NSK Case Study
Application
Pilger Mill
Cost Savings: $171,419
A steel mill customer was experiencing regular failures on bearings in their Pilger Mill. NSK investigated the application and found that severe operating conditions including high loads and inadequate lubrication were causing the failures. NSK proposed a special Spherical Roller Bearing with optimized internal design and Super Tough (STF) steel. A trial demonstrated performance improvements of dramatically longer bearing life and a corresponding reduction in maintenance costs.
PDF DownloadKey Facts
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Pilger Mill application |
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Premature bearing failure as a result of heavy loads and severe operating conditions |
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NSK solution: special Spherical Roller Bearings made with STF steel |
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Bearings achieved 2 times longer operating life than conventional design employed previously |
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Reduced maintenance and plant stoppage |
Value Proposals
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NSK Engineering performed an application review |
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Bearing operating life increased twofold |
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Reduction in maintenance hours, with elimination of unexpected bearing failures and unplanned downtime |
Seamless Stainless Steel Pipe and Tubes
Product Features
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Advanced Super-TF material composition containing appropriate levels of chrome and molybdenum for increased hardness |
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Innovative heat treatment technology to optimize retained austenite and formation of finer carbide and carbonitride particles |
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Significantly outperforms standard bearing steel |
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Up to 10 times service life with contaminated lubrication; 2 times in clean lubrication |
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Up to 4 times the service life at 160°C/320°F |
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Less than one-third the rate of wear |
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40% improvement in seizure resistance |
of STF steel composition
Cost-Savings Breakdown
| Before | Cost | NSK Solution | Cost | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Bearing replacement | $23,357 | Bearing replacement | $9,433 | ||
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Lost production: 2 hours x $2,412/hr x 52/year | $250,848 | Lost production: 2 hours x $2,412/hr x 21/year | $101,304 | ||
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Labor: $33/hr x 2 hrs x 2 persons x 52/year | $6,864 | Labor: $33/hr x 2 hrs x 2 persons x 21/year | $2,772 | ||
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Other material replacement | $4,288 | Other material replacement | $429 | ||
| Total Costs | $285,357 | Total Costs | $113,938 | |||
| Before | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
|
Bearing replacement | $23,357 |
|
Lost production: 2 hours x $2,412/hr x 52/year | $250,848 |
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Labor: $33/hr x 2 hrs x 2 persons x 52/year | $6,864 |
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Other material replacement | $4,288 |
| Total Costs | $285,357 | |
| NSK Solution | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
|
Bearing replacement |
$9,433 |
|
Lost production: 2 hours x $2,412/hr x 21/year | $101,304 |
|
Labor: $33/hr x 2 hrs x 2 persons x 21/year | $2,772 |
|
Other material replacement | $429 |
| Total Costs | $113,938 | |
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.
