When it comes to grains, choosing the right spouting is vital to ensuring that everything works smoothly. You have to consider the shape, such as round or square, and truss kits, elbows, liners, and distributors.

How to Choose the Best Option

Here are a few things to ask your supplier:

● What material will the spout handle come into contact with? How abrasive is this material, and what are its flow characteristics? What is the density and moisture content?

● Is there a required flow rate for the spout?

● What would the exterior exposure of the spouting be?

● Is a liner necessary?

● What is the capacity of the actual spout area?

● How long is the spout going to be?

● What is the service life or life span of the spouting?

● Do you need a dead box or an elbow at the end of the spout?

If the material you are handling is low volume and only mildly abrasive, you can get away with a 10-gauge steel tube material. The exterior of this tubing should be either painted or galvanized. If more volume will be handled, or if the material is more abrasive, consider using a liner or a thicker gauge tubing. You can also use thick wall steel pipe rather than tubing.

If your spouting is longer than 40 feet, it’s a good idea to use external trussing to support its weight and prevent the spouting from wavering in strong winds. Then, at the end of your long spout, ensure there is an elbow or a dead box for slowing the material moving through and direct it to the appropriate bins.

There are still more things to consider as you choose the right spouting for your needs. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to get in touch with KC Supply Co.

Explosion-proof lighting is an integral part of any facility that works with any potentially explosive materials. Without EPL, there is a chance that any small spark from the lighting fixtures can trigger a catastrophic failure costing lives and money. However, just choosing any EPL will not do either. Because conditions can vary from one place to another, a system of classes and divisions has been created to help you choose the right lighting you need.

There are three main classes to be aware of: class I, class II, and class III. Within each class, there are two divisions. To help you out, here are all the classes and divisions of explosion-proof lighting, and what they are for.

• Class I, Division 1 – These lights are used when the workplace atmosphere has ignitable concentrations of hazardous vapors, gases, and liquids continuously, or even frequently.
• Class I, Division 2 – CI D2 lighting is used when the atmosphere in the workplace has ignitable concentrations of these hazardous vapors, gases, and liquids under any abnormal working conditions.
• Class II, Division 1 – If under normal working conditions, the area’s atmosphere has ignitable levels of combustible dust, then the class II division 1 lights are used.
• Class II, Division 2 – These lights are used instead of the class II division 1 explosion proof lighting if the ignitable levels of combustible dust only exist in abnormal working conditions.
• Class III, Division 1 – If under normal operating conditions, combustible particles from flammable fibers or materials are present in the atmosphere, these lights are used.
• Class III, Division 2 – If the combustible particles are only present in the atmosphere during abnormal conditions, then these lights are used in place of CII D1 lights.

To ensure the utmost safety, it is important to source the appropriate explosion proof lighting from companies that are trusted in the industry. Contact KC Supply today to know more.

In a maintenance technician’s regular rounds, one of the things that they would check for is the temperature of the bearings in your equipment. If they are found to be running at a high temperature, the technician will make sure to take action. However, the action taken depends on the condition of the bearings. There are four different conditions to watch out for:

• Caution – A bearing would fall under this category if its temperature lies between 180 to 200F. This temperature range is higher than the ideal, but when it comes to some equipment, this may actually be their normal operating temperatures.
• Alert – If the bearing temperature is hovering around 200 to 250F, this can be considered an alert condition.
• Alarm – Anything operating at 250 to 300F is at an alarm condition. Generally, this can mean that they are experiencing some failure. A technician will have to take immediate action.
• Shutdown – If bearings are operating at temps higher than 300F, they are in critical failure.

Monitoring Temperatures

Keeping an eye on your equipment and keeping track of their regular working temperatures is essential. That way, if any temperature out of the ordinary occurs, you can immediately take action. You see, a bearing that reaches alarm or even shutdown conditions without being replaced can cause a catastrophic equipment failure that will cost tons of money and can even cost lives.

As a business owner, you do not want that type of liability—besides, would you not want to take good care of your employees and your equipment?

To make monitoring the temperature of bearings an easier and more automated task, you can look into some sensors and monitors. A computerized system that can detect temperature anomalies can save lives, not to mention your business. Contact KC Supply to learn more.

Equipment maintenance is necessary for all industries to ensure optimum performance and productivity. A conveyor belt is of no exception. If you are an equipment manager, it is your task to inspect your equipment regularly. This will prevent breakdowns in production, damage, and unnecessary expenses to your company.

Why maintenance is necessary:

• A regularly inspected conveyor belt will result in peak efficiency. It ensures that you meet your productivity goals for the day. A malfunctioning belt will slow down your production, throw off a whole day’s operation, incur huge costs, and cause unnecessary delay.
• It will save you money. If you don’t want to spend on repairs or the cost of buying a brand new belt, inspect the one you currently have regularly. Know how to clean the conveyor belt properly and fix minor problems to lengthen its service life and keep it in top working condition.
• Workplace safety. A well-maintained belt spells safety for your workplace and employees. Take the time out to check the condition of your equipment. Some parts may need to be replaced or cleaned to ensure its proper working order. A malfunction caused by faulty parts may result in an accident or even death.

Keep a close eye on your belt to catch small problems before they escalate into bigger issues, which take more time and money to repair. A simple ocular inspection of visible parts and surfaces is enough. Be vigilant, check your conveyor belt for any sign of wear and tear, and know when a detail is out of the ordinary.

Some common issues to look out for are belts that do not run straight, broken bearings, damaged fabric, blocked rolls, or a belt that is regularly slipping or catching. Check the bearings or other parts of the belt to see what is causing the problem. If these are in good condition and yet the problem is still there, check each part of the machine carefully.

For more information about conveying equipment and all your conveyor belt needs, check out KC Supply’s website.

Personal Protective Equipment is commonly known as PPE. It is worn to reduce exposure to workplace hazards that may cause illnesses and injuries. These may come as a result to contact with radiological, physical, mechanical, chemical, or other workplace dangers. This protective gear may incorporate items such as safety glasses, and shoes, gloves, respirators, earplugs or muffs, vests, coveralls, full-body suits or gowns.

Proper use and maintenance

All of your protective gear should be carefully designed and constructed. It should be maintained cleanly and decently. It should be of a correct and comfortable fit, which encourages workers to use it. If it does not fit well, it spells the difference between being covered safely or dangerously unprotected. Employers must provide PPE to their workers and train them regarding their proper use. Employers should also ensure that each worker knows:

• When it is necessary to wear the PPE
• What kind of PPE is necessary
• How to put it on, wear, adjust and take off
• The limitations of the PPE
• Care, maintenance, service life, and proper disposal

Likewise, a PPE program should be established. The program should address the workplace hazards present; selection, use, maintenance of PPE, employee training, program monitoring to ensure its effectiveness.

PPE in the time of COVID-19

The World Health Organization has also released recommendations about the use of PPE’s this time of COVID-19. In this context, Personal Protective Equipment includes medical masks, gloves, face shields or goggles, gowns, respirators for specific procedures (N95 or FFP2 standard, or it’s equivalent) and aprons. These are intended for healthcare workers or anyone else treating COVID-19 infected patients.

Use of PPE

Health care personnel in direct contact with patients should wear the following: gloves, gowns, eye protection (face shield or goggles), and mask. For aerosol-generating procedures, health workers should wear eye protection, gloves, respirators, gowns, aprons must also be worn if gowns are not fluid resistant.

For your personal protective equipment needs, check out KC Supply’s website today.