Engineering company SKF has extended its range of sealed spherical roller bearings, significantly increasing the number of applications where they can be used. Due to their sealed construction, the bearings can reduce maintenance, while offering consistently high performance under demanding conditions. In most cases, the sealed variant is dimensionally interchangeable with open bearings enabling applications to be upgraded simply and cost effectively.

During installation, maintenance and operation, open bearings can be exposed to contaminants, which can significantly reduce bearing service life. With sealed SKF spherical roller bearings a high degree of cleanliness is maintained inside the bearing, to significantly increase bearing service life. In contaminated environments, sealed bearings can last up to four times as long as open spherical roller bearings.

As is the case with all SKF Explorer spherical roller bearings, the sealed variant has a number of features that make them excellent for use in demanding applications. The complete Explorer range has been upgraded with a new patented heat treat process, further increasing service life in contaminated environments or poor lubrication conditions.

Under certain operating conditions, sealed SKF Explorer spherical roller bearings do not require relubrication.

Since the bearings do not require external seals in all but the most aggressive environments, installation is simplified, further reducing downtime and maintenance costs.

Additionally, the seals virtually eliminate the risk of lubricant leakage often associated with conventional open bearings and external seals, minimizing their environmental impact.

Sealed SKF Explorer spherical roller bearings feature acrylonitrile-butadiene double lip seals and high quality SKF grease. A high temperature variant with hydrogenated acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber seals and high temperature SKF grease is also available.

SKF is a leading global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems, and services, which includes technical support, maintenance and reliability services, engineering consulting and training. SKF is represented in more than 130 countries and has around 15 000 distributor locations worldwide.