Wendel Leather automate drum unloading
23 November 2009Dutch tanners, Wendel Leather Group (Gebr. Wendel Leder-fabriek en Handelmij) have recently installed the final phase of their automated dye drum unloading system at their plant in Tilburg. The project, which was managed and installed by Intermedia Holland from Dongen, was installed to improve worker health and safety as well as increase productivity at the tannery. The Wendel Leather Group have three tanneries located throughout Holland in Waalwijk, Rijen and Tilburg with the Waalwijk plant being the company headquarters.
Intermedia worked closely with Italian tannery automation specialists, Feltre on the project to provide a safe yet simple method of unloading the retanning drums at Wendel while reducing the amount of manual labour.
With labour costs in developed countries a significant cost Wendel aim to use automation to make the unloading operation safer as well as lower the headcount.
Using the Feltre made conveyor system the drum operator can unload the drum without the risk of harming their colleagues working underneath the drum below. The consequences of moving machinery or tons of wet leather trapping an individual led to the installation of the automated unloading system. Wendel uses both wooden drums from Vallero as well as a new polypropylene drum from Italprogetti for their retanning operations at the plant in Tilburg. The conveyors have been designed to be fitted under the drums without compromising safety. An additional benefit of the new system is that the leather avoids contamination by being transported away from the floor and the drum area.
Faster unloading of the drums also increases productivity, which also allows the drum operator to load the next batch while the previous batch is being unloaded away from the drum.
Feltre conveyors
Feltre/Intermedia installed a prototype unloading conveyor in 2007 and the final installation was completed in January of this year. The stainless steel and PVC-belted conveyors are wheeled in and out of the drum loading area and fixed on legs to the floor when in operation or stored between unloading operations. The conveyor is set at a 15° angle under each drum and is fully guarded. Each is 2m wide with a length of 4.4m. This is enough to safely transport the leather out of the drum for operators to load onto pallets or they can be tipped into a forklift operated bin at a height of 1.2m.
The conveyor can be adjusted by forklift or by adjusting the extendable legs. Each conveyor can handle up to 3,000kg of wet leather and the belting is made from a special oil and grease resistant anti-slip rubber to ensure that the leather is uniformly unloaded.
The conveyor frame is made from stainless steel (304 AISI) and all electrical devices and control panels are guarded. Importantly for Wendel, operator instructions have been written in Dutch.
As hides are automatically unloaded from the drum door they fall down a chute onto the conveyor, which transports them well away from the drum. The conveyor can be operated manually in the event of a blockage and the belt operates in both directions.
Wendel Leather
Wendel Leather Group have a small production of full grain double butts and double backs but are particularly specialised in split leathers; both chrome and vegetable tanned. End uses include footwear, leathergoods, belting, and some specialities. The finishing plant in Rijen specialises in PU-foil lamination and is managed by the joint venture company, Delten Leather. The finishing plant in Waalwijk (Finilux) has facilities to process all types of bovine leather, from splits to full hides for furniture and automotive. Finilux finish crust leather from the Wendel-production as well as crust from various other customers into a wide range of articles.
Wendel were founded in 1975 by Herbert and Willi Wendel and currently employ approximately 80 people over the three sites.
