Warehouse Extended Storage and New Lighting

Another eventful few weeks in the short life of Drive Parts Direct Ltd has seen us put in extra warehouse racking, a floor and new lighting as we increase our total storage area. It’s great to be out “of the dark” and “into the light” - our old lighting was somewhat tired and did need some attention, to say the least. Our new system has movement detectors and the lights come on as you approach the area/row you need to pick from, not only a lot, lot, better than the old lighting but also a lot more energy efficient.

I am delighted to report that this increase in warehouse space (earlier than originally planned) came about due to our need to be able to hold more stock of the Steigentech belting & matting product as it is proves to be a quality, value product range, and sales to the UK market continue to grow. As well as our extra space for increased core product we have now added the Steigentech PK section Poly V belts into our range – this like our J section poly V belts & metric and imperial timing belts are stocked in sleeve form that can be cut to your required widths. We have also created space to add extra sizes of the popular matting and flooring products and additional ranges will be added in the coming weeks and months.

We still have a lot of work to do in relocating some product and re organising the warehouse but I am delighted with the progress made so far and now the main “building” work has been completed I can “see the light at the end of the tunnel” and once everything is complete we will have a warehouse to be proud off.

For those of you who have purchased our products I hope you are experiencing the quality and value for money, and enjoyed the service we have given, I thank you for your custom and support and we look forward to being of service to you again in the future.

Should we always follow the crowd?

What is he going on about now, I hear you say after all he’s only selling drive belts….. Well many years ago when I was starting out in this trade (yes I do have a good memory) I learnt not to follow the crowd, look at every avenue and where ever possible always strive to be better than the rest.

Sometimes in our fast paced world it’s too easy to “follow the crowd” and replace equipment, spare parts and indeed service with the “one we used before”, this no doubt will work, but is it really what is needed and should we always follow the crowd?

Here at Drive Parts Direct our philosophy when it comes to our product offering is to give our customers the range, the quality, the price and importantly the service with an offering of product that is excellent in performance, gets the job done and doesn’t come with unnecessary costs.

I know with Steigentech we have partnered with a family owned and run company with the same beliefs as mine, simply to provide a product and service that offers true value and to have a desire to be different and stand out from the crowd.

Not many manufacturers offer the range of rubber and plastic products that Steigentech can, a range that covers - V belts, Variable Speed Belts, Double Sided V Belts, Light Duty & Dry Fractional V belts, Banded belts, Moulded ribbed Belts, Poly urethane endless timing belts, metric and imperial rubber trimming belts, Polyurethane ribbed belts. Extruded open end belting, Thermoweldable belting. Along with a matting range covers Industrial rubber sheets, rubber floor mats, flooring rolls, drainage mats, speciality rubber rolls, interlocking mats and light weight conveying belts.

Remember when your belt fails, or you need a new mat, think about what you actually need and expect in performance and cost before replacing with the same brand Think Value, Think Quality, Think Steigentech & Drive Parts Direct.

Thermoweldable Belts – which one do I need?

The Steigentech range of Thermoweldable belts include Rough Round Smooth & Rough surface. V belt Classical and Coated and Pentagon Standard or Reinforced. There are many types of Thermoweldable belts on the market and choosing the right type for your application is important.

Round Smooth and Rough Surface

This medium hard shored extruded belt is made out quality grade PU with a premium compound which will ensure good resistance to abrasion, this product gives great traction whilst remaining flexible – great for emergency repair and allows joining on site..
As an option our extruded round belt can be reinforced by tensile cords, this product will deliver even greater traction force.

With a temperature range from -35°C up to +75° a  Shore hardness 90 Shore A, great resistance to oil, fuels and easy on site welding for fast repair these belts meet RoHS and REACH requirements and are ideal for light conveying and transport applications such as packaging material and the food industry.

V-Belt Classical and Coated

Medium hard shored extruded belt manufactured from premium PU with a compound which will ensure good resistance to abrasion, whilst providing a good traction force but remaining flexible and allowing welding (joining) on site

This product has a temperature range  from -35°C up to +75°C shore hardness 90 Shore A, is resistant oil, & fuels and meets RoHS and REACH requirements

Suitable for lightweight conveying applications such as tiles, bricks, and ceramics industries

Pentagon Standard or Reinforced

Our medium hard shored extruded belt has a premium compound to ensure good resistance to abrasion and offers a great traction force while being flexible and allowing welding on field.
As an option our Pentagon and Coated V-Belt can be reinforced with tensile cords, to deliver even more traction.

This product has a temperature range from -35°C up to +75°C, Hardness 90 Shore A, is easy to weld on site with a fast repair process and time, and meets RoHS and REACH requirements

The Pentagon range of PU belts are designed for light conveying and transportation applications, and can cover a wide variety of applications such as metal packaging, plastic, printing or even meat, poultry and vegetable applications.

Dual Drive Double Sided (Hexagonal) V belts

Steigentech double sided V belts are specially designed to give alternate flexibility in the drive whist offering rigidity in the section which makes this type of belt ideal for opposite directional drives such as Lawn & Garden and Agricultural machinery.

With multiple working surfaces our double sided V- Belt range offers a solution to many applications where pulleys are rotating in different directions. The Steigentech Double sided V-Belt uses a special polyester tensile cord that ensures low stretch and high flexibility, a fibre loaded base compound designed to transmit power both on the top and bottom of the belt and our high abrasion resistant wrapping cover will also provide the perfect grip and power transmission.

The Steigentech Double Sided V – Belt range consists of;

AA section 13mm x 10mm, BB section 17mm x 13mm, CC section 22mm x 17mm

With a temperature range from -40C to + 70C, antistatic properties, great resistance to external aggressions and meeting RoHS, REACH & ISO requirements this V-Belt range gives performance and quality.

Standard lengths ; AA section from 38” to 196” BB section from 39” to 300” CC section from 75” to 420” Other sizes are possible.

Chain Drives - What to Consider

 

One of the main advantages of a chain drive is its ability to perform well under varying conditions. Despite this ability there are a number of rules for good design practice which if considered early in the design process will ensure the correct chain is selected and maxim results are achieved.

Minimum Ultimate Tensile Strength: this is the static load required to break the chain. Load or tension applied to the chain in service should never exceed 1/6^th of the chains Ultimate Tensile Strength. A roller chain should NEVER be loaded above 50% of its MUTS for even 1 cycle as doing so will permanently damage the chain.

Allowable Working Load: Roller chain with equal tensile strengths can have very different working load capacities, there is no constant relationship between a roller chains working capacity and its ultimate tensile strength. Certain chain manufacturers with a higher tensile strength could have a lower working load capacity.

Selecting Chain Sizes: There could be several suitable chains for any particular application, Loads, Speeds, Environment, Required service life; Costs will determine the final selection. Generally the lower cost drive will be powered by a single strand chain of the smallest pitch available to take the load required. The speed and number of teeth on the drive sprocket will also effect the selection of the chain size that is required.

As a general rule the smaller the pitch of chain the higher the operating speeds.

We’ve got it covered……Steigentech Rubber Flooring Rolls.

Steigentech produce a large range of specialised Rubber Flooring, a product I must confess to knowing very little about until I partnered with Steigentech and my eyes were opened up to the potential for this quality product range.

After “doing some research” I bit the bullet and added this range to our stock and I am pleased to report the product is selling well and our customers are delighted with the product.

Steigentech manufacture this flooring in 10mtr x 1mtr rolls with many patterns available:

Fine Ribbed, Broad Ribbed, Corrugated, Diamond Tread, Round Dot, Check Runner & Hammer Grove. All our flooring range has a working temperature range from-30c to +80c.and is available in thicknesses from 3mm to 10mm. Manufactured from NBR,CR, SBR compounds there is a product to suit most flooring applications.

All our flooring rolls provide anti slip and are non-porous, this matting is ideal for Gym flooring, Doors and Walkways, Kennels, Truck beds and all Steigentech flooring rolls have the advantage of being easy to clean, which helps avoid bacteria build up, all specifications meet ROHS and REACH requirements.

So if you want to cover a walkway, fit out a truck bed, or replace that worn out mat in your home Gym we will have a product within our range to suit.

 

Industrial Rubber Sheeting and Matting - what one?

 

Our range of matting product covers Industrial rubber sheet rolls, manufactured with EPDM, Silicone, FKM Viton, CR, NBR, Pure Gum & SBR compounds.

Which compound should I use?

EPDM - this product gives excellent resistance to water, steam, ozone aging, ultra violet & chemicals, has great electrical properties and is an ideal matting for rings and gaskets. Available from 1mm to 50mm thickness.

Silicone Rubber – this product gives extreme resistance to sunlight and many gases and is an inert material which is suitable for medical applications. Available from 1mm thickness to 10mm thickness.

FKM Viton (Fluorelastomer Rubber) – this range gives resistance to Acid & Alkali, chemical resistance and has a good heat aging resistance. Temperature range -40c to +250c. Great for applications such as protection rings and gaskets. Available in thicknesses form 1mm to 50kmm.

CR (Chloroprene Rubber, Neporene) - this product is available in thicknesses for 1mm through to 50mm, has great strength and abrasion properties, resistance to weathering, temperature & ozone, temperature range -20c to +120c.

NBR (Nitrile Rubber) – this product has a good resistance to oil, has great mechanical properties at traction, compression and flex – ideal product for oil seals, rings and gaskets. Temperature range -25c to +110c Available in thicknesses from 1mm to 50mm.

Pure Gum (Natural Rubber) – this product has excellent dynamic and rebound properties, good electrical properties and a temperature range from -50c to +90c. Good for applications such as work stations, gaskets and general usages.  Available in thicknesses from 1mm through to 10mm.

SBR (Styrene-Butadiene Rubber) - this product gives excellent resistance to temperature and aging, has a good tensile strength, low compression and tear resistance with a temperature range from -45c to +110c ideal for general applications and available from 1mm to 50mm thickness.