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The conveyor gets a bad rap. Popular culture has given a negative connotation to the conveyor belt and used it as a symbol of work automation and all the negative aspects of the Industrial Revolution. In reality, the conveyor belt has done a lot for important industries that we depend on every day. The production and assembly of important computers, automobiles, and more make use of the industrial-grade conveyor. The conveyor helps to decrease workload, improve efficiency, and carry heavy materials. This invention has actually come a long way and is used across many industries and industrial settings. As industrial technology and innovation improve, so does the technology for use in our factories, production lines, and industrial plants, and more. We thought we’d tour the history of the conveyor and the conveyor belt as an important part of our industrial services. 

Most people might not realize that a big percentage of materials they buy or consume that are constructed of metal, food, cosmetics, medical supplies, and plastics, make use of conveyors. Conveyors are mostly used to move large and bulk materials across distances. When it comes to the factory setting, conveyor belts are used to transport part of the material from one side of the factory to the other and to improve efficiency and decrease workload. Today, they are important in a variety of industries from quarrying, mining, and mineral processing. Conveyors come in all shapes and sizes and are used in different stages of production depending on the industry and the size of the plant. This aspect of the production assembly line has become integral and essential for many automated facilities and applications, particularly those that deal with heavy machinery or materials. 

The concept of the conveyor belt began way before the industrial revolution when it was used by farmers in the late 1700s to assist in moving large items across distances. This is why the invention of the conveyor is not exactly credited to one sole person or inventor. The concept was used by many across industries and before mass production. Henry Ford is often credited with the technology, as he implemented it in his early automobile plants, but Ford only took an existing idea and improved on it. In fact, it was Ransom Eli Olds, founder of Oldsmobile, that patented the design for a continuous assembly line, which is often credited to Ford as well. The early conveyor belts were more than likely used in agriculture and often made with a wooden framework with belts made of rubber or leather. 

Assisting with Continuous Production

The term continuous production is an industry term used especially in the 20th century to refer to a workplace setting defined when technology is used to define the sequence. Conveyor belts are simply part of a continuous production process that entails transporting materials from one production station to the next. In the Ford plants, for example, where early use of conveyor belts helped build the famous Model-Ts led to an extraordinary reduction of time that it took to build the models; the time went from 12 and a half hours down to one hour and 33 minutes. The conveyor belt has to be perfectly timed and coordinated in order to keep the production line in order, but once it was perfected, the efficiency and labor it saved were undeniable. 

Modern Conveyor Belts 

These aspects of factories began with a simple design and were used to transport sacks of grains or other heavy materials across distances simply to save labor. As the Industrial Revolution took hold in Great Britain, the implementation of the combustion engine and the steam engine continued to improve production. The conveyor was a part of this, as they no longer had to be hand-cranked and made the operation flow more easily. The first steam-operated conveyor was put into use by the British Navy. In fact, the British Navy used this incredibly powerful invention not to load important machinery or weapons or ship materials but to load up biscuits for sailors! These conveyor belts began appearing throughout all industries and would soon be part of the mining industries as well. 

With the invention of Vulcanized rubber, the materials for belts would be much more adaptable and sturdy, and once the underground conveyor belt was built, mining and quarrying would be completely revolutionized. Suddenly, much more material could be moved from the extraction point without that much labor. In 1908, the first roller conveyor came into the scene, and with the advent of automobiles and the demand slowly growing, conveyors became instrumental in the assembly of automobiles. 

The conveyor continued as an essential part of factory and production and became even more vital as the war broke out. Conveyor belts were used throughout America when producing essential war-time materials. The shortage of rubber also forced the invention of synthetic materials to be used for the belts and made the production that much more efficient. The booming economy after the war also led to mass production of many goods and the conveyor played a major role in being able to keep up with production demands. 

With advancements in robotics and computerization, the conveyor belt has taken on even more responsibility. They are essential to the mining and quarrying industries, as well as production for many goods we consume. 

Conveyor Maintenance and Repairs 

When your conveyor breaks or malfunctions, the entire operation can be put to a halt. This is why it is important to have conveyor repair you can trust to do the job quickly and efficiently. Here at Wyler Industrial, we know the stakes are high. Our mechanical repair includes repair for conveyors and other industrial operations. Call us today and keep your operation running. 

We’ve come a long way since the days of the industrial revolution that profoundly altered United States history and world history. Innovation is a great force; it’s kind of like steam— you can’t really catch it in your arms but it’s in the air and it carries with it great energy. As we’ve reached the end of another successful year in the industrial sector, we thought we’d take a look at the period of U.S history that kickstarted so much change and has brought us— about a hundred years later— to an incredible time in a different type of technological advancement. 

Well, we would be remiss if we didn’t give credit where credit is due and the truth is that Great Britain, our sister country, got started with the industrial revolution before the United States. The movement really started across the pond in old King’s territory around the mid17th and early 18th centuries. Then, in the mid-1800s, this movement really spread to the United States, which completely transformed and positioned the nation for its imminent turn to a global superpower. 

As the industrial revolution took hold of Britain, there was the emergence of water, steam, and coal as abundant sources of power. In America, the changes really began to take hold as the nation regrouped and solidified after the devastation of the turmoil of the Civil War. Many American inventors were working in Britain, helping the movement there. And as the years advanced, new forms of transportation and the emergence of electricity would create changes to the way life and labor progressed. 

Noted Inventions of the Era and Beyond — Paving the Way For Faster Production and Expansion

Cotton Gin 

Before the official industrial revolution really took hold, some brilliant American minds were already at work and looking to make labor and power production more efficient. In 1794, Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin. This little invention shook its fair share of ground when it proved to be quite effective in the separation of cotton seeds from fiber. This could then improve and increase the speed of cloth manufacturing. 

Transportation & Communication

The westward expansion of the United States played a big role in increasing the demand and the need for faster and more efficient transportation. In the Midwest and other areas of the country, the steamboat was already making quite the splash (no pun intended) in helping people transport goods through the water. Railroads also played their role in people expanding further west and settling in towns along this trek. The first freight railroads emerged around the 1820s along the Erie Canal and other industrial centers. Regular passenger service on some of these railroads began as early as 1830. 

And as production grew, so did the middle class. Once this started to happen there was a little more leisure time available and it led to even more innovations and inventions, as people found time to explore new possibilities and avenues in which to increase production, improve efficiency, and make labor safer and more effective. The sewing machine, for example, was quite revolutionary around this time as well, as it completely transformed the clothing industry and allowed for mass production. 

The telegraph also emerged during this time, completely revolutionizing the way people communicated and could communicate. Today, we are so connected and have such easy access to everyone we know and love across the country and the globe, that we don’t often think how impactful the early communication devices were. 

Steam Engine

And who could forget our friend the steam engine? Thomas Newcomen designed the first prototype for the first steam engine in the 1700s in England.  Deemed the atmospheric steam engine, this invention was originally applied to power the machines used to pump water out of mine shafts. From this original idea, other inventors like James Watt and Matthew Boulton added modifications like a steam engine with a rotary motion, which spread the invention through a variety of industries including flour, paper, and cotton mills, ironworks, distilleries, waterworks, and canals. 

Today, we still use concepts of the steam engine in our industrial boilers when we use heat to produce power. The energy that is created within the boiler can then be turned into work or used for commercial or residential heating needs. An industrial boiler today works through using steam to power a turbine that is then converted into work. 

Use the Industrial Experts for Your Industrial Needs

Here at Wyler Industrial, we offer a variety of services for the industrial sector. Whether you need boiler repair, a boiler startup, pressure piping repair, combustion control, and more, we got you covered. All of our techs are highly experienced and specialize in a variety of areas. We offer all kinds of mechanical repair and services dealing with commercial gas lines. 

Most people don’t think about pipes that often. That is, unless you’re in the industry or have some kind of burst pipe or clogged pipe; it’s just one of those things that don’t make it to the dinner conversation. In reality, the history of natural gas and how the world became connected through pipelines is quite fascinating and gives a little perspective on where we are today. We thought we’d take a look at the history of natural gas and how it became a vital commodity in the United States. 

So natural gas forms deep within the Earth, and it contains many different compounds. It formed from layers of fossilized plants and animals that formed thick layers on the ground. They were buried under sand, silt, and rock. Most of its components are methane, which has one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms. This compound is used for fuel and to make other materials and chemicals. 

For the beginnings of natural gas we must go all the way back to ancient Greece, to the Oracle at Delphi. It was here that natural gas seeped out in a flame. The Chinese started building bamboo pipelines to transport gas that seeped to the surface. Since then, the gas has been found in cracks and spaces between layers of overlying rock. Fast forward a couple of hundred years and in the mid 19th century, around 1821, the first successful natural gas well in the U.S  was built in Fredonia, New York. Soon, the Fredonia Gas Light Company formed as the first American natural gas distribution company. After that, natural gas became a convenient way to provide heat to people and businesses. 

A Clean, Safe, and Useful Resource 

Today, even though most people might not realize, natural gas is one of the most widely used and necessary components of  the world’s supply of energy. It makes up more than one half of the energy consumed by residential and commercial customers, as well as 41 percent of U.S industry. Commercial gas  lines are then an important part of the everyday operations of most U.S businesses. 

From the well, the natural gas goes into “gathering” lines. These lines then take the gas to where they are collected. Some of these gathering lines consist of a processing facility, which can remove impurities like water, carbon dioxide, or sulfur. From these gathering systems the natural gas moves into the transmission systems. This is almost like the highway for gas, interconnected and complex system of lines that carries the nation’s natural gas. 

Commercial Gas Lines and the Day-To-Day

Commercial gas lines play a major role in the day-to-day operations of businesses. They are the blood lines that maintain things functioning properly. Preventing gas leaks and insuring the health and maintenance of these lines is part of our top priorities here at Wyler Industrial. We offer services for commercial gas lines and more.