FORMBAND FOR EN PRESS FOR UTOVNING AV YTPRESSNING

A press for forming a traveling compacted web from initially uncompacted material has upper and lower continuously traveling metal belt spans vertically interspaced so the material can be carried between the spans. Each span has means for directly heating it conductively and for pressing it towards the other span for compacting and heating the material when carried between the spans. Side edge portions of the spans overhang the heating and pressure means to protect the latter from being contaminated by the material while it is in its uncompacted condition and during its compaction. These overhanging portions are not heated directly and are colder than the balance of the spans during operation of the press. Normally this results in the side edge portions being stressed undesirably by tension and other stresses. To overcome this, the side portions of the belt spans are made so that they are longer when the belts are at ambient temperature, so that when the belt areas between the side edge portions are heated with consequent longitundinal expansion, the side edge portions are substantially freed from tension and other stresses.