Conveyor Belt Vulcanizers Reduce Energy Consumption by Up to 50% with Thin-Film Heaters

Lightweight Press

Conveyor belts are used across a wide range of industries, including mining, food processing, manufacturing, and aerospace. When a conveyor belt fails, repair speed and equipment reliability become critical to minimizing operational downtime.

Shaw-Almex manufactures conveyor belt vulcanizing equipment used for belt splicing and repair applications. While the company manufactures traditional nichrome wire heating elements, it began integrating EGC thin-film NTC heaters into smaller systems including the Quantum Lightweight Press and MPX and MVP vulcanizers.

Testing revealed performance improvements beyond expected heating capability, including faster heating and cooling response, improved durability, and significant reductions in energy consumption.

The Challenge

Traditional nichrome wire heating elements can create operational concerns in conveyor belt vulcanizing applications.

If a wire heating element burns out, heating performance can stop entirely, potentially resulting in expensive repairs and production interruptions.

According to Shaw-Almex Systems Engineer Tim Girard:

“We did some tests on [the EGC heater] and made an important discovery.”

Girard explained that traditional wire failures can create major issues:

“When wire burns out, it won’t heat anymore and may lead to a $100,000 repair.”

Beyond reliability concerns, energy consumption and heating cycle efficiency were also important considerations for conveyor belt repair operations.

The Solution

Shaw-Almex incorporated EGC’s thin-film NTC heater technology into smaller vulcanizing systems, including:

• Quantum Lightweight Press
• MPX vulcanizers
• MVP vulcanizers

Unlike traditional wire heating elements, the EGC heater demonstrated continued operation even if a localized flaw developed.

As Girard noted:

“But the EGC heater is different. If it develops a pockmark, it continues to heat around the flaw in the carbon.”

The thin-film heater also demonstrated rapid heating and cooling characteristics that improved overall system efficiency.

Girard continued:

“The heaters from EGC heat up and cool down so fast that if you’re dealing with the same wattage, amperage and watt density, you literally cut the time in half.”

Results and Benefits

Testing and implementation produced measurable performance improvements for Shaw-Almex customers.

Key results included:

• Up to 50% reduction in energy costs
• Reported energy savings ranging from 40–50%
• Faster heat-up and cool-down cycles
• Reduced heating cycle time
• Elimination of localized hot spots
• Improved heating continuity if localized damage occurs