Industries and applications
Our PTFE conveyor belts are successfully applied in the production of food, solar cells, baked goods, canned goods and beverage cans, clean room mats, nonwovens, paper, screen printing, insulation products, extruded rubber products and in the automotive industry. Additionally, the packaging industry makes extensive use of Hardick products, particularly for sealing packages. Furthermore, our products find their way into oil storage and even into Formula 1 racing.
The machine builders for all these industries also know how to find their way to Hardick. We supply many OEM and replacement belts for machines from well-known machine builders like Schott & Meissner, TPS, IPCO, Meyer, Ecoprogetti, Zimmer, Bombi, Hymmen, Reliant, Linnenbrink, Brückner, ITS, Lawrence, and many others.
PTFE conveyor belts are an essential component in various processes within the food industry due to their unique properties. With a focus on sustainability, heat resistance, and non-stick characteristics, our PTFE conveyor belts are widely used in various processes within the food industry:
Baking: Our PTFE conveyor belts and sheets play an essential role in ovens and baking equipment for the perfect baking of food products such as tortillas, cookies, pizzas, and other baked treats.
Grilling: In grilling lines for items such as potato pancakes, noodles, hamburgers, and bacon, our PTFE conveyor belts are indispensable.
Frying: Within frying processes, our PTFE conveyor belts provide the ideal solution for effortlessly transporting food products through the frying oil.
Freezing: Our PTFE conveyor belts also prove their worth in freezing processes, offering non-stick and longlasting flexibility.
Packaging: Our high-quality PTFE products are used in a variety of packaging machines.
PTFE conveyor belts are an essential component in various processes within the carpet industry due to their unique properties. With a focus on sustainability, heat resistance, and release characteristics, our PTFE conveyor belts are widely used in various processes within the carpet industry:
Reverse Coating: Liquid PVC or rubber is raked into an even and thin layer on our continuously rotating belt. Next, felt is placed on top or coconut is inserted, after which the whole assembly cools and hardens. At the end of the line, the product easily releases from our PTFE belt due to the non-stick feature.
Drying: Carpet rolls that have just been painted dry in a throughput oven at 180 °C on our PTFE mesh belts.
PTFE conveyor belts are an essential component in various processes within the can industry due to their unique properties. The belts have a long lifespan and result in significantly lower energy consumption compared to steel belts. With a focus on sustainability, heat resistance, and low heat absorption, our PTFE mesh belts are used in two key processes in the can industry:
IBO: After the cans have received a layer of lacquer, they dry in the Internal Bake Oven on our PTFE-coated glass fabric belts. We provide the mesh belts with a minimally disruptive mechanical joint or ensure a strong and smooth sealed joint so that the cans stay stable and pass through the oven without issues.
Washer: Once the cans have been washed, they dry on our PTFE-coated Kevlar or Kevlar/glass fabric belts. This material is highly resistant to moisture and the heat in the oven. We equip these mesh belts with a minimally disruptive mechanical joined or a strong and smooth sealed joint.
PTFE conveyor belts, PTFE sealing belts, and PTFE tapes and sheets are essential components in various processes within the packaging industry due to their unique properties.
Air Cushions: Air cushions are often used to fill empty space in boxes. The cushions are inflated just before use and then sealed shut with our small, thin yet strong PTFE laminate strips.
Sealing Machines: The sealing of plastic bags occurs in almost every company. To ensure that the plastic does not stick to the steel sealing wire, the sealing wire is covered with our PTFE tape.
Paper Pulp Packaging: After pressing the paper pulp into the desired shape, it is efficiently dried on our open mesh belts.
Shrink Tunnels: Products are transported on our PTFE belts through a shrink tunnel while a plastic package is shrunk around them.
Blister Packaging: The mold for the blister packaging can be lined with our self-adhesive PTFE sheets or tapes. Additionally, the mold can also be made entirely from on of our treated silicone plates that does not adhere to the plastic.
PTFE mesh belts are essential in the drying process of screen printing applications. Standard PTFE mesh belts are often used in air drying tunnels, while antistatic coated PTFE mesh belts are preferred in UV drying tunnels. Our conveyor belts stand out due to their exceptionally long lifespan, making them perfectly suited for these demanding applications.
PTFE conveyor belts, PTFE sheets and PTFE tapes are widely used in the automotive industry due to their unique properties. Many processes require materials with high temperature resistance and non-stick properties. Our PTFE products meet strict specifications, which we continuously monitor to prevent deviations and ensure consistent quality.
Laminating: To manufacture the interior lining of cars, multiple thin layers of materials are laminated together. This process requires materials that can withstand high temperatures and leave no adhesive traces. We offer a wide range of PTFE belts in various lengths and widths, perfectly tailored to meet the specific demands of these applications.
Thermoforming: In the production of automotive floor coverings, shelf panels or floor plates, plastic fibers are used. These fibers are heated on our PTFE belts or between rollers that are covered with PTFE tape until they melt and form a non-woven material. This material can then easily be further processed and shaped into the desired form, ensuring an efficient and reliable production process.
PTFE sheets, FEP and PFA shrink tubes, PTFE conveyor belts, and PTFE tapes are essential materials in the plastics and foam industry due to their exceptional properties such as excellent temperature resistance, smooth or structured surfaces, durability and non-stick capabilities. These versatile products are used in various industrial applications where reliability and durability are crucial.
Foam production: Our PTFE conveyor belts are widely used in the expansion of plastics into foam. In some applications, they serve as support belts for the product, while in other processes, they function as conveyor belts within an expansion oven. Whether it concerns mesh belts or solid belts, it is essential that the seams leave no imprint on the product to guarantee a perfect product.
Custom solutions: We provide custom-cut PTFE sheets that fit perfectly in molds, on plates or between machines. These sheets provide a surface where products easily release, leading to more efficient processes and easier cleaning. This is ideal for production environments where non-stick properties and hygiene are of great importance.
Mirror Welding: When connecting two plastic profiles, mirror welding is often used. In this process, the ends of the profiles are heated and then pressed together. To prevent the molten plastic from sticking to the welding mirror, we supply custom-cut PTFE sheets. These sheets cover the welding mirror and ensure that no adhesion occurs, which extends the lifespan of the equipment and results in a more efficient welding process.
Our products not only help you optimize your production processes but also contribute to a longer lifespan for your equipment and lower maintenance costs. With our experience in providing custom solutions, we can meet the unique demands of your production environment.
PTFE conveyor belts, PTFE sheets and PTFE tapes are vital components in the composite industry due to their excellent heat resistance, smooth or structured surfaces, and non-stick properties. These high-quality products are used in demanding processes such as pressing, laminating, melting, thermoforming and curing of composites. In all these processes precision, reliability, and durability are crucial.
Laminating: During the laminating of composites in a flatbed laminator or a double-belt press, our PTFE conveyor belts ensure that the material being laminated does not stick to the heating plates. Due to the very thin PTFE conveyor belts, the temperature transmission from the heating plates (and further down the machine from the cooling plates) to the product is very good.
Vacuum Forming: During the preheating of composites, our PTFE glass fabric ensures that the composite does not stick to the heating plate. The thin PTFE glass fabric allows for effective heat transfer from the heating plate to the composite being preheated.
Custom solutions: We provide custom-cut PTFE sheets that fit perfectly in molds or on pressing plates. These sheets act as a separation layer and ensure that composite materials easily release after pressing or laminating. This leads to more efficient production processes and minimizes the need for time-consuming cleaning.
Our custom PTFE solutions not only optimize your production processes but also contribute to a longer lifespan of your equipment and lower maintenance costs. With our years of experience in the composite industry, we can accurately respond to the unique needs of your production environment, ensuring that you can always rely on top quality.
Our FEP and PFA shrink tubes are widely used in paper mills to prevent wet paper from sticking to the lead or broad-stretch rollers during the production process. FEP and PFA offer almost the same excellent properties as PTFE, but with the added advantage of being easily installed as shrink tubes.
Thanks to our mobile installation frame, we can install the shrink tubes both in our workshop and on-site. Standard FEP or PFA shrink tubes can be fitted on rollers up to 5 meters in length and up to 500 mm in diameter. For larger rollers, we provide and install custom solutions. More on FEP & PFA shrink tubes
PTFE sheets play a crucial role in the pressing and laminating of lightweight panels that are essential in aircraft construction. These panels are used for the construction of walls, floors, ceilings, and other interior components, such as meal carts. Thanks to their excellent heat resistance and non-stick properties, our PTFE sheets provide an ideal solution during production processes where precision and reliability are required.
When manufacturing aerospace components, lightweight composites are often chosen to reduce weight and improve fuel efficiency without compromising strength and safety. Our PTFE sheets and rolls are used as a separation layer during the laminating and pressing of these panels, resulting in a smooth and perfectly finished surface. This ensures that the panels can be easily removed from the mold, enhancing production efficiency and minimizing costly downtime.
PTFE conveyor belts are utilized in various processes within the PV industry, where durability is often critical due to the heavy loads involved in these applications.
Laminator: In the production of solar panels, glass sheets, solar cells and backing layers are laminated together under high temperature and pressure. For this process, we provide different PTFE conveyor belts and cover sheets made from PTFE-coated kevlar or glass fabric that can withstand extreme conditions.
Stringer Machine: During the assembly of solar cells into strings —rows of interconnected cells— the cells are soldered together on a PTFE conveyor belt. Our thin, narrow, and sometimes perforated PTFE belts are specially designed for this fully automated and delicate process.
PTFE conveyor belts are indispensable in the extrusion of rubber profiles. The profiles come directly from the extruder onto our narrow, long PTFE belts and are then passed through a microwave or continuous oven, where the vulcanization process occurs. Due to the extreme temperatures, high demands are placed on the joints of the belts. We have developed various seams that are selected based on the specific requirements and composition of the rubber profile.
Our PTFE conveyor belts and sheets are widely used in various recycling processes, thanks to their excellent temperature resistance and non-stick properties. These materials are ideal for demanding applications where high temperatures, sticky materials or heavy loads are involved.
Paper Pulp Packaging: During the processing of paper pulp, our open mesh belts are used to efficiently dry the pulp into the desired shape after pressing. The open structure of the mesh belt allows for optimal air circulation and uniform drying, which is crucial for a high-quality end product.
Foam Recycling: For recycling foam, we have developed special PTFE conveyor belts that can withstand the high temperatures, pressure, and tensile forces involved in the process. Pieces of recycled foam are melted together on these belts to form thick, sturdy mats. The excellent thermal properties of our belts ensure efficient processing without distortion of the material.
Our PTFE conveyor belts, PTFE tapes, and PTFE sheets play a crucial role in various applications within the nonwoven industry. From automotive components and air filters to dishcloths and diaper filling, our products are used to process nonwoven materials efficiently and reliably.
We offer a wide range of PTFE belts specifically designed for the unique demands of nonwoven production. For general applications, we provide the standard 1306 belt (4×4 mesh PTFE-coated glass fabric), as well as the specially developed T008 belt (3×2 mesh PTFE-coated Technora-glass fabric) for heavier conditions. Our belts range from a few centimeters to over 5 meters in width and can be made up to 200 meters long, making them suitable for both small-scale and large-scale production processes.
Thanks to the exceptional temperature resistance and non-stick properties of PTFE, our conveyor belts ensure smooth production without materials sticking, even in the most challenging processes. Whether producing household products or industrial materials, our solutions deliver optimal performance and durability.
