The Hindu Business Line : `Cushion-of-air' conveyers to be available here soon

Hyderabad May 17 Conveyor belts, which carry various goods and products within factory premises or industrial sites, conventionally move on rollers. Very soon, new type of conveyors which literally move on thin air or in other words over a film of low-pressure air would be available in India.

Aerobelt Australia has developed these `Cushion-of-air' conveyors, in which the belt and the material are carried on a film of low-pressure air within a trough. A fan and air discharge mechanism is put in place to ensure a steady supply of air, and to support the continuous movement.

Materials in the form of lumps, granules, coal, limestone, cement, fly ash, sand, cereals, gravel, fertilisers, chemicals, coffee, mortar, woodchips, etc. are routinely carried on these conveyor belts, manufactured by the Australian company.

Bevcon Wayors, the Hyderabad-based materials handling company, has recently tied up with Aerobelt Australia to offer the products for domestic consumers, according to Mr P. Suneel Lakshman, Managing Director of Bevcon.

Initially, it will be a technology tie-up, but progressively it would transform into a 50:50 joint venture manufacturing venture for both the domestic market and a buy back arrangement with the Australian company, Mr Lakshman told Business Line here.

These new conveyor belts have been designed to overcome several problems associated with standard roller-supported conveyors. They will consume low power, have negligible maintenance, higher belt speed, low noise, improved safety and steeper conveying angles, he said.

Bevcon has bagged an order from a barley manufacturing unit in India to install 12 conveyor belts at its factory site. The conveyor belt market using rollers is estimated at Rs 4,000 crore. These belts are used in the mining, power, port and industrial sectors at present, Mr Lakshman said.

Bevcon Wayors, which is into turnkey bulk material handling systems, has forged three more tie-ups with global companies to bring in screening, and dust collection systems to the Indian market. It has a manufacturing base in Cherlapalli on the outskirts of Hyderabad and is a Rs 75-crore turnover company.

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