One bearing unit replaces four components A specially designed bearing unit saves storage space - and money - for the agricultural manufacturer Lemken. The cutter tine rotor of Lemken’s Zirkon 10 power harrow was previously designed with a standard deep groove ball bearing. A radial oil seal running on the inner race of a needle roller bearing and a felt seal in a metal housing were arranged next to the deep groove ball bearing. Each of these four components had to be handled and fitted separately. The objective of having a new design made was to reduce the costs. NKE proposed a unit in which the external seals were already integrated in the bearing. Based on a standard deep groove ball bearing 6212, the resulting bearing features an RS synthetic rubber seal on one side, a radial oil seal between the outer and inner races as well as a felt seal with a metal cap on the other. The design changes required from Lemken were minimal: only one snap ring groove had to be relocated. Thanks to the new design, only a single part has to be purchased and fitted now instead of the four components previously required. In this way spares stock is reduced, and purchasing, storage and installation is simplified. The special bearing was developed by NKE in cooperation with Lemken’s design engineers. Before its use in serial production, a sample batch was field tested for about a year. Lemken’s managing director Dr. Franz- Georg von Busse commented on the cooperation with NKE: "We appreciate the expertise and competence of our contacts at NKE, their flexibility in dealing with fluctuating demand and solving technical problems and not least the good price/performance ratio." Speed Link InfoService Request more information by e-mail Reader Service No. Reader Number Email Address 00923    Tell a friend about this article:
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