• Article date:

Are You Ready to Roll?

As one of the world’s largest bearing manufacturers backed by over a century of manufacturing excellence, NSK solutions today help customers worldwide achieve optimal rotational motion. The company continuously develops its comprehensive line-up of premium quality ball and roller bearings to last longer and perform better, delivering genuine added value for users.

We know from experience that NSK ball bearings, for example, are synonymous with long service life, proving ideal for use in high-speed applications featuring low to moderate loads. In contrast, the NSK range of roller bearings are perfect for conveying heavy loads at slow to moderate speeds. With these two product offerings we can meet the requirements of almost any rotational motion application.

Whole new ball game

Beginning with ball bearings, the NSK range is wide and varied, embracing deep groove, angular contact, double-row angular contact and self-aligning types.

Prominent among this range are NSK deep groove ball bearings, industry’s most common form of rolling bearing. Finding use in many applications, particularly those where high speeds and low power loss are required, NSK deep groove ball bearings can handle not only radial forces, but also moderate axial loads in both directions. Deployable in a variety of configurations, we can testify that these bearings are easy to install.

Among the many product features and benefits of NSK deep groove ball bearings is the cage. A number of different cage types are available to suit your application needs, made from steel, solid brass or polymer. NSK even recently announced that it had developed the world’s first 100% bioplastic heat-resistant cage for rolling bearings, reducing lifecycle CO2 emissions by 91%.

As for the bearing raceways and rings, the use of high-quality steel is matched using advanced NSK lubricant technology. Further attributes include super-finished raceways to minimise noise and improve lubricant distribution and life, while the use of high-grade balls also contributes to quiet and smooth operation, even at high speeds. Of course, all NSK deep groove ball bearings are subject to 100% testing to ensure total product quality.

Seal of quality

A particular feature of NSK deep groove ball bearings is the variety of available seal technologies, providing resistance to contamination in the toughest operating environments.

NSK is a specialist in bearing sealing technology, offering a vast range of bearing closures that include metallic shields and polymeric seals for years of trouble-free service. Tightly controlled clearances and patented labyrinth designs not only deliver high level sealing performance, but also minimum torque and power loss.

Several different seal/shield designs and materials are available, each developed to meet the specific needs of your application. NSK seals offer varying degrees of contamination resistance and drag characteristics, including full-contact DU seals, light-contact DW seals and non-contact V seals. So, whether it’s a conveyor roll demanding contamination resistance or an electric motor that requires sealing capability without compromising energy efficiency, it’s easy to provide the right closure for your application.

High rollers

Just like ball bearings, we can also provide a wide range of NSK roller bearings, including cylindrical, taper, needle and spherical variants.

NSK cylindrical roller bearings are available with various rib configurations, to accommodate different applications and assembly methods, including N, NU, NJ and NUP for single row and NN or NNU for double row, available with patented high-strength cage designs in pressed steel, machined brass, or polyamide.  These bearings offer low noise and heat generation, and - by virtue of the line contact between the rolling elements and raceways - have high radial load capacity and suitability for high-speed applications.

Cylindrical roller bearings are often deployed as free end bearings, as axial displacement between rings is possible, except for designs with ribs on both rings.  Axial load support is possible in a single direction for three rib configurations such as NJ, with system location and axial load support in both directions from four rib designs including NUP and NH.  Double-row cylindrical roller bearings offer high radial rigidity and are a popular choice for precision machine tools.

Sphere of opportunity

Also prominent in the roller range is the NSK series of spherical roller bearings, which can withstand even the most demanding conditions, resisting seizure and wear, despite constant vibration, misalignment, and shock loads. They maintain dimensional stability, even up to temperatures up to 200°C and can support high radial loads and moderate axial loads. What’s more, performance enhancements include extremely tight radial clearance tolerance, extra precision on the bore and outside diameter, and super-finished, specially heat-treated rollers with superior shock load capacity. 

Conspicuous among the spherical roller bearing range is the NSKHPS (High Performance Standard) series. NSKHPS Spherical Roller Bearings are optimized by design to deliver higher load carrying capacity, operate with higher limiting speeds, and perform reliably for a longer operating life. In conventional applications, their high-performance capacity can also enable downsizing the design envelope for machinery and equipment. 

Furthermore, designs for the most arduous operating conditions are available, including vibratory specifications for screens, sealed options for highly contaminated environments, thorough to Molded-Oil lubrication technology for wet conditions and extra tough patented alloys such as TL steel (tough and long life) for applications where high temperature differentials would normally cause inner ring fracture to occur, such as dryer and calendar rolls in the paper sector.  Whatever the environment, NSK has a solution…….

Added value

Here at Acorn we can help you overcome all of your bearing challenges in sectors that include steelmaking, machine tools, papermaking, automotive, mining, construction, wind turbine, rail, medical devices, agriculture, food and beverage, pumps and compressors, and motors and gearboxes, to list but a few. Whatever the application, we have an NSK ball or roller bearing that can add value to your project.


About NSK Europe

NSK Europle Ltd. is the European organisation of the Tokyo-based bearing manufacturer NSK, which was founded in Japan in 1916 and today employs around 30,400 people in its worldwide operations. The products and solutions provided by industrial and automotive suppliers can be found wherever things move. In addition to nearly all types of rolling bearings, the company's portfolio includes housed bearings, linear technology, wheel bearing units, transmission and engine bearings and steering systems. The company is oriented to perfection in all of its business activities. Its aim is quality leadership in its industry, which it strives for throuugh a continuous process of improvement, excellent product development, optimised production processes and customer-generated sales of over €792 million.

www.nskeurope.com


You may also be interested in:

The History of the Bearing

New bearing solution leads to extra cake

Featured App: NSK Verify