Water washout is a maintenance problem in food processing operations; bearing lubricant is flushed out by repeated washdowns. While lubricant loss is cumulative rather than immediate, the result is the same: premature bearing failure. A UK milk processing plant found solid lubricant bearings solved the problem — and yielded big savings.

Changes seen in most bearings lines are slight from year to year. This remake of standard spherical roller bearings, however, was a major overhaul. Retooling included enlarging rollers, reducing mass and volume, modifying surfaces, and redesigning oil routes. All contributed major boosts in load carrying and rotational speed capability.

The task: inspect a label, determine a part's presence or orientation, or verify an injection molding. You might not have thought about going it alone, but this sensor manages these and other tasks without a PC. It combines multiple photoelectric and intelligent vision sensors and a touch screen interface in a single configurable unit.

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Speed and reliability can be competing demands in QA, especially in strain testing of auto parts like sheet metal. One supplier suggests a system combining both mechanical and optical extensometers. The video unit can test smaller gauge lengths (from 15 mm), and its edge finding algorithm prevents need to mark specimen.

Chrome products are super hard and stunningly shiny. But the fiscal, human health, and environment costs of electroplating are high. MIT researchers found a friendlier coating. Their nickel-tungsten alloy now being tested on truck bumpers is safer, harder than chrome, room temperature stable, and highly resistant to decomposition.

It's summer: time to budget for winter recreation. Soon, downhill racers can invest in the first ski boots made with corn-sugar polymers. Salomon's 'Ghost' is made with a 27% renewable-content thermoplastic elastomer. It offers greater flexibility over polyurethane, especially at -20 C, and high impact strength (30 to 82D hardness).

Two of the three top causes of wear in mechanical drives and bearing elements can be reduced by keeping a clean machine. This video clip reviews plastic wiper, felt wiper, and combination designs that do a better job than conventional seals in protecting ball screw nuts from dirt, chips, and coolant.

Famous hotelier Conrad Hilton identified three things necessary for success in his business: location, location, and location. The list of factors to consider when selecting quick-release safety connectors for compressed air applications starts similarly with location and environment. Then we add frequency of use and safety.

This Daily Tech blog says that a new report examining climate data from the past century gives reason to argue that solar heat — not man's pollution — is the principal cause of climate change since the Industrial Revolution. A solar scientist at the University of Colorado concurs with the report. Despite its evidence, the report from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center oddly concludes that man has replaced the sun as the cause of current warming patterns.

Designing equipment for space travel, like 10 years on a comet chase, might test your tribology skills to the max, right down to the selection of lubricants. Grease, oil, and graphite can't handle the anticipated -100 C temps or vacuums. Revamping miniature motors for space duty, one manufacturer zeroed in on a solid lubricant — molybdenum disulfide. What benefits could this determination offer on the industrial plane?

Prepared for the Post Recession?

Economic rebound is forecast to begin in Q3 or Q4; an opportune time for strategic market moves. Are businesses too deep into survival to come out punching in post recession?