Customising Your Conveyor Oven: What You Need to Know

When it comes to heat processing, one of the most accommodating pieces of equipment in use for drying, curing, preheating, thermal degreasing, baking, etc. are conveyor ovens. Known for their implementation in a host of industries, most standardised units are outfitted in various product lines without much effort.

Should a standard unit of these continuous ovens meet the heat processing requirements of a facility, then they are known to be quite a cost-effective and immediate solution.

In spite of this, not all processes can be reliant upon such standardised units. In these cases, customised solutions are to be discussed with a manufacturer to design against a set of criteria for your heat processing needs. Today’s article will help you hone in on the more important parameters to clarify when customising your conveyor oven:

Temperature

As you may imagine, all standard continuous ovens are manufactured to operate within a certain spectrum of heat. These limits, both minimum and maximum, may not prove adequate enough for a facility. If so, this can play a major role in having a customised oven designed around their needs, allowing for multiple temperature settings and zones.

Controls

Many users, understandably, seek full control over their heat processing procedures. Should a standard unit prove inadequate in this sense, a customised system with additional controls, such as multiple set points, ramp and soak, etc., can be installed.

Air Flow

The air flow arrangement for a user’s heat processing needs can be difficult to standardise. One of the more common aspects of customisation is in regards to this air flow - with options ranging from vertical, horizontal, or combinative air flow, as well as its volume, direction, and velocity.

Manufactured Material

Depending on the conditions in a particular work environment (e.g. arid, humid, corrosive, atmospheric exposure, etc.), the materials used in the manufacture of heat processing equipment can have large implications on their integration. Customised units can be manufactured out of aluminised steel or stainless steel, should standard grade steel not suffice.

Part Loading

Standard entrance sizing is not always translatable for every use case, should a user require special belts or part holders then a customised solution is the recommended course of action.

Heat Source

The heating requirements of a product can vary a great deal, that is why users often work alongside a manufacturer to customise their conveyor ovens to deliver electric, gas, oil, or steam based heating.  

As you can see, a lot of foresight into your deliverables goes into the manufacture of a customised conveyor oven. That is why you should work alongside reputable manufacturers such as Eastman Manufacturing to help bridge the gap between idea and reality. From design to installation, we haven’t steered our clients wrong since we started more than 20 years ago!