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You don’t become the leader in your industry by chance. It takes hard work, meticulous planning, a commitment to quality and unrivaled customer service. Even with those elements in place. You need to make sure they extend through every part of your business and that they are practiced in everything you do.

Scepter Canada Inc. is the industry leader in the design and manufacturing of molded plastic products. If you live in Canada, chances are very high that you own, have owned or will own a Scepter product at some point in your life.

Among their many manufacturing lines. Scepter produces top quality plastic fuel containers around the clock.

But the popularity of the jerry cans poses one problem: where to store the finished containers while they await packing?

An Overhead Conveyor System is the Solution

Traditional storage was not an option. Because of the length of time it would take to store and retrieve the containers and space it would require.

Instead, Scepter chose a storage option that completely eliminated the time and space needed for traditional storage.

A 425-meter overhead conveyor system was installed to carry finished containers from a loading station. Once loaded into storage crates suspended from the conveyor. The containers are carried up into the overhead space of the plant at a 45-degree angle. The conveyor then zig-zags along the length and width of the plant’s ceiling. Essentially providing a ‘dynamic’ storage space without using any additional floor space or taking any staff time to place the containers into storage.

The conveyor then descends back to floor level where the containers are removed from the storage crates and prepared for shipping.

The conveyor features a variable-speed chain drive. That gives operators full control over the rate at which containers are delivered to the shipping area. Each conveyor carrier carries up to four storage crates, or a total of 20 fuel containers, suspended on carrier hooks that feature safety cables to protect workers and machinery below. The entire conveyor can carry a total load of almost 40,000 lbs.

The Scepter overhead conveyor system is yet another example of the versatility and flexibility that overhead conveyor systems have in solving a wide range of manufacturing, warehousing, and shipping processes.