How a unique leaf chain tracking number saves you time and money

Often in business it’s the small details that make all the difference, details that save time and money and transform a difficult complex task into something easy.

When you need to replace a leaf chain on a vital piece of equipment like a telehander or forklift, you may almost certainly need it replaced quickly and with minimum disruption to production. You don’t want to waste time trying to identify which type of leaf chain you need, it’s length and other specifications.

Being able to identify the correct leaf chain accurately and quickly, enables faster delivery of replacement leaf chain. Without the relevant information this can be much more difficult than it needs to be.

Recently we were sorting through some old leaf chains that a customer had asked us to identify they included leaf chains made by a number of manufacturers. On investigation we noticed that there were two completely different leaf chain types made by the same company but stamped with an identical tracking number. This would indicate that they probably used the same tracking number for all leaf chains produced in a certain period. While this is an easy to apply system it does not allow an individual leaf chain to be identified and trying to do so would take considerably more time and effort.  

What distinguishes each batch of FB leaf chain is a unique number both on the test certificate and on a highly visible plate on the leaf chain itself. This means that each and every leaf chain can be traced back through all stages of manufacturing to its very beginnings as a basic raw material and heat-treatment process. For us, a batch of leaf chain ranges from 100 to 2,000 metres and even if we make the same leaf chain multiple times in a month, each one will have a different batch number.

Selecting a leaf chain supplier where you can match the test certificate to the tracking number on the leaf chain will ensure that you can make an accurate assessment of leaf chain performance and use the data to calculate a leaf chain’s probable working life. Over time, this will allow you to become more efficient in your planned maintenance programme ultimately increasing the life of the leaf chain reducing costs and disruption.

We maintain comprehensive records as part of this tracking system, so if you provide us with a tracking number from one of our leaf chains, we can quickly identify the leaf chain type. By cross-referencing this with your customer account number, we can drill down to the date of supply on your customer order and even your fleet number if it was supplied at the time of order.

It is important to note that many leaf chain suppliers have removed tracking plates from their leaf chain altogether and matching a leaf chain to its manufacturing data is therefore impossible. 

The tracking plates and unique test certificates provided by FB Chain gives you peace of mind. Buying from FB Chain means that you can be assured that your leaf chain supplier is capable of providing the full traceability that a safety-critical item like leaf chain demands.