Timing belts distributing chocolates

In the Hamburg Miniature Wonderland a BRECO® AT5 polyurethane timing belt is showing its sweet tooth

In the section "Switzerland", address "Transparent Chocolate Plant" of the world's largest model railway at a 1:87 scale built in the Hamburg "Speicherstadt quarter", the eight year old has pushed a round request key and is now impatiently waiting for a minute, with his face all beaming, for a small chocolate bar wrapped in gold foil to appear in a container carrying the brand name of a well-known Swiss chocolate manufacturer. "This is the most desirable golden box we have on offer on the 250 square meter Swiss section. Always surrounded by people, and mostly the first point of attraction in our miniature wonderland", explains Gitta Ahrndt, laughing. She is head of the control centre, from where the visual, electronic and informative strings of the currently about 1,150 sqm model surface with its 830 trains, more than 11,000 railway carriages, 900 signals and countless actions merge.

Control centre: Master of every detail

Gitta Ahrndt, head of the control centre of the world's largest model railway, at a model of an event by pop idol „DJ Bobo“ being part of the "Swiss" section. Currently, the control centre pilots seven construction stages. When inaugurated in August 2001, the model railway featured the "Harz Mountains", "Knuffingen" and "Alpine Country/Austria". In November 2007 the highlight "Switzerland" was presented: Huge mountains towering over three stories high, alpine pastures, lakes, railway stations, mountain railways, towns and thousands of miniature Swiss people and cars populate miniature Switzerland in three canton replicas.

Here at the control centre with its large number of monitors, control panels and radio connections the situation is calm composure. Yet, it does not take much to surmise the technology and extraordinary solutions behind the 500,000 working hours and more than 10 million euros invested so far in this beautiful model landscape lovingly created down to the most minute detail.

BRECO® AT5 has solved a tricky transport problem

Taking the Swiss chocolate plant as an example, René Heesch, head of the "Electronics and Precision Mechanics" department, explains why it was so important to get into contact with a partner like Mulco-Europe EWIV-Mitglied Wilhelm Herm. Müller GmbH & Co. KG and its account representative and technical field adviser Thomas Pollmann of the Hamburg branch at the right time. "We have put tremendous efforts into self-built solutions in order to solve the problem. We were tinkering, we tried coatings and rubber surfaces. Only to fail time and time again after a short while".

Eventually, in cooperation with the Mulco partner and polyurethane timing belt manufacturer Breco Antriebstechnik (Porta Westfalica) a drive was developed on the basis on the Breco AT5 high-performance timing belt with synchronising pulleys and flanges.

Breco AT5 timing belt in operation. The chocolate bars from the underground depot lie separated on the light barrier controlled separating belt and drop one by one onto the transport belt and move towards the pick-up dish when selected by push-button. But it was not just the "drive", which was crucial, remembers René Heesch. "At the same time, the timing belts also had to function as transport belts. More than 250,000 chocolate bars in their gold foil need to be transported each year from the depot beneath the plant, one at a time, triggered by the visitors to the chocolate plant". The impulse is transmitted to the depot constantly holding 2,000 small chocolate bars by way of a sophisticated control system through light barriers. The chocolate bars are picked up by a rubber coated Breco AT 5 polyurethane timing belt RP 400 from this point. Two further timing belts separate the chocolate bars through light barriers and PLC controls to make sure that only one bar drops into the "golden dish" at the ejection point. From the basement up to the transparent factory a 30 degree gradient has to be overcome", adds René Heesch.

The "ideal solution"

The timing belts, which despite their very small bending radius are extremely low wearing and silent running (ejection belt 75 mm wide and 1,200 mm long, endless, centre belt 800 mm long / 65 mm wide) are the „ideal solution“. The more so, as the yellow RP 400 coating "offers exactly the right friction coefficient" to prevent the chocolate bars from slipping off the belts, a problem that could not be overcome with previous solutions. Gitta Ahrndt adds: "Jams and malfunctions beneath the chocolate plant were daily fare, and very much disliked by my staff and myself in the control centre".

The dream began in the year 2000

In the forefront, the "Dream of the world's largest model railway" realised by the 42 year old twin brothers Frederik and Gerrit Braun in 2000 has, of course, emerged from the congenial combination of phantasy, creativity and business concept. However, backstage reality is dominated by "mastered perfection" thanks to thousands of electronic, mechanic and digital individual high-tech solutions".

More than 220 employees ensure that today, in this sector, Hamburg's Miniature Wonderland counts among the three largest events in Europe. Breco AT5-timing belts operating in the background, will continue making their almost silent contribution.

Mulco-Europe EWIV
Garbsen, 13th of September, 2010

Go to the Online Product Catalogue