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Stern said that while it's common for conveyor owners to perform service on their systems only when a component fails, it's actually less expensive in the long run to incorporate con- tinuous maintenance into a plant's operational plan. The Martin Engineering technicians do more than just walk along the length of the belt; one of their inspection techniques is standing stationary at a number of points along each convey- or and watching one or more complete revolutions of the belt, noting its condition, tracking, carryback and other observa- tions. They take detailed notes, identifying trouble spots by component name and location as they are found, often logging data directly into a smart phone or tablet immediately at the site. Digital cameras and other devices allow the technicians to take photos, record video, make rough measurements and per- form other tasks, then share the information with operations personnel. Maintenance and repair tasks can be included in t h e p r o g r a m a n d p e r f o r m e d r o u t i n e l y , o r s c h e d u l e d u p o n request. Safe Parking for Loaded Belts A heavily laden conveyor can have an enormous amount of potential energy, and has to be treated with caution if accidents are to be avoided. Steve Powell, product manager for Twiflex Ltd., recently commented on the benefits of his company's "parked-off" conveyor brakes, and how they can improve safety during maintenance. Powell explained that a parking brake is a key safety element in conveyor systems, used to lock the conveyor into one posi- tion when idle, while being serviced or during a power outage. This reduces the possibility of the conveyor starting to move under its own load, a situation that could become very danger- ous, very quickly. To account for the possibility of a total power failure, most parking brakes are spring applied. This means that when no external power is supplied to them, the pressure of the spring is applied to the pad and the brake clamps shut, thereby locking the conveyor in a fixed position. c o n v e y o r s y s t e m s c o n t i n u e d 32 www.coalage.com November 2014 Twiflex has developed a conveyor parking brake design that improves worker safety and ease of convenience when dealing with loaded conveyor belts. The system is available on many of its brake products, including the recently intro- duced VKSD and VBS modular systems.