A new ball bearing from SKF, with food-grade grease and an integral seal, requires no relubrication – which helps maintain both machine performance and hygiene standards.

SKF has developed a deep-groove ball bearing that is designed specifically for use in the food and beverage industry.

The off-the-shelf bearing, part of SKF’s Food Line series, is pre-filled with food-grade grease and incorporates an integral seal. Together, these new features reduce water ingress – helping to raise bearing performance and maintain high standards of hygiene. The new bearing does not require relubrication, which realises several advantages: reduced maintenance, and greater uptime; less chance of leakage; and lower grease consumption.

A reduction in grease consumption – and grease disposal – can help factories to improve their environmental performance. At the same time, the low-friction seal helps to reduce the energy consumption of the bearing – which offers further savings.

“Until now, there have only been custom-filled bearings for this type of application. As an off-the-shelf product, our new Food Line bearing will be faster – and more cost-effective – to re-order than a bearing that needs to be custom-filled.” says Christian Mertens, Application Specific Offer Manager at SKF.

It is also manufactured to SKF’s Explorer performance class and has a high load-carrying capacity. This helps to maintain rotating equipment performance – and maximise uptime – under the demanding conditions of food production.

The new bearing fully complies with food industry standards. Its high-performance, food grade NSF H1 grease is optimised for use in the food and beverage industry. It is Halal- and Kosher-certified and complies with US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Community (EC) recommendations. The food-grade seals are blue in colour, which allows for easier optical detection.