Conveyor skirting is an important enough component to an aggregate or mining operation that it seems odd to find it is often a point of cost-cutting. Ripped or torn skirting can mean rock and sand everywhere, or escaping dust endangering workers' health. It can mean hours of labor cleaning up the spillage and a line shut down until the skirting is repaired or replaced-cutting into profits. In conveyors, the main source of trouble is the skirting material. In an effort to save costs, officials from Argonics Inc. contend, many companies are using rubber. Its potential pitfalls include a high amount of friction created between the skirting and the conveyor belt resulting in drag, overworked conveyor motors, and wear. Rubber is also porous, allowing fines to become embedded in the skirting. In effect, the skirting becomes abrasive and wears down the top cover of the conveyor belt.
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