Industrial components manufacturer The Timken Company hopes to prompt a revolution with its recent introduction of medium-bore high-performance spherical roller bearings, including new steel cage sizes.

"Customers have made spherical roller bearings an increasingly important element of our core product line. Now they can choose from an even greater selection of sizes featuring steel or brass cages," says Timken product line VP Amanda Montgomery.

Spherical roller bearings are widely used in process industry equipment, including continuous casters, crushers, vibratory screens, excavation loaders and conveyors.

In designing the company's high-performance spherical roller bearing offering, Timken engineers added a number of special features that contribute to longer bearing life. Cage pockets –  rather than a centre guide ring – are used to guide the bearing rollers, eliminating a friction point. Further, the proven design reduces operating temperatures by an average of 5 ˚C, compared with competitor products.

Testing also showed that eliminating the centre guide ring reduces running torque by up to 4%. Without a guide ring, less friction is created, so less energy is needed to move the bearing and keep it moving, which means improved efficiency. 

These features can contribute to longer bearing life, resulting in a product designed to minimise wear through improved profiles, which reduces internal stresses and optimises load distribution.

Longer rollers give more surface area to carry the load, enabling Timken customers to do more and operate with heavier loads, while the enhanced surface finish results in improved lube film, avoiding metal-to-metal contact to keep things running cooler.

Timken’s hardened steel cages are designed to deliver greater fatigue strength, increased wear resistance and tougher protection against shock and acceleration, making it possible for the bearing to run longer.

The company website offers downloads of two-dimensional drawings and three-dimensional models to assist customers in selecting Timken spherical roller bearings, as additions to presentations, or for direct insertion into a computer-aided design (CAD) system.

An interactive catalogue with extensive product information and a comprehensive list of spherical roller bearings and accessories are also available on the website.

Established in 1899, The Timken Company engineers, manufactures and markets bearings, transmissions, gearboxes, chains and related products, offering a spectrum of powertrain rebuild and repair services.

As a leading authority on tapered roller bearings, Timken  applies its deep knowledge of metallurgy, tribology and mechanical power transmission across a variety of bearings and related systems to improve reliability and efficiency of machinery and equipment worldwide. The company's growing products and services portfolio features many strong industrial brands including Timken, Fafnir, and Philadelphia Gear and Drives.

Known for its quality products and collaborative technical sales model, Timken posted $3.1-billion in sales in 2014. With about 16 000 people operating from 28 countries, Timken aims to make the world more productive and to keep industry in motion.