Providing the safer alternative to steel conveyor guards, Diacon’s signature yellow plastic mesh guarding is tried, tested and trusted in the material handling industry.
Diacon Australia has been designing and manufacturing plastic conveyor guarding since 2010, after identifying a need for improvement in the areas of conveyor productivity and safety.
All Diacon products are produced on a special-order basis, as sizes are customised to suit the individual needs of each mine site.
Diacon established its plastic guarding as an alternative to steel, originating from the sugar industry in Diacon’s hometown of Mackay in Queensland.
Diacon Australia General Manager Matt Kennett said its systems are about safety for all conveyors, plain and simple.
“It’s all about making the area safer for workers around it by providing guarding, spillage control and keeping dust in,” Kennett said. “Not only to keep people safe, but also to ensure the product stays on the belt for better efficiency, and it has a positive environmental impact from dust control too.”
Keeping people safer around moving equipment for materials handling is the number one goal for Diacon, as there was previously a high risk of entanglement.
With safety at the forefront of Diacon’s ethos, the plastic mesh guarding, with its lightweight design, is suitable for a one- man job and a system customised to fit the exact belt it is being used on.
“Being lightweight, it makes it a lot easier for people working on the belts themselves,” Kennett said. “In high maintenance areas, it’s a lot easier for people in the materials handling area to do their job efficiently. It’s less impactful on their bodies and reduces labour costs by only needing one person to remove the Diacon guarding system.”
Diacon conveyor guards are also corrosion-free, which means the guarding is more durable, lasting far longer than its steel counterparts and removing the need for painting or protective coating.
“Not only is the guarding corrosion- free, but the maintenance is also much simpler as there is no maintenance on steel work, and no repainting.
“The bright yellow colour was chosen for the guarding as a safety measure and to improve visibility, especially in reduced lighting or harsh conditions.”
Diacon custom builds each conveyor guarding system and conveyor belt themselves, differentiating them from other off-the-shelf options in the market.
“One of the things we pride ourselves on is custom fitting. We guarantee the safety and accuracy of our products, as we know firsthand that the job was done exactly to specs,” Kennett said.
“Following an enquiry, we visit the site and provide a quote for that specific conveyor, and then 3D scan their unique conveyor belt and turn it into a full 3D model. Based on that model, we design all the guarding and supply the models to clients to view their guarding.
“That’s how we ensure the accuracy of our guarding. We aren’t relying on guesswork, it’s scanned down to the millimetre which removes the margin for error.”
Diacon has seen a lot of growth so far in 2022 and there is also a new product set for release by the end of the year.
“It’s still in the trial phase; we are doing tweaks on it during this market testing phase, but it has been received really well so far,” Kennett said. “A lot more orders have been coming in over the last three months, and we have been very focused on production. We are looking forward to releasing the new product to the market very soon.”