Feature

Timber plant reduces downtime with NSK linear guides

Thanks to the adoption of NSK's linear guides with K1 lubrication units, a timber manufacturer has managed to reduce conveyor downtime by a factor of more than 12, prompting annual cost savings of more than £65,000.

03/08/2022 16:06:25

The British timber manufacturer supplies wooden beams to the building industry. At one production station, a conveyor system transports the beams to a processing machine, performing forward and backward motion with rapid changes of direction. Due to the demands of this operation, the company had to replace the conveyor’s linear guides every two weeks on average, a situation that was clearly unacceptable.

A request arrived from the company’s management team, asking NSK for recommendations on how to extend the service life of the linear guides. Analysis of failed units by NSK experts revealed that they were not capable of withstanding the high loads that occur at each change of direction. In addition, the linear guides sometimes jammed completely due to the intrusion of wood particles.

Read the full article in DPA's August issue

Written By Sophia Bell

Sophia Bell is the Group Editor of DPA, Connectivity, and PBSI. She joined the team in 2020 as Assistant Editor after achieving a First-Class Honours BA in English Literature and Film Studies from the University of East Anglia. In her current role, she leads the editorial strategy, driving digital growth and ensuring each title continues to deliver trusted, relevant insight for engineering and manufacturing professionals.