NSK Case Study

Application

Continuous Casting Machine

Cost Savings: $15,922

A steel maker was experiencing problems with their continuous casting machine. The life of a roll segment Cylindrical Roller Bearing was only one to two months. The casting machine had a very complicated cooling and lubricating piping system. The mill was realizing significant maintenance costs due to the complexity of reconnecting the piping system. NSK proposed to assemble the rollers of one segment with Sealed Spherical Roller Bearings equipped with high-temperature grease. The suggested changes offered significant improvements in bearing performance and reduced maintenance cost.

Key Facts

Continuous casting machine
Long replacement time for Cylindrical Roller Bearing with oil lubrication due to complicated piping system
NSK Solution: Sealed Spherical Roller Bearings
Significant increase in operating life / reduced maintenance downtime and associated costs
Eco-friendly, sealed-clean bearing operation
Eco-friendly due to lack of contamination from equipment
Reduction in maintenance time and cost

Continuous Casting Machine

Value Proposals

NSK analyzed the application and proposed to install Sealed Spherical Roller Bearings in a trial segment
With the new bearings, dismantling and re-installation of the oil piping system was eliminated
Eco-friendly system reduced oil consumption; bearings pre-filled with high-temperature grease
Bearing replacement was reduced from 20 hours to 10
Bearing operating life was increased from 2 to 4 months

Product Features

Special “outward-extending, spring-loaded lip seal”
Nitride rubber seal – or differing seals depending on temperature needs
Special long-life grease: heat and pressure resistant
Symmetrical roller and raceway design to prevent edge loading problems
Special chamfer configuration for smooth axial movement
Seal retains grease, offering longer running time with improved efficiency
Reduction in grease consumption and no leaks due to special seal provides cleaner working environments
Increased uptime
Sealed Spherical
Roller Bearing

Cost-Saving Breakdown

  Before Cost NSK Solution Cost  
  6 Sets of bearings per segment per year $27,016 3 Sets of bearings per segment per year $30,393  
  6 replacement intervals per year, 20 hours per replacement (including dismantling and re-installation of the oil piping system) $32,162 3 replacement intervals per year, 10 hours per replacement $12,863  
  Total Costs $59,178 Total Costs $43,256  
Before Cost
6 Sets of bearings per segment per year $27,016
6 replacement intervals per year, 20 hours per replacement (including dismantling and re-installation of the oil piping system) $32,162
Total Costs $59,178
NSK Solution Cost
3 Sets of bearings per segment per year
 
$30,393
3 replacement intervals per year, 10 hours per replacement $12,863
Total Costs $43,256

Your Partner for Machine Optimization

Our AIP Added Value Program is based around a simple proposition: ‘improvement pays’. By working with you throughout the AIP Value Cycle, we will help you achieve improvements in machine reliability, productivity and performance, all of which carry a tangible and measurable cost benefit – and we have the tools to prove it! That’s what we mean by improvement pays.