High availability is one of the primary criteria for stacker cranes deployed in automated storage and retrieval systems. Downtime due to breakdowns is unacceptable as material flow becomes interrupted, which in turn means production lines or customers (in the case of finished good warehouses) are left waiting for items.

NSK has developed a new series of standard ball screws that fully conform to the DIN international standard. This range of ball screws will be available from stock when they are officially launched into the European market in February 2016, which will minimise lead-times for many OEM customers. In addition to offering made-to-order ball screws to meet various customer demands, NSK was one of the first companies to introduce standard, off-the-shelf stock ball screws to the market.

"Leonardo da Vinci" National Museum of Science and Technology in Milan, (Hall of Columns) from 1 to 7 October 2015

Michael Preinerstorfer, the Managing Director of NSK’s European Industrial Business Unit – EIBU, who is also a qualified Engineer, outlines his plans to make NSK the European market leader in 15 to 20 niche markets. In this frank interview he also states what changes lay ahead for customers, employees and products.

NSK has successfully replaced one-piece spherical roller bearings with specially-manufactured split bearings in the converter of a European stainless steel plant. Demonstrating utmost precision and care, this challenging service task was completed in just three days.

The replacement of ball bearings is part of typical maintenance schedules when it comes to electric motors. However, when a German MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) provider was tasked recently with performing regular overhauls of electric drives for a prominent customer, a frequently recurring problem was noted: newly installed standard bearings would fail after three or four months.

Visitors to Agritechnica 2015 (Hanover, 10-14 November) will witness the debut appearance of NSK rolling bearings designed purposely for the agriculture industry. Central to the NSK exhibit will be ‘Agri Disc Hubs’ – ready-to-install units deployed in soil tillage machinery such as compact disc harrows, seed drills and strip-till equipment.

NSK has released an updated version of its rolling bearings catalogue. Featuring all recently introduced products, the publication has been revised with customers in mind, and represents an essential guide to rolling bearings for engineers and specifiers across all sectors of manufacturing and machine building.

Helping facilitate high speed train travel in Japan, NSK says that its high performance axle, motor and drive unit bearings have been selected for a prestigious new rail project. The bearings have been specified for the H5 rolling stock to be deployed on the Hokkaido Shinkansen high speed rail line being constructed between Shin-Aomori and Sapporo – the initial section of which opened in March 2016.

NSK has updated its Solutions App to feature information that helps engineers understand the added value that can be achieved through the adoption of NSK bearings and associated services.