Your product is unique, and you know your manufacturing process is as well. You want a pallet-handling conveyor that fits your application, but you also want to ensure your project comes in on-time and on-budget. That is why it is important to keep these two questions in mind when selecting a conveyor system manufacturer:
- Do they offer a wide variety of standard options?
- Can they easily modify a standard conveyor or design custom ones?
Read more to learn why these questions are two of the most important things to consider when selecting your next pallet-handling conveyor system supplier.
One: A Wide Variety of Standard Options
Working with a pallet-handling conveyor manufacturer that has a wide variety of standard options provides many benefits. The first two and most obvious reasons for this benefit are related to the nature of standard products. In general, standard products are less expensive and more readily available (i.e. shorter lead-times) compared to their custom counterparts. This is due to the effect of sales volume on price and lead-time.
VersaMove Pallet-Handling Conveyor System with a One-of-a-Kind Pallet Tilt Module
But it is not just standard conveyors that are important. It is also the variety of standard conveyors available, as well as the diversity of standard options available. This versatility and the wide range of standard combinations it produces means conveyors, and conveyor systems, can be customized to fit your unique application – all from standard conveyor models and options. Thus, allowing for customized pallet-handling system at price and lead-time points associated with standard offerings.
A wide range of standard offerings also allow for the flexibility to change and modify the conveyor and conveyor-layout overtime. Standard modules, such as stops and transfers, can quickly and easily be added to existing lines. This means your conveyor layout is no longer static and can evolve and grow as needed.
Additionally, standard conveyor solutions mean less downtime and lost revenue due to more readily available replacement parts for the conveyor system.
Two: The Ability to Modify or Create Custom
However, standard conveyor solutions are only part of the equation. The conveyor manufacturer that you work with also needs to be agile and able to provide custom solutions. Custom conveyor solutions come in a variety of forms and range from the ability to modify standard products all the way to creating custom one-of-a-kind conveyors. While not every manufacturing application requires the use of custom or modified standard conveyors, working with a manufacturer that can engineer and build a custom conveyor solution ensures fit and system integration should the need arise in the future. Planning for the future is one of the keys to manufacturing and business success.
VersaMove – Standard and Custom Conveyor Systems
VersaMove pallet-handling conveyors, from mk North America, Inc., check both boxes. VersaMove offers three different platforms or systems, each designed to meet the needs of various pallet sizes and loads.
- VersaMove Standard: Pallets up to 400 x 400 mm and 80 lbs./pallet
- VersaMove Plus: Pallets up to 1,040 x 1,040 mm and 250 lbs./pallet
- VersaMove Ultra: Pallets up to 1,200 x 1,200 mm and 800 lbs./pallet
VersaMove Pallet-Handling Conveyor with Custom Guarding
And within each of these platforms, there are a variety of conveyor types including accumulating roller chain conveyors for queuing pallets and timing belt conveyors for indexing pallets. Further adding to their versatility, all these conveyors come in a variety of drive options with various motor locations. Pallet-handling conveyors are not complete without modules. Each of the above VersaMove conveyor platforms include a large selection of pallet transfers and rotates, in addition to pallet stops and pallet locates.
mk North America developed VersaMove out of it’s standard aluminum conveyor line. That’s right – not only does mk North America offer pallet-handling conveyors but they also have a full-line, more than 25 different models of piece-handling conveyors. These conveyors include flat belts, cleated belts, plastic modular belts, rollers, and flat top chain conveyors.
This means that not only can mk North America offer you a solution from their VersaMove line, but they can offer additional standard conveyor solutions, and mix and match conveyors across various platforms to create the conveyor solution perfectly designed for your application.
mk North America has been providing custom conveyor solutions for over 30 years. They can easily modify one of their standard conveyors for your application or they can draw upon their years of industrial-know-how to provide a custom pallet-handling conveyor solution. mk North America understands and appreciates the customer’s need to provide both standard conveyors and to be agile and versatile enough to provide unique and custom conveyor solutions.
With VersaMove you can create a custom, yet standard, pallet-handling conveyor layout; designed to precisely fit your manufacturing space and process. Contact mk North America to learn more or to get started on your next application.