Mr. B K Bhattacharya,

Our DSI Snake system will be ideal for your requirements. Though the tonnage is not great the volumetric rate will be substantial and; high volume, high lift, high angle is where we excel and where the economics are in our favor.

If this is early in your planning then you will benefit greatly by allowing us to influence your profile configuration.

If you are interested in our proposal please send your requirements to us. Our contact details are provided below.

Best regards,

Joseph A. Dos Santos, PE ■

I want to set the record straight on Mr. Bancroft's incorrect claim.

The modern success in sandwich belt high angle conveying was developed by J.A. Dos Santos between 1979 and 1982. The Snake Sandwich High Angle Conveyor, Now the DSI Snake, was submitted for USA patent in 1981. It was patent pending when the writer joined Continental Conveyor in 1982 to develop the HAC system. J.A. Dos Santos Is the inventor of the Continental HAC, a second choice because the first choice, the Snake was, at that time, patent pending protected. More than 80 HAC installations worldwide were constructed under the direction of J.A. Dos Santos during his 15 year tenure at Continental Conveyor (from 1982 until 1997). The writer published numerous articles on the subject and the materials handling world is well aware of this backgound that I am providing here.

In 1997 J.A. Dos Santos founded Dos Santos International and immediately began promoting the DSI Snake Sandwich Conveyor System, the original preferred system. We are happy to report great success with our Snakes including many units presently in various stages of engineering, fabrication and installation.

The Difference:

Most important in the development is the J.A Dos Santos rationalization of the sandwich belt system in the conventional conveyor technology.

The DSI Snake is the manifestation or fulfillment of the rationalization. DSI Snakes use all and only conventional conveyor equipment and components including smooth surface belts that can be continuously scraped. Material hugging, that facillitates high angle conveying (without slide back or spillage), is induced by the inherent belt tension along an engineered profile of alternating convex curves of closely spaced troughing idlers. Continuity of hugging, at the smallest scale, is critical and induced radial presure acheives perfect hugging naturally.

The HAC, also a good system (of which the writer is proud to claim invention), is a compromise that was accepted because the original Snake was out of bounds to Continental (protected by the patent pending status). The HAC uses a fully equallized mechanical pressing system made up of brackets and pivots and short rubber disc pressing rolls. Such a system does not naturally deliver continuous hugging as the roll loads are discrete and success depend on approaching continuity by ensuring that the pressing rolls are very close together. The pressing mechanism is made up of special, non-standard equipment.

Please visit our website to learn more about DSI Snakes and the complete record of J.A. Dos Santos, originator of the modern success in sandwich belt high angle conveying.

Joseph A. Dos Santos, PE ■

And there was me thinking that the Stephens Adamson Beltavator was before the 1980's. ■

Mr. Designer,

Indeed you are right about the Stephens Adamson Beltevator, and to that you can add the Retainer Belt and the very successful Loop Belt. You can even go back to the late 40's and early 50's and add the Cover Belts of the German Lignite Mines. The point is that (save only the Loop Belt) these are not enduring successes and they are all defunct victims of their shortcomings, failure to conform to the mentioned rationalisation and, in the case of the Beltevator, failure to deliver on the continuity of hugging requirement. If you are an ex-SA man we could have long discussions on this matter.

The Loop Belt continues to be a success ( the writer has built several which we now refer to as a variation of the more general DSI Snake "the C-Snake"). Indeed the the Loop Belt, despite the many exceptions to the rationalization, was this writers inspiration, in 1979, that ultimately resulted in my rationalization of Sandwich Belt High-Angle conveyors in the conventional conveyor technology. The DSI Snake is pursuant to the rationalization. Unlike the Loop Belt, being only of C-Profile, the DSI Snake can convey at high angles (up to vertical) from any starting point to any discharge point above and remote. Our version of the Loop Belt, The C-Snake, is completely conforming to the rationalization.

Joseph A. Dos Santos, PE ■