Intelligent Material Handling
Incline Package Re-Entry Conveyor
An 18-degree incline returns rejected packages to the sort loop, so no one carries them up the stairs.
CLIENT
INDUSTRY
SOLUTION
DURATION
The Challenge
In a high-volume distribution center, packages kicked out of the sort loop collected at floor level. To reintroduce them, team members had to carry each package up the stairs and set it back on the return conveyor, a repetitive lift-and-climb that slowed recovery and put people on stairs with their hands full. The site needed a way to send rejected packages back into the loop without the walk, fitted around an existing walkway, stair and reject slide.
Key Requirements
- Return kicked-out packages to the sort loop automatically
- Eliminate carrying packages up the stairs
- Fit around the existing walkway, stair and reject slide
- Tie into the existing return conveyor
- Operator station with E-stops and safety relay
- Quick installation in a live facility
The ICR Solution
ICR designed and installed a package re-entry conveyor: an 18-degree belt incline, about 32 feet long, that rises from a floor-level transfer table beside the reject slide to the existing return conveyor. A team member sets a package on the transfer table, the incline carries it up, and a drop chute places it onto the return conveyor and back into the sort loop. The incline passes over the walkway and stair, with provision for a safety edge guard. ICR built the controls panel with main disconnect, safety relay, E-stops, operator station and VFD drive, ran the 480 V power and conduit, and fabricated the chute, transfer plate and side guards.
Equipment & Technology
- Hytrol belt incline conveyor, 18°, about 32 ft
- Floor-level transfer table and drop chute
- ICR-fabricated chute, transfer plate and side guards
- Control panel with main disconnect and safety relay
- Operator station with E-stops, master on and selector
- VFD motor drive, 480 V power and conduit
Scope of Work
- Site Survey
- Mechanical Design
- Fabrication
- Controls Design
- Panel Build
- Programming
- 480 V Power & Conduit
- Installation
- Startup
Results
Rejected packages now ride the incline back into the sort loop. Team members load them at floor level and walk away, with no more climbing stairs with their hands full, and recovery keeps pace with the line. The incline clears the walkway and stair, ties into the existing return conveyor, and runs from a simple operator station with E-stops.