How Speed Reducers Give Fast Food a Break Today

In the fast-food business, if you’re not quicker than the competition you’re soon eaten by it. And maintenance problems are one thing you can’t afford. So, when machine downtime started to take a bite out of a fast-food processor’s profits, they looked to Sumitomo Drive Technologies to turn things around.

The problem with small fries.

Making all those little French fries is a bigger job than it looks. So big that this company’s variable drives kept breaking down. They couldn’t handle situations when a machine had to run at one speed for a long time, and then switch to another. The belt would groove into the disc, and when the groove got too deep it became impossible to vary the speed. To make matters more difficult, every 24 hours the drives were sanitized with steaming hot water applied at 600 psi. These daily washdowns really took their toll. Then Sumitomo got the call.

Our Beier Variator cut the potato problem down to size. Its speeds are infinitely adjustable up through 10:1 ratio by means of a manual hand-wheel, and the settings stay very stable over long periods of time. In fact, this company runs them and runs them. One reason they’re able to do this is because there’s no metallic contact with the Beier thanks to a constant oil film between the discs. There's no wear, grooving or fretting corrosion. There are also no rubber parts to change. What’s more, you can even order your Beier with a special washdown feature that virtually eliminates water damage. Add it all up, and you can see why the Beier Variators worked 3½ years without a breakdown for this company. The belt drives, on the other hand, typically failed after 3 short months.

Stacking Up.

It takes a lot of horsepower to move all those potatoes. That’s why our Beier Variator is designed to give you a much wider horsepower range than most other variable speed drives. From ½ HP to 200 HP, it’s power that stays smooth through all speed ranges. Of course there’s no cogging, so the conveyor travels at a steady pace, and food doesn’t get bumped around, pile up or spill onto the floor. Speeds are easily varied to accommodate the inspection process. And with the Beier’s excellent shock-load resistance and the highest capacity of any mechanical drive, you can really pile the food on.

Have it your way.

You want a Beier Variator…you’ve got one. Most popular sizes are available from our inventory stock right now. You’ll also that find we can deliver custom units faster than anyone else.

Like all Sumitomo mechanical drives, our Beier Variators are backed by our nationwide network of distributors and representatives. You’ll find them in over 300 convenient locations across the country. And they’re ready to give you all the support you need.