Hygienic yet Productive - Bearings for Clean Environments
When it comes to food preparation even the smallest amount of contamination can not be accepted.
That’s why companies need to take a component-level approach to hygiene and opt for solutions designed from the ground up to meet the most stringent standards.
NSK has decades of experience providing essential parts to the food and beverage sector, as well as other industries where cleanliness and hygiene are paramount such as the medical field and pharmaceuticals. Over that time, we have developed a specialist range of bearing solutions that not only meet the highest hygiene requirements but also deliver reliability, durability, and productivity.
Bearings designed specifically for clean environments need to be able to stand up to frequent washdowns and the water and chemicals that come with them. On top of this, they also need to provide continuous, high-speed, operation even in the presence of high temperatures and aggressive cleaning agents. They also generally need to be corrosion resistant and to boast robust sealing mechanisms to help ensure production can continue reliably whilst preventing both contamination of foodstuffs and internal damage to the machinery.
Silver-Lube
One of NSK’s cornerstone offerings when it comes to clean environments is our Silver-Lube range, sold under the RHP brand. Designed specifically for applications with extremely high hygiene standards, Silver-Lube units are ideal for use in environments with regular washdowns and chemical exposure.
Each Silver-Lube unit features a bearing insert with stainless steel components housed in a durable, paint-free PBT thermoplastic body. Integrated stainless steel grease nipples and bolt-hole liners ensure optimal hygiene and durability. Their corrosion-resistant construction helps minimise opportunities for bacterial growth, while their ability to accommodate initial misalignment supports reliable, trouble-free installation.
Silver-Lube Units have proven their effectiveness in the field time and time again, but one particularly good example was when we recommended them to a market leading milk processing and bottling plant which was experiencing repeated bearing failures on five lines of conveyors.
The plant was having to change the bearings every 16 weeks, with all the associated maintenance and lost productivity costs. NSK investigated and found water was entering the bearings during the wash down process, leading directly to the failures. Adopting Silver-Lube bearings with food grade grease solved the problem and saved the company almost €8,000 a year.
Life-Lube
Another option, also from our RHP range, is Life-Lube, designed for applications requiring both the highest levels of chemical resistance and extended lubrication life.
The Life-Lube series offers all the benefits of Silver-Lube but also incorporates NSK’s proprietary Molded-Oil technology, a solid lubricant that prevents water and particulates from entering the bearing while also preventing lubricant leakage. This feature is critical in food and beverage applications where contamination control is paramount.
Life-Lube units offer excellent chemical resistance and a longer maintenance-free operating life. As with the Silver-Lube range, the PBT polyester housing is not only resistant to corrosion but also unpainted, which eliminates the risk of coating flake contamination. Its smooth surface minimises dirt accumulation and reduces cleaning time.
A notable feature of the range is the flinger seal, which blocks bacteria from entering the bearing cavity and protects the lubricant. This design detail helps maintain system hygiene and extends service life even under the harshest cleaning regime.
Like Silver-Lube, Life-Lube is a tried and tested product. For example, one major snack foods producer kept seeing the bearings on its cutter line fail because of grease wash out following the line wash down process. Installing Life-Lube units led to a significant improvement in bearing lifespan and the resulting reduction of maintenance costs and improved production saved the company an estimated €134,000 per year as a result.
Stainless Steel Deep Groove Ball Bearings
Deep Groove Ball Bearings are the most common type of bearings on the market, found in just about every industry and application. For clean environments, however, NSK boats a high-performance range of stainless-steel Deep Groove Ball Bearings.
These components are made from NSK’s Ultra Clean Steel, which makes them particularly well suited to wet or corrosive conditions as they resist rust and corrosion that could otherwise harbour bacteria. Under such conditions, these bearings can deliver up to 80% longer service life than conventional alternatives and they also feature high-grade balls, super-finished raceways, patented seals, and advanced grease technology.
In terms of real world examples, a producer of frozen pizza saw its production line shutting down every four weeks because the bearings on its food conveyor belt kept failing. The issue was the cleaning process which was directly causing corrosion, grease washout and seal damage. After the company adopted stainless steel Deep Groove Ball Bearings, with Molded-Oil inserts, the problem was solved and the company saved €15,000 per year.
When it comes to bearings specifically for clean environments, working with NSK means you can rely on decades of proven performance and innovation. We offer the highest quality products on the market, but also the design and engineering experience to make certain you end up with the right bearing for your application.
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