A leading manufacturer of products made of carbon, graphite and composite materials for industrial and aerospace applications, was experiencing a short service life from Stainless Steel bearings situated at either end of rollers, used in the 'Surface Treatment' process. On average the bearings failed every 6 weeks, taking two engineers 1 hour each time to replace and incurring a loss of production amounting to €1230 each time. NSK Engineers examined the application and determined that the caustic solution used in the Surface Treatment process was the cause of premature bearing failure. NSK recommended replacing the Stainless Steel bearings with NSK AQUA bearings. After an initial trial period of 3 months with bearings on 1 roller, the customer was confident to replace all bearings. The bearings are still operating successfully after 8 months and subsequent orders have been placed for an alternative machine.
| Before | Cost p.a. | NSK Solution | Cost p.a. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bearing costs: Replacement every 6 weeks |
€ 2.188 | Bearing Costs: Replaced once |
€ 547 | |
| Labour costs: 2 x operators x 1 hour x 8 times/year @ €21/hour |
€ 336 | Labour Costs: 2 x operators x 1 hour x once/year @ €21/hour |
€ 42 | |
| Loss of production cost: | € 9.840 | Loss of production cost: | € 0 | |
| Total Costs | € 12 364 | € 589 | ||
Reference:SS-E-2009
