling' Flexwall or Beltwall.

Additionally, you might consider a centrifugal belt-type of bucket elevator. I've also installed these very successfully.

If you would like to discuss this further, I can be reached as follows.

G.F. Paul Janz, Wood Processing Specialist

SANDWELL ENGINEERING INC.

885 Dunsmuir Street, Suite 600

Vancouver, BC V6C 1N5 Canada

tel604-684-9311

direct tel604-638-4628

fax 604-688-5913

emailpjanze@sandwell.com

webwww.sandwell.com ■

Depending on the wood chip density a bucket elevator can work well. But they can be an explosion hazard if the chips are dusty, not something an en-masse chain machine suffers from, so needs a lot of protection devices.

As far as using a sidewall belt elevator, these belts are notoriously difficult to clean and have a habit of dropping material in the most inaccessible places. ■

Obviously, complete discharge and easy cleaning are the the most important features of the DSI Snake Sandwich high angle conveyor system. The DSI Snake uses all conventional conveyor hardware including smooth surfaced rubber belts that can be continuously scraped clean by conventional belt scrapers.

Joe Dos Santos ■

Very true, but is a sandwich belt a bit overkill for only 25 t/hr with a 60 ft lift? ■

Mr. Designer,

By overkill I assume you mean cost-wise. Only a proposal addressing the requirements would reveal this. I have provided sandwich belt systems spanning all sizes, from a 0.3 t/h, to 6000 t/h, from 500mm belt width to 2134mm belt width, from 3.7m of lift to 175m of lift.

My experience with pulp and paper is that they are more interested in the total life cycle cost than in the initial cost. The first sandwich belt in wood chips, many years ago, replaced an existing blow line so there was no initial cost for the existing blow line.

Joe Dos Santos ■

Lucky you.

My experience is that purchase price beats specification as it comes from the capital budget. Long term costs come from the maintenance budget, and that's away in the future..... ■

The lowest selling price mentality is dominant but there are notable exceptions including:

1.) Totally life cycle analysis that reveals that the lowest selling price is not the best deal

2.) Customer experience that causes them to decide not to use a type of equipment that has been troublesome and costly

3.) A good consultant will specify the best equipment so that the competition is narrowed and known troublesome equipment is excluded.

4.) Repeat business based on previous positive experience.

5.) and their are more reasons to not take the lowest selling price.

Having said all of this, we have won many orders buy having the best price. This is especially the case where the high angle is required and the parameters (volumetric design rate, lift height) are large.

Joe Dos Santos ■