PROCESS EQUIPMENT UPDATE
BEARINGS BEST PRACTICE IN
Optimise bearings to avoid production downtime
the grease durably incorporated in a carrier medium. Within the framework of AIP, NSK
can perform on-site inspection of both bearings and operating conditions. Company experts then make a specifi c proposal on which bearings to use, supporting their recommendation with a cost analysis.
PERFECT ILLUSTRATION A case in point can be seen at a German automotive manufacturer, where motor spindle bearings frequently required replacement in 15 identical production centres. NSK discovered that the premature
components that, over a period of time, become susceptible to wear. With this in mind, it is particularly important to include bearings when developing a maintenance plan, as this strategy will help extend the operating life of machinery or equipment. Correct installation with the right tool is an important contributor to ensuring that bearings operate perfectly for an extensive period. Ignoring this factor can have major consequences. For instance, the failure of just a single bearing can often cause the stoppage of entire manufacturing systems or production lines. Diff erent approaches to best practice bearing care are summarised by NSK as part of its AIP Added Value Programme. With up to 20% of all bearing issues caused by incorrect installation, maintenance staff should fi rst be properly
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earings are highly stressed drive
trained and, secondly, use the right tools. For this reason, NSK provides training courses for customer maintenance departments. With the maintenance and service package AIP+, NSK off ers high quality, workable tools for facilitating the typical bearing tasks found in industry. T e portfolio includes mechanical and hydraulic assembly tools, as well as induction heaters. If bearings have a tendency to fail while machines are in mid-operation, it is often because the optimal bearing type was not selected, or they have not been correctly adapted to the application and/ or environmental conditions. Typical examples are machines that need frequent cleaning, such as those in the food- processing sector. Cleaning with jets of high-pressure water or steam causes grease to be fl ushed out, and contamination to penetrate the bearings. However, these problems can be overcome by using NSK´s Molded-Oil bearings, which have
failures were caused by external contamination and suggested using sealed high-precision bearings. As a result, bearing failures were reduced dramatically: service life increased from 12 months to more than 36, which in turn delivered annual savings of slightly more than €50,000 in installation costs alone. As an alternative strategy, condition monitoring represents a more preventative approach to prolonging the service life of bearings. NSK also off ers this service
Induction heaters are part of NSK’s portfolio of tools used for bearing tasks
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