HCP Railcar Vibrators Improve Operator Safety and Unloading Times
Hopper railcar unloading can be a labor and time intensive process depending on the environmental conditions and the material being unloaded. To address stuck material that will not flow out of the hopper railcar, operators have traditionally resorted to hitting the car with sledgehammers to initiate and maintain flow. While this method does eventually work, it comes with serious safety concerns for both the operators and equipment. Because of these concerns, many companies have implemented restrictions on the use of sledgehammers as a means of initiating flow out of their railcars.
A food production facility making cereal reached out to NAVCO to see if there were any alternatives available to replace the sledgehammer, they had been using to get stuck material to flow. A safety audit of their unloading process was performed, and the audit identified the use of sledgehammers as a process of high risk. They also wanted to get as close to the unloading times of using the sledgehammers as possible. The facility was receiving sugar by rail and would experience difficulty in unloading during times of higher moisture in the air and colder weather. After discussing the issue with the facility, NAVCO was able to put together a package that would address the material flow issues and keep operators from engaging in unsafe activity. The package included NAVCO’s HCP 3.00 Railcar Vibrator and HCP Safety Lift Cart.
HCP 3.00 Railcar Vibrator
NAVCO utilized our database of prior experience to select the best equipment for the job. The HCP 3.00 Railcar Vibrator was chosen for this application as it has an exceptional power to weight ratio. The HCP railcar vibrators utilize NAVCO’s “free-ride” design. This unique male mounting head design allows the unit to float freely in the female dovetail bracket on the hopper. The energy generated by the movement of the internal piston shuttles the entire mass of the HCP back and forth in the bracket, creating high energy impacts on both ends of the piston’s stroke. The resulting impact forces are efficiently transmitted into the stuck material. This transferred energy reduces the material strength and sliding friction, which restores flow out of the hopper.
HCP Safety Lift Cart
While maintaining or improving unloading times was an item of concern, protecting operator safety during unloading was a primary requirement. For this reason, the HCP Safety Lift Cart, specifically the hand crank lift cart model, was included in the proposed package. The cart protects operators by removing the unergonomic process of crouching under railcars to insert and remove the 70+ lb. vibrators from the dovetail brackets of the hoppers. Instead, they are able to maneuver the vibrator using the cart and lower/raise the vibrator out of the bracket using the hand crank rack and pinion system.
The facility agreed with the proposed solution recommended by NAVCO and placed an order for the equipment. The HCP 3.00 Railcar Vibrator and HCP Safety Lift Cart (Hand Crank) are now on location at the cereal production facility and exceeding the requirements set at the beginning of the process. The safety concerns were fully addressed with the implementation of the vibrators and safety lift cart. The operators no longer have to crouch under railcars and swing sledgehammers, reducing their exposure to potential injury. Additionally, they found that the vibrators were able to decrease the unloading times of the hopper railcars compared to when they were utilizing the hammers. This led to a decrease of labor hours associated with the unloading process.
NAVCO is the leading manufacturer of industrial vibrators and vibratory equipment and have been solving bulk material flow problems for over 60 years. By incorporating the most advanced manufacturing techniques, quality control, and bulk solids flow technology, NAVCO provides effective solutions for unloading bulk materials from hopper railcars. Contact NAVCO today to help improve your railcar unloading processes.
