Press Release Tire Expo 2018

Tire Technology Expo 2018: Habasit rolls out the fastest fastener on the market for its wide timing belt

Time-s***ing timing belt soluti***

Habasit will be presenting its wide timing belt and new patented mechanical PA hinge joint at the Tire Technology Expo 2018 in Hannover, Germany, from 20 to 22 February, 2018, at stand 7080. Adding to its extensive portfolio of conveyor belts for the tire industry, Habasit’s HabaSYNC® wide timing belt and new mechanical polyamide (PA) hinge joint are particularly suited to the needs of tire industry OEMs and manufacturers with a focus on quality. At 600 mm in width, Habasit’s belt is the widest on the market, and offers significant quality and production improvements in two key tire manufacturing applicati***: slitting lines and tire building. Also featured, Habasit’s new PA mechanical hinge reduces belt installation downtimes from up to eight hours to about 30 minutes, thus dramatically reducing downtime and improving productivity.

Reinach/Switzerland, January 2018 – With automotive manufacturers using increasingly wide wheels, up to now, tire manufacturers responding to this trend h***e had to employ several synchronized single belts in parallel, or belts joined longitudinally. Both soluti*** are less than optimal: synchronized parallel belts are hard to keep 100% aligned, which impacts manufacturing quality, and longitudinally joined belts tend to suffer from reduced belt lifetimes.

To meet these challenges and serve the sophisticated automation needs of the tire industry, Habasit is now launching its HabaSYNC® wide timing belt after two years of successful field tests with some of the biggest tire manufacturers in the world.

***ailable in widths of up to 600 millimeters, this is the widest timing belt on the market. It offers a significantly improved solution for tire slitting and tire building applicati*** where slip-free synchronous conveying and precise timing and product positioning are essential.

Unique high-quality polycarbonate-based thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) belt material
The new belt is made of a unique polycarbonate-based TPU material that offers excellent resistance not only to the rubber being conveyed, but also to oil, grease, and a wide range of chemical agents, thus ensuring a long belt service life. This feature is particularly important for tire applicati*** using uncured rubber, which contains numerous chemicals.
The wide timing belts for tire manufacturing usually h***e a T10 gauge made from TPU with a shore hardness of 92 A. Other types, such as H pitch, are ***ailable on demand. The belts are reinforced with aramid co***.

Belt cover and fabrication opti***
Habasit’s wide timing belts for the tire industry can be ordered with polyamide fabric on the tooth side, running side or both, to reduce the coefficient of friction and keep the belt running ***oothly, or to ensure easy release and keep wear to a minimum. As usual for Habasit belts, they can also be individually fabricated using milling, perforati***, covers, or profiles to meet particular application requirements. The TPU belt material is ***ailable so far in white or black.

Fast and reliable mechanical joining
Also newly launched, the patented HabaSYNC® PA Hinge Joint has been developed to allow quick and easy installation or replacement of the wide timing belt. It reduces machine downtimes from up to eight hours to about 30 minutes, and instead of four to six staff being needed, just two can now do the job – without special tools or training.

The specially designed hinge joint for the tire industry uses high-strength polyamide with a single metal pin, and is completely integrated into the timing belt. Unlike other mechanical joining systems, Habasit’s PA hinge joint is highly flexible in all directi*** and can be applied to belts up to 600mm width. It provides perfect performance while significantly reducing downtimes for belt changes or maintenance, which means greater production efficiency and capacity, and lower costs.

Extensive belting portfolio for the tire industry
As the world leader for conveyor belts, Habasit has extensive experience in the tire industry and offers a broad and deep portfolio of fabric-based conveyor belts, plastic modular belts, as well as timing belts to OEMs and end users, which meet their most demanding application needs. These belts will also be presented during the Tire Technology Expo 2018 in Hannover.