Success Story
Industry: Food & Beverage
Application: Cutter line
Cost Savings: $138,122
Introduction
A major producer of snack foods was experiencing frequent bearing failures on their cutter line. NSK investigated and found that grease wash out following the line wash down process was a factor in the failures. Routine planned maintenance was carried out every 6 weeks which included changing the bearings to prevent unplanned stoppage. However, failures also occured before maintenance was carried out resulting in loss of production. NSK engineers proposed to replace the current bearings with NSK Life-Lube housed units. A vast improvement in the bearing life was realized resulting in the reduction of maintenance and lost production costs.
![Food - Beverage, conveyor, cutter line Food - Beverage, conveyor, cutter line](/adobe/dynamicmedia/deliver/dm-aid--78a232e0-3d92-41a8-9ccb-066aabba529f/in-fb-conveyor-cutter-line-874x555.jpg?preferwebp=true&quality=85)
- Cutter line
![RHP Life-Lube Molded-Oil RHP Life-Lube Molded-Oil, Bearing Unit, cut, 874x555](/adobe/dynamicmedia/deliver/dm-aid--f1914538-2231-4d3a-a8cd-0336fd3cee02/p-bu-life-lube-cut-874x555.jpg?preferwebp=true&quality=85)
- NSK Life-Lube with Molded-Oil bearings insert
Key Facts
- Cutter line application
- Wash down process causeing bearing failures
- High maintenance costs and loss of production
- NSK solution: Life-Lube housed units
- Significant improvement in bearing life
- Reduction of bearing costs, downtime and maintenance labor
Value Proposals
- NSK reviewed the application following a process map survey and discovered grease wash out issue
- A test with NSK Life-Lube product was conducted
- Test bearings were fitted and monitored for performance
- After one year in service, the bearings were still performing with no failures
- This success is now being shared in the other two lines for additional cost savings
Product Features
- PBT thermoplastic resin housing
- Molded Oil inserts (with solid lubricant)
- Martensitic stainless steel
- Nitrile rubber seals
- Available in NP, SF, SFT & ST equivalents
- Bore size 20mm - 40mm
- Corrosion resistance
- Paint free housings, preventing chipping & flaking
- Resistant to contamination increasing operating life
- Ideal for operations where fluid process is unavoidable
- No need for re-lubrication
![](/adobe/dynamicmedia/deliver/dm-aid--f78820e1-ecb1-428e-954d-d0e0b6a9cabb/con-dummy-nsk-500-500.jpg?preferwebp=true&quality=85)
![](/adobe/dynamicmedia/deliver/dm-aid--f78820e1-ecb1-428e-954d-d0e0b6a9cabb/con-dummy-nsk-500-500.jpg?preferwebp=true&quality=85)
Cost Saving Breakdown
Before | Cost p.a. | NSK Solution | Cost p.a. | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Bearing Costs: Bearings costs for all three lines | $5,878 | Bearing Costs: Bearing costs of Life-Lube housing units used in all three lines | $1,675 | |
Engineering Costs: Maintenance: 29 x 1.5 hours fitting costs; $77/hr on all three lines | $3,350 | Engineering Costs: Maintenance: 4.5 hours fitting costs at $77/hr on all three lines | $340 | |
Costs of lost production: Lost production: 2 x 2.5 hours; $454 per minute on all three lines | $136,200 | Costs of lost production: Lost production: none | $0 | |
Total Costs | $140,137 | $2,015 |
Reference:SS-E-2061
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