Modern Mining December 2018

PRODUCT News

Switch to NSK bearings delivers savings

groove ball bearings were inadequate. In this regard, the engineering team recommended changing to NSKHPS high-performance spheri- cal roller bearings, which offer a specification far more suited to the demanding operating environment. NSKHPS bearings are specifically designed to carry greater loads and operate at higher temperatures. With these attributes, users can achieve better service life and enhanced reliability, as the UK company soon discovered. As a result of it making the switch to NSKHPS spheri- cal roller bearings on its autoclave bogie wheel assembly, the need for ongoing maintenance has been totally eliminated, substantially reducing collateral dam- age to the surrounding components. In total, the customer has saved €138 382 in reduced bearing, maintenance and hard- ware costs. Established 100 years ago, NSK (Nippon

When a UK-based company was experi- encing constant bearing failures on an autoclave bogie wheel assembly, expert guidance from NSK was sought to resolve the issue. On average, the customer was witness- ing bearing failures on the 10 axles of the autoclave bogie wheel assembly every two to three weeks. To make matters worse, the failures of the deep groove ball bearings were resulting in damage to the surround- ing hardware (housings and axles), which in turn would lead to high labour and parts costs as components needed regular replacement. NSK’s team of expert engineers per- formed a failed bearing analysis, during which it could be determined that the ingress of hard particulates and mois- ture, combined with excessive load, was the root cause of the premature bearing failures. Concluding its application review, NSK could clearly show that the original deep

NSKHPS spherical roller bearings can carry greater loads and operate at higher temperatures. Seiko Kabushiki Kaisha) is a Japanese- listed company that has evolved from a regional ball bearing supplier to a roller bearing specialist and automotive sup- plier with a global market presence. Today, NSK has more than 31 860 employees in 30 countries. NSK, website: www.nskeurope.com