ICS Controller Question

[TEEBOX]

All,

Is there an operator out there that has a ICS Conveyor System for the point of sale. The question I have is about conveyor speed. My relay menu screen shows conveyor speed of 179. What does this mean? Its not in my manual and ICS wants a contract just to answer this question.

I control the speed of the conveyor with the flow control on my hydraulic power pack. When I'm busy, I increase the speed to 219 but it lacks the quality of wash that I prefer.

Thanks!

 

[parsonii]

there's a bigger point here and that's about contracts with drb or ics. i've heard that ics contracts are 3k a year for a single site and drb is 4.5k a year at a single site depending on how many "modules" you have. in fact i've heard that drb's exorbitant contract price is the single biggest negative about doing business with the company.

 

[robert roman]

“My relay menu screen shows conveyor speed of 179. What does this mean?”

I assume it means conveyor line operating speed of 179 cars an hour.

“When I’m busy, I increase the speed to 219 but it lacks the quality of wash that I prefer.”

This is why most operators would tell you this practice is fundamentally wrong.

22 percent increase in line speed requires re-calibrating especially nozzle timing and chemical concentrations.

Industry best practice is to determine line operating speed based on the peak hour and leave it alone to ensure consistent quality across fluctuations in demand and environmental conditions.

 

[carnut2]

We use ICS for our control module and that is the highest line speed I have ever heard of. We are at 120 CPH and have been told to slow it down for higher quality.

 

[TEEBOX]

I have since slowed the down to 129 CPH. Wow, its slow. The only adjustment I'm having trouble with is loading the vehicles. I have to wait for the roller to pop up and wait for vehicle pass about 15 feet before I can load another vehicle. I guess a good problem to have!

 

[robert roman]

Maximum cars per hour = 3,600 / seconds

Seconds is the time it takes for a vehicle to move 22’. For 7’4” spacing, it is the distance of three rollers.

If it takes 60 seconds for a vehicle to move 22’,

Maximum CPH = 3,600 / 60

Maximum CPH = 60

This assumes bumper to bumper loading.

“I have to wait for the roller to pop up and wait for vehicle pass about 15 feet before I can load another vehicle. I guess a good problem to have!”

No it is not.

Every time you miss three rollers, maximum cars per hour drops by one car.

Here, the wrong thing to do would be to speed up the conveyor. Instead, you need to determine the slowest conveyor speed required to process maximum expected cars an hour without causing delay at entrance.

For example, to produce 60 CPH with 7’4” spacing, conveyor must move at 22’ a minute or 1,320 feet an hour.

 

[robert roman]

Another approach to conveyor is to sidestep speed and use rule of thumb.

For example, at 85,000 cars per year, my average hour was 27 cars. On the busiest of days, the busiest hour was 82 cars. The conveyor was 100’ and 3’6” spacing.

In other words, the conveyor length was properly designed and sized based on expected demand.

Here, rule of thumb is figure 10’ of conveyor length for every 10 cars an hour.

So, expect 100 cars an hour, minimum conveyor length would be 100’.