N230 CASE CONVEYOR CHAIN

Hangzhou Ocean Industry Co., Ltd. is one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of n230 case conveyor chain in China. Welcome to wholesale bulk durable industrial chains and power transmission parts made in China here from our factory. All customized products are with high quality and competitive price.

A case line that has been running for years rarely fails all at once. It begins by marking cartons, then by needing attention more often, then by stopping for reasons nobody can name. By the time the chain is blamed, several small things around it have usually changed, and replacing the chain is the moment when they can be found.

The N230 is a moulded case conveyor chain: links moulded from a plastic material and assembled on connecting pins, supplied in a standard colour, and built for standard case, carton and packaged-product conveying. It is the model to look at when the requirement is for the product to be carried cleanly, quietly and at reasonable cost, rather than for a chain sized to industrial loads.

This page covers what the chain is, the conditions under which a moulded chain is the correct choice and the conditions under which it is not, how to read the drawing and the parameter table, what can be specified on a made-to-order build, and how a first order or a like-for-like replacement is handled.

What it is. A moulded case conveyor chain, supplied as separate links threaded onto connecting pins rather than as a fabricated metal chain.

Where it suits. Standard case, carton and packaged-product conveying, including sections with accumulation, transfers and sorting.

How it is bought. Either as a stock build in the standard width and link top, or made to order where the chain has to match a machine already on site or the chain being taken off.

The links in a moulded chain are the chain. Each one is a single moulded piece, and the strand is formed by threading them onto connecting pins, so there is no fabricated sub-assembly and no separate pin-and-bush pair wearing against each other.

What the construction decides. There is no steel surface to rust, so plating and coating are not specification items. There is no hard metal edge presented to the product, which matters when the product is printed board. And the chain is light for its width, which reduces what the conveyor structure and the drive have to carry.

Servicing is designed in. Because the strand is built up from loose links, it can be threaded around a route that a closed, pre-assembled chain could never be fitted to, and a single broken link is swapped out on the machine with no special tooling.

How a length is built. Links are threaded onto the pins in sequence, so the pitch of the assembled chain is set by the moulded link rather than by a machined pin-and-bush pair. That is why pitch is checked across a group of links rather than on a single one, and why the figure has to agree with the sprocket the chain is going onto.

Where the chain ends up running. On most layouts the strand runs in a track, on wear strips, with the return taken round a nose bar or a return sprocket. The condition of those parts matters as much as the chain does, and a worn strip changes the height at which the chain meets the sprocket.

What it is not. Not a chain for bulk material, abrasive loads, hot product or steel containers. Those duties need a fabricated metal chain, and we supply those under separate model names. Deciding between the two is the subject of the next section.

The decision on a case line comes down to four conditions, and a moulded chain is the right answer when all four point the same way.

What the product will tolerate. A moulded link has no hard edges. Where the product is a printed carton, a labelled bottle or a pack that shows a scuff, that alone usually decides it: a metal chain introduces wear surfaces against the product that a moulded one does not have.

How wet the area is. A moulded chain does not corrode, so a humid bottling hall, a washdown area or a chilled room stops being a material problem. A metal chain can serve the same line, but only with a finish chosen for the environment and inspected as it wears.

How heavy the load is. Moulded chains are light, and light is an advantage until the load stops being. Filled cases, cartons and light totes sit comfortably inside the range. Steel containers, bulk material and heavy pallets do not, and no increase in width changes that.

How hot the product is. A moulded link has a working temperature band, and it is narrower than steel's. Where the product leaves an oven, a kiln or a hot-fill process, the temperature has to be checked before a moulded chain is considered at all.

Where two of the four point against a moulded chain, the metal option is usually the better engineering even if a moulded chain would physically run. Send the four conditions and we will say which way we would go.

• Standard case duty: moulded links sized for filled cases, cartons and packaged products rather than for pallets or industrial containers
• Cost matched to the duty: a build specified for standard conveying requirements, without the extra plate thickness and pin size a heavier line would need
• Quiet running: moulded link-to-link engagement is quieter than metal-on-metal contact, which matters on lines where operators work alongside the conveyor
• Product-safe surface: a moulded link presents no hard metal edge to the carton, so printed packaging arrives unmarked
• No corrosion protection required: a moulded chain does not rust, so plating and coating are not specification items and humid or washdown areas are served without extra treatment
• Specified to order: the width, the link top, the colour and the moulding grade can all be set to your requirement, while a change to the link outline itself is a moulding project

The six entries describe the chain as it is supplied. Read them against your own line: the two that settle most enquiries are the load the chain has to carry and the conditions around it, because those are what rule a moulded chain in or out.

That list describes construction rather than longevity. How long any chain lasts on a case line depends on the load pattern, how often the line stops and starts, and the state of the sprocket and the track it runs in.

The three groups who order a case chain want different things from the conversation, and knowing which one you are shortens the enquiry.

Machine builders. The requirement is a repeatable build across a batch of machines and a drawing that can be held to, because the chain has to be identical on unit one and unit forty. What that needs from us is a fixed specification and a dimensional record per batch.

System integrators. Usually retrofitting, so the track, the sprocket and the transfer heights already exist and have to be reused. What matters is that the chain drops into what is there, which makes the measurements off the old chain the specification.

End users. Replacing something that has worn out, normally once the maintenance cost started climbing. What matters here is availability, a like-for-like match and knowing what to keep on the shelf.

Say which of the three you are when you enquire and the reply comes back in the right form rather than as a general specification sheet.

• Standard case and carton conveying lines where the product has to arrive unmarked
• Beverage and food packaging systems, including chilled and washdown areas
• Light assembly and manufacturing conveyor sections
• Corrugated box and packaging material handling
• Multi-lane accumulation and sorting systems where a light chain suits the load
• Warehouse and distribution centre conveying with several changes of direction
• Pharmaceutical and consumer goods packaging lines where a scuff is a rejected unit

Those duties are listed rather than industries, because suitability turns on the load and on the environment the chain works in.

If your duty is not covered above, send the layout and the load figures. Telling you that a different chain is the right one is more useful before an order than after it.

Three things about a moulded chain can be specified without changing its tooling, and they are the three that come up most often.

Colour. Links are moulded in a colour, and the photographs on this page show the standard link in orange. Colour can be specified for identification, so that a plant running more than one chain type can tell them apart on sight, or for appearance where the line is visible to visitors.

Material grade. The moulding material is chosen for the duty, and the choice follows the environment: a standard packing hall, a chilled room and a washdown area each point towards a different grade.

Top surface. What the product rests on is the link top, and the options serve different jobs. A flat top is the general answer for cases and cartons. A raised or profiled top suits a product that needs holding in position rather than only being carried, or a section where the chain climbs and the product must not slip back.

What cannot be changed without tooling is the link form itself. A different pitch or a different link outline needs a new mould, so it is a tooling project with a lead time attached rather than a line item on an order.

On a case line the chain usually wears out somewhere other than where the line is longest. The accumulation zone is the usual culprit: a stretch of track where the chain keeps moving underneath product that is parked or creeping.

That condition is continuous sliding contact between the link top and the case bottom. Nothing about it looks like a problem from the end of the line, and it is where a chain's running surfaces show their first shine and the first slack appears.

Transfers come second. Every transfer is a point where the product leaves one chain and joins another, and the heights and gaps there affect how the case arrives as much as the chain does. A case that reaches the diverter out of square is more often a transfer alignment question than a chain question.

Sorting adds a third. The chain has to hold the case in position while the case is pushed or diverted sideways. A light chain with a moulded top holds position better than its weight suggests, but where a sorter pushes hard, that force has to be taken by the track and the guides rather than by the chain.

If a line is giving trouble at any of those three points, send a photograph and the layout. The measurement that resolves most of it is the pitch over a group of links together with the height of the product at the transfer.

The track deserves the same attention as the chain. Wear strips, guides and rails set the height at which the chain runs, and once a strip has worn down the links meet the sprocket differently. Renewing a chain on a line that has been running for years, without measuring the strips, is one of the commonest ways of shortening the life of the new one.

The case for this chain is not made on the drawing. It is made on what happens after the order, and the points below are the ones buyers raise.

Built to the drawing you approve. Where the build is made to order, the drawing is the specification and the sample is the reference for the production batch.

A repeat order is a quantity, not a new project. The specification sits on file against your reference, so a second batch is supplied to the same build with nobody having to measure anything again.

Worn parts are supplied separately. A damaged section is renewed with individual links and a connecting pin rather than by replacing the strand, which is what keeps a stop short on a line that cannot wait for a shipment.

Technical questions are answered by the person who priced the order. The team that quoted is the team that answers afterwards, rather than a separate support desk.

A made-to-order moulded chain is a different proposition from a made-to-order steel one, and it is worth knowing which parts of a build are variable before you specify.

What varies without altering the tool. Width, link top, colour and moulding material grade are the everyday variables, along with pack quantity and the length each strand is cut to.

Needs a new mould. The link outline and the pitch, because both are set by the tool.

How to brief it. The best input is a drawing. If there is no drawing, a worn sample will do. If there is neither, a catalogue reference together with the measurements you can take in the plant is normally enough for us to identify the build.

How a non-standard build is proved. For a new link form, or a first order on a new machine, a short length is moulded and sent for trial on the line before the production quantity is committed.

On a line that is being re-chained rather than rebuilt, the fastest route is usually the dimensions off the old chain: the width, the pitch, the link top, and the position of any attachment along the pitch.

A moulded chain is checked at three points, and they are checked in the order they can go wrong.

The moulding. Link dimensions and the material grade are confirmed against the specification for the batch, and the material record is held against it.

On the completed strand. The check that matters is pitch taken across several links together, since it is the total that must agree with the sprocket; a single link reading tells you very little. The strand is then run to confirm every joint articulates freely and none is tight.

At the pack. Counts of links and pins are checked against the order before the pack is sealed, so an installation on site is never stopped halfway by a shortage.

Records stay with the batch and against your order reference. Where the machine serves a regulated end customer and the inspection sheet has to travel with the goods, tell us when you enquire and the paperwork is prepared with the batch.

A moulded chain is a light, bulky load rather than a dense one, so packing is mostly about identification and about keeping the links from fretting in transit.

Packing. Chain is coiled or boxed according to length, with the ends secured so the strand cannot move, and connecting pins bagged inside the same pack rather than left loose.

Marking. The chain code, the pitch and the order reference go on every pack, and an order covering more than one build is split so the packs cannot be mixed up in the plant.

Dispatch. The packing list and photographs of the packed load are sent while the container is still open, so anything missing can be dealt with before the doors shut.

Loading. Moulded chain is light for its volume, so it rarely sets the loading plan. Where sprockets and wear parts ship with it, those heavier items decide the arrangement and we send the stowage plan with the documents.

The chain is made by a manufacturer that also produces the industrial chain components around it, and the export record runs back two decades.

Where it goes. Shipments go to Europe, North America and Southeast Asia. The European trade is the oldest of the three, running from 2005.

What is made in-house. Chain assembly and the metal components that close it are produced on site, so a made-to-order link form or a heavier connecting pin does not put a subcontractor into the supply chain.

Quality system. Production sits inside an ISO 9001 framework, and the batch records are kept against the order.

Working language. Drawings, quotations and inspection documents are all handled in English, by the team that handles the order.

Why the record matters on this product. A case chain is one component inside somebody else's machine. A buyer who has to warrant that machine needs the chain, the sprocket and the track to be mutually consistent, and the record of what was supplied is what makes a later replacement straightforward rather than a fresh engineering exercise.

On a moulded chain the spare parts question takes a different shape from a steel chain's.

What to hold in stores. Links in the same width and material, connecting pins, and a spare sprocket between them cover the failures that genuinely stop production.

Why to buy them at the same time. The order record already carries the width, the pitch and the material grade, so a component ordered months later arrives matched to the chain that was actually supplied rather than to somebody's description of it.

What shortens a stop. A damaged link is renewed on its own, and the chain is assembled on the conveyor, so no special tooling is needed to put the line back into service.

Repeat orders. The specification stays on file against your reference, so re-ordering becomes a question of quantity and delivery only.

The case chain family covers a range of widths, pitches and attachment forms. Most of the models in it are moulded chains running on the same principle, and where a duty needs a fabricated metal chain we supply that under a separate model name.

Selecting between the models is normally a question of width, pitch and attachment form, and all three are fixed by the conveyor rather than by preference. A track cut to a width will not take a wider chain, and a sprocket cut to a pitch will not take a chain of a different one.

The attachment decision is usually the one left to the end, and the one most often regretted afterwards. A pusher, a flight or a side guard at a given position along the pitch has to appear on the drawing and in the tool from the start; it is not something that can be moved by a note on the order.

Where two models both appear to fit, the layout settles it: the track, the sprocket and the transfers each rule something out. Send the layout and we will do that check for you.

Q1: Is the N230 a metal chain?

A: No. It is a moulded chain: separate links moulded in a plastic material and assembled on connecting pins. Where a line needs a fabricated metal chain, we supply one under a separate model name.

Q2: What is the N230 used for?

A: Carrying cases, cartons and packaged goods on standard conveying sections, including accumulation, transfers and sorting. Bulk material, steel containers and hot product sit outside what it is built for.

Q3: How do we decide between a moulded chain and a metal one?

A: Four conditions settle it: what the product will tolerate, how wet the area is, how heavy the load is and how hot the product is. Send those four and the answer follows from them.

Q4: What do the two flexing radii mean?

A: The sideflexing figure is the tightest turn the chain can make within its own plane; the backflexing figure is the smallest nose bar or return it will pass over. Neither can be altered on the conveyor, because both belong to the chain.

Q5: What dimensions are shown on the drawing?

A: 50.8 mm is dimensioned between adjacent pin centres on the plan view. 16 mm and 32 mm are taken vertically on that view, and 21 mm on the side elevation, where a radius callout marked R appears.

Q6: Can you confirm the table figures against our conveyor?

A: Yes. Send the layout, or the dimensions off the chain being replaced, and we will confirm the chain code, the width, the pitch and the running radii with the quotation.

Q7: What maintenance does the chain need?

A: Normal service does not call for lubrication at the joint, so there is no oil film to reach the product. The maintenance schedule is better spent on the wear strips, the track and the sprocket.

Q8: Can the chain be supplied in a different colour?

A: Yes. Colour is normally specified either so that different chains can be told apart on sight, or for appearance where the line is on view. The photographs here show the standard link in orange.

Q9: What top surface options exist?

A: Flat is the standard carrying surface. Raised or profiled tops answer two different needs: locating a product that must not wander, and providing grip where the chain climbs.

Q10: How long does production take?

A: Count roughly a month for a trial length and roughly two for a production batch, from the point the order is confirmed. Builds held in stock can often be quicker.

Q11: What payment terms apply?

A: T/T 30% as deposit, with 70% before delivery, which is the same basis as the rest of the case chain range.

Q12: Are sprockets and wear strips supplied with the chain?

A: Both are available, and quoting them with the chain is the safer route. Pitch and width have to agree between the chain and the parts it drives on, so a single quotation removes the commonest source of a mismatch on site.

Q13: How is the chain packed?

A: Coiled or boxed according to length, with the ends secured and the pins bagged inside the pack. Each pack is labelled with the chain code, the pitch and the order reference.

Q14: What do you need to quote a replacement?

A: The width, the pitch and the link top off the chain being replaced, plus what the chain has to carry. Those four usually settle the specification without further correspondence.

Let the four conditions do the work: what the chain carries, what the product will tolerate, how wet the area is and how hot it gets. Add the width and the pitch taken off the chain being replaced, and we can confirm the build against your conveyor without anyone visiting site.

Hot Tags: n230 case conveyor chain, China n230 case conveyor chain manufacturers, suppliers, factory, 1400 CASE CONVEYOR CHAIN, 2500 CASE CONVEYOR CHAIN, 600CV CASE CONVEYOR CHAIN, 600TAB CASE CONVEYOR CHAIN, case chains