With its range of belt tracking solutions undergoing constant innovation, Tru-Trac has proven its patented Apex Trough Tracker under arduous conditions at the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) in KwaZulu-Natal – one of the world's largest coal export facilities.

Guy Fitt, Sales Manager at Tru-Trac, says that the company had achieved great success with its new Apex Trackers at mining operations and was keen to test the new design in challenging applications on wider and faster belts. RBCT was the ideal site, as it operates some of the most demanding conveyor systems, says Fitt.

“These include 2,2 metre wide steel-cord belts running at 6,7 metres per second and carrying up to 11,000 tonnes of coal per hour,” he says. “We already have some of our older generation trackers on RBCT’s conveyors, and were excited to offer them the advantages of our latest innovation.”

Tru-Trac placed their test unit on one of RBCT’s larger conveyors where the belt was experiencing frequent misalignment, causing damage to the conveyor structure and the belt itself. This was also causing material spillage, leading to production losses.

Tru-Trac Technical Manager Gerhard Strydom explains that the new Apex design has reduced the amount of steelwork around the tracker’s cradle and uses cantilever wing rolls with an angle adjustment mechanism located below the rollers. This makes the cradle lighter allowing it to react more quickly to movements of the conveyor belt and eliminates protruding adjustment bolts on older models.

“Even before the end of the initial four week testing phase at RBCT, the Apex Trough Tracker had proven its value by performing exceptionally well in keeping the belt aligned,” says Strydom. “The RBCT team were so impressed with the performance that they placed an order for additional units.”

Another important benefit of the Apex Trough Tracker is its adjustable wing rolls which allows for a range of adjustment from 10 degrees to 60 degrees, making it a versatile retrofit to any conveyor belt. When adjusted to the lowest level the unit is almost flat making storage, handling and installation much safer and quicker – especially when working with heavier belts – as the tracker can be easily slid under the belt.

“When working with belt widths of between 2,1 metre and 3 metre, the installation process of a conventional tracker may need special lifting equipment, which is not always available at short notice,” he says. “The adjustable wing rolls of the Apex Trough Tracker make for faster installation, so conveyor system uptime is optimised.”

At RBCT, the installation process took a little over an hour, he says, compared to a typical installation time in the industry of between two to three hours. Ease of maintenance has also been improved by the new Apex Trough Tracker design.

“The maintenance technicians can now simply drop the wing rolls down, slide the tracker out and install the new unit in the same way before adjusting the wing rolls to their operating angles,” he says.

The Apex Trough Tracker installation at RBCT also demonstrated a further advantage with the new design. Previously it had been necessary to create space in the conveyor hoods or guards to allow for the adjusting rod protruding from the wing rolls. This required permission from the relevant safety personnel as well as some additional metalwork – all of which extended the installation time.

“In our latest innovative design, the cradle no longer requires that section – so it allows a more universal installation ability as there are no restrictions to consider,” says Fitt.

Tru-Trac’s ongoing innovation continues to enhance the performance of the Apex Trough Tracker, according to Fitt. The company is currently commissioning its own unique in-house injection moulded rubber lagging system. In addition to better turnaround times and quality control, this will also allow design improvements to the lagging itself, to deliver better grip and faster reaction times.

“The performance of our latest Apex Trough Tracker at RBCT has definitely opened doors for us,” Fitt says. “It has given us a strong reference point to showcase our capability on high-speed high-tonnage conveyors in international markets – both in coal and hard-rock applications.”