The most "vital" piece of equipment in a distribution centre is the conveyor, according to manufacturing expert Cliff Holste.
In a report for Distribution Digest the editor of Materials Handling World Magazine said conveyor technology is advancing and improving rapidly in order to meet the demands of the logistics industry.
He cited modern conveyors as constantly improving their designs in an effort to increase system performance and reliability.
At a time of rising power costs and an increased drive for energy efficiency, new materials used in the manufacturing of rollers, bearings and conveying surfaces are capable of reducing power requirements, while lowering maintenance cost.
Looking to the future, Mr Holste believes the UK will follow conveyor trends seen in Europe where the technology is "behind the scenes", hiding components from view to make them more attractive.
He also expects conveying belts to become more modular in their approach and further expand on the capability to move sections from one place to another.
This "plug and convey" designing will be particularly useful if as expected the manufacturing industry receives an increase in demand and firms look to take on larger premises.
Conveyors – screw conveyors – chain conveyors – belt conveyors