Stainless steel Extreme Bearing applications!
Examples of extreme bearing applications
Extreme Bearings were first used in the mussel industry in 2013. Every year new niches for Extreme Bearing applications are being discovered in other industries. Like the recent example featured here from a waste incineration facility in Germany. If you don’t see your particular application given in the examples featured, ask us about the challenges you are facing. And we will give you personalized advice.
Read on this page some a grab of the many cases where Extreme Bearing was able to bring a perfect solution !
The story of the Extreme Bearing
This is how it started In 2010, Jaap Meeuwsen was running his own company offering technical service to the mussel industry in the Dutch seaside town of Yerseke, famous for its mussels. He heard constant complaints about wear on the bearings. So he began to search for better bearings at trade shows and found some good products to try. “I would go to the customers and say, now I have a better bearing for you,” recalls Jaap. “They tried it but were still not satisfied.”
Jaap didn’t give up and came back a year later saying “Now I have an even better bearing for you.”
Tough conditions found in mussel processing
In the end, nothing on the market matched the tough conditions found in mussel processing. That’s when Jaap decided to invent his own bearing. “There were some bearings where the ball bearings themselves were made of stainless steel but the housing was not. I decided to make a bearing with double roller bearings and a stainless steel housing,” he says. “I also invented a special type of seal which I call the centrifugal seal. It is designed to keep the dirt out.”
What makes Jaap’s bearing unit unique is the stainless steel housing, the use of an adapter sleeve and a special centrifugal seal. This combination handles high radial and thrust loads with low friction, which makes it up to five times stronger. No one else offers a bearing like this. The bearing housing is made to his specifications and is not available from other bearing companies.
Extremely good bearing
He knew he had invented something special for the mussel companies in the town of Yerseke. “Now I have a bearing that is extremely good for you,” he told his customers back in 2012. Jaap called it the ‘Extreme Bearing’. It lived up to its name. Instead of lasting three months, the bearing lasted for years.
“I was with a customer in the mussel processing industry recently and we inspected all the Extreme Bearings in his factory by opening up the end covers,” says
Jaap. “There was absolutely nothing wrong with the bearings after one year so we closed them up again and they can go on working for another year
before the next inspection is due.”
“The mussel processing industry has the worst conditions you can find for a bearing: cracked shells, sand and the presence of saltwater,” comments Jaap. “If the bearing works here, I believe it will work anywhere.”
The Extreme Bearing was invented for the mussel industry but is now finding a niche in many other applications around the world with extreme conditions.
The shaft in the picture operates a slow conveyor. And turns at 1.5 to 2 rpm creating a huge amount of torque. The Extreme Bearing can take the huge load.
High payload plus high temperatures
Interestingly, the shaft in this application is rotating at a slow speed of 1.5 to 2 rpm. So a huge amount of torque is generated in the shaft and bearing. Giving a high payload that can destroy a normal bearing. The Extreme Bearing is built to withstand this huge payload. Plus the high temperatures.
The seals and silicone grease keep both water and dirt away from the spherical roller bearings. So they go on operating. “If water or debris were to get inside, the game would be over,” says Martin Metterhausen.
Submerged in boiling water with hot ashes
You won’t see much more extreme conditions than this. The bearing is submerged in boiling hot water. While hot ash and embers are floating around. All it would take to ruin a normal bearing is for some of the water to get inside. Or for hot ash to come into contact with the seal on the outside. And destroy it. We know this because all normal bearings that the company Stamag in Landsberg, Germany, had tried for this application had failed. Sooner or later. Stamag supplies bearings and other parts for large incinerators burning waste.
Conveyor belt
A common design feature of these German incinerators is to let the glowing embers and ashes fall into a tank of water below. And be extinguished underwater. The ash is then transported up and out of the water on a conveyor belt. Into a skip for disposal. Part of this conveyor belt can be seen in the right of the picture. And the large links of the chain operating the conveyor are shown as well.
Customization
Stamag approached Martin Metterhausen of Wälz- und Gelenklager Lüneburg in Germany, who is an agent and distributor for Extreme Bearing. “We don’t sell bearings, we sell solutions,” says Martin Metterhausen, managing director. With the help of the inventor of the Extreme Bearing, Jaap Meeuwsen, they came up with a customized bearing for Stamag. For this extreme application.
Problem solving
The solution they designed is called by its full name: EXT 80 CL C3 20. Where 80 stands for the diameter of the shaft in centimetres. The CL seal with PTFE lips is pressed into the adapter sleeve. And leaves a tiny gap of only 0.02 mm so no debris can penetrate through. And reach the bearing, which becomes completely enclosed. A silicone grease was chosen as the most durable lubricant. For the extreme temperatures of this application.
Maintenance-free for at least 10 years
Martin Metterhausen believes this specially designed Extreme Bearing will be working and completely maintenance-free. For at least 10 years if not more. Normal bearings usually failed within weeks or months. And there was usually no warning sound of any malfunction because they were underwater. When they failed, the tank needed to be drained, the shaft was usually damaged. And needed replacement. This requires many hours of unplanned downtime. Which stop the normal operations of the incinerator.
“We work in harsh environments and therefore we use Extreme Bearings”
The latest seaweed harvester developed by Asco Harvester. You can see the blue caps of the Extreme Bearings used on shafts of the conveyor.
“We have designed various barges that all have a considerable amount of bearings. These barges are all for work in harsh environments. Therefore we use Extreme Bearings in all our long-term designs.
For example, the Asco Viking Harvester barge has 68 bearings. All of which play an important role. The seaweed harvester has two conveyor belts. One of which is constantly submerged. There is also a special machine that needs to hold a sack weighing up to 2 tonnes when full. A total of 8 bearings are used to ensure that this machine runs smoothly.
Bearings on such machines and conveyors need to withstand a great deal of stress, impact, seawater, sunlight, frost and heat. We use organic grease to lubricate the bearings about once a week. They retain grease well and we find this amount of lubrication is sufficient.
We started using Extreme Bearings in 2016. We had previously installed bearings with plastic housings from another manufacturer but replaced them all in 2017.
Our experience is very good with all the Extreme Bearings we have used. We have not had to replace any of them. And we do not see the need to do this for the next few years. In our designs, we think the main advantages of Extreme Bearings are strength, durability, good design, many types to choose from and easy ordering.
We have been working on the design of new equipment for the last two years and have just built the Sigri 9057. Which is a barge specially built for seaweed harvesting. Great interest in our harvesting machines has come from many countries. Such as Norway, Mexico, Canada and the US.”
Ómar Arndal Kristjánsson
Manager at Asco Harvester since 2016
Avoid downtime at car washes, save on spare parts
On two shafts of a conveyor belt that moves a car through the various machines of a conveyor tunnel car wash.
Extreme Bearings (not visible here) were used below ground level.
Oily dirt from cars is caked onto this Extreme Bearing. But the seal remains intact.
Imagine the scene: it is a hot summer day on a Saturday morning. And a long queue of cars is waiting to enter their local car wash to get cleaned. Suddenly the automatic car wash system breaks down due to a faulty bearing. Which has become ruined by the penetration of dirt and water. The owners of the car wash station may not be able to get service staff to fix the machine. Meanwhile, their car wash business is losing revenue. While their customers are driving away disappointed.
This may be a familiar scenario because of the extreme conditions in a car wash. And the use of bearings not fit for purpose.
Durable solution
“Normal bearings usually need to be replaced on an automatic car wash conveyor every 3-6 months. But with an Extreme Bearing, we believe no maintenance of the bearing will be needed for 8-10 years,” claims Martin Metterhausen. Managing director of Wälz- und Gelenklager Lüneburg in Germany, an agent and distributor for Extreme Bearing.
A German company has become the first to offer customers the option of fitting Extreme Bearings onto a car wash system.
Application
Extreme Bearings with a diameter of 60 mm were first tested on their conveyor system. For 12 months with excellent results and no maintenance needed. Now the company is recommending all its customers to buy car wash systems fitted with Extreme Bearings.
A total of four bearings are located on the conveyor on two shafts that move a car slowly through the car wash tunnel. These bearings are right in the fire line for water, detergents and dirt that run off from dripping wet cars. And in winter, the run-off water can also include salt spread on roads. Nevertheless, the cap and seal on the Extreme Bearing keep the dirt and water out. Giving the bearing an extremely long life.
Into the future
So far the bearings have been tested in the conveyor equipment pushing the wheels of the car at ground level. However, in future, the bearings could also be used for the machines operating the brushes.
“The car wash industry is a completely new market for Extreme Bearings but one with great potential,” believes Michael Sigl who works closely with Martin Mettehausen. And has been responsible for sales to car wash manufacturers in Germany through his company IMS Forgings. “It’s time for car wash companies to try a better bearing solution for their customers,” he comments.
Long bending drums, axial force and high speeds but
Extreme Bearings take the strain
Used on high-speed shrimp peeling line
In a shrimp peeling machine used at a factory run by International Shellfish. In the Dutch town of Yerseke. The drums are only 1 inch in diameter. The length of the shafts is 3 metres. And the shafts are rolling extremely fast. This means the drums have a tendency to bend and normal bearings cannot cope well with the high speeds. And extreme axial displacement.
In addition, the conditions are corrosive with the presence of saltwater. And the use of caustic chemicals for cleaning. Only one bearing was considered good enough for this application: the Extreme Bearing. The Extreme Bearing selected absorbs misalignment without generating force in the bearing. This ensures a long bearing working life.
Peat and roots don’t stop an Extreme Bearing
An engineering company in Mechelen in Belgium was designing equipment for the automatic handling of vegetables such as lettuces in greenhouses.
The company wanted bearings that were out of the ordinary. Due to the difficult dirty conditions on the conveyor belt with wet peat and roots. Normal bearings would soon become clogged up and inoperative.
It took two years of thorough testing before the company decided on the best bearing for this application. Finally in January 2016, they chose the 1-inch diameter Extreme Bearing for their new equipment.
After two years of tests, Extreme Bearings chosen for vegetable handling in Belgium
An acid-proof bearing – here’s the proof!
Extreme Bearings have been installed in the machinery used for pickling mussels. At the Prins & Dingemanse factory in Yerseke, the Netherlands.
As shown here, the bearings are placed right above a bath of concentrated acid. The fumes are extremely strong. And are enough to corrode a normal bearing. However, the Extreme Bearing has been in operation so far for 24 months at this factory without any problems.
The Extreme Bearing with a housing made of 316 grade stainless steel has an excellent seal that keeps out the acidic vapours and protects the bearing from corrosion.
Robust bearings in pet food factory
The bearings for this application were ordered by an engineering company who were commissioned to design a pet food plant in the Netherlands.
They had read about Extreme Bearings online and decided that this was the bearing they were looking for. Meat and other moist ingredients such as fat could easily drip down from the conveyor onto the bearings so a robust, durable bearing was needed.
Conveyor belt with dripping meat and fat.
High-pressure cleaning with harsh chemicals gave previous bearings a high failure rate
Extreme Bearings cut downtime in fish factory
The Extreme Bearing with its stainless steel housing was tested by a salmon and trout producer in northern Norway. Their fish factory was able to significantly extend the lifetime of the bearings on one of the machines on their line. They experienced a significant reduction in downtime. Their previous type of bearings had a high failure rate, causing the need for frequent maintenance. High-pressure cleaning takes place at up to 30 bar so a bearing needs to be specially designed to be able to resist the penetration of water and chemicals. Extreme Bearings are highly resistant to the harsh industrial chemicals used for cleaning on fish processing lines.
Food on the move
Extreme Bearings are, as the name implies, designed for use in harsh environments. Where relatively cheaper alternatives soon fail. These kinds of environments can be found in the food industry.
Typical conditions:
-
Cleaning with a high-pressure jet and aggressive chemicals
-
Heavy conveyor belts for fruit and vegetables
-
Places where the metal is attacked by fruit juices
-
Fruit and vegetables are washed and sorted with the aid of water
Common problems, such as damaged or cracked inner rings and malfunction of the bearing housing, are prevented by Extreme Bearings.
The AISI 316 stainless steel housing provides resistance to corrosion. The application of special seals and the filling of grease contributes to a perfectly sealed housing.
Perfect for fresh fruit and vegetable conveyor belts
For bearing units on places which are difficult to maintain
Ideal in inaccessible places
Extreme Bearings provide a long working lifetime for applications in difficult-to-reach places, where maintenance needs to be reduced to a minimum. This could be high places or deep under water.
No downtime despite cracked shells and seawater
In the Dutch seaside town Yerseke, mussels are a big industry. The photo shows the start of a conveyor belt which is carrying mussels at the Prins & Dingemanse factory in Yerseke, The Netherlands. An Extreme Bearing has been fitted on the belt and is clearly visible with its blue end cover. The Extreme Bearing is surrounded by fragments of broken shells while salt water is running down from the conveyor.
Maintenance-free
When the end cover was removed after one year of operation, and the bearing was inspected, there were no signs of contamination or wear. Despite the extreme conditions. The end cover was put back on. Thereupon the mussel line could continue working without interruption.
The bearing is heavily loaded and constantly drenched with seawater
Tipping Bucket uses any available water supply (potable, ground water, treated effluent)
Sediment flushing system
Stainless steel 316 Tipping Bucket Bearings are used for tipping buckets. A tipping bucket is a sediment flushing system designed to remove settled debris from reservoir floors, such as stormwater or CSO retention tanks and sanitary equalization tanks. The system operates by releasing a torrent of fresh water stored in the tipping bucket. The resulting flushing wave progresses down the entire length of the flushway pushing the settled debris ahead of it. The re-suspended debris is then carried by the flush water to the treatment plant for disposal.