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0 lubrication, 0 costs, 0 worries: "GO ZERO"
What is "GO ZERO"?
motion plastics are high-performance plastics that are used throughout industry – and do not require lubrication after installation.
This means not only savings on expensive lubricating greases and oils.
Customers also save on maintenance time, personnel costs, the risk of incorrect or insufficient lubrication, system downtime and harmful substances that end up in the environment or in the drain. We call this: "GO ZERO"
These three industries are already benefiting from "GO ZERO"
Agricultural engineering
This saves Lemken 22 lubrication points per cultivator.
Construction machinery
This saves Huppenkothen 220 maintenance cycles per mini excavator.
Beverage technology
This enables Heineken Brazil to save up to 28 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year.
White paper: Lubrication-free study by RWTH Aachen University and all use cases
In this white paper, we show which industries and companies are already successfully using lubrication-free and maintenance-free bearing technology and how much they benefit from the cost savings.
Finding a spot on this list are Heineken Brasil (beverage technology), KettenWulf (drive and conveyor technology) and Rockinger (agricultural engineering).
Other topics:
- What does lubrication cost?
- Costs of lubrication for industry and the environment
- How do lubrication-free plain bearings work?
- Operating conditions for lubrication-free plain bearings
This saves Lemken 22 lubrication points per cultivator.
"The working time that users save by using maintenance-free bearings alone is a very strong argument for plastic bearings for us today. We will continue to rely on igus plain bearings in the future. Because we are committed to retaining what has proven itself."
Lars Heier – Head of Marketing at Lemken
Lemken GmbH & Co. KG
... specialises in the manufacture of agricultural equipment. This includes the Karat 9, an intensive cultivator with tines up to 30 centimetres long. To prevent damage to the tool, the tines deflect when subjected to excessive force, such as from stones in the ground.
The problem
To ensure the deflection movement, metal bearings were used on all tines. However, the metal bearings had to be lubricated for up to an hour every day. Failure to do so would have led to corrosion and wear.
The solution
The iglidur bearings used today operate completely without external lubrication, as the material contains self-lubricating solid lubricants. This not only saves the farmer time later on, but he also benefits from the high load-bearing capacity of the bearings, their lower susceptibility to dirt and the increased service life of the plain bearings.
What if ...
... every cultivator in Germany was converted to lubrication-free bearing technology?*
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€600,000
Lubricant cost saved
person
€2,397,940
Personnel costs saved
access_time
110,250 hours
Maintenance time saved
public
47,618kg
CO2 equivalent saved
local_drink
2,600,000 litres
Fresh water less contaminated due to pollutants
nature
19,268 hectares
Soil less contaminated due to pollutant discharge
What other potential for lubrication-free technology exists in the agricultural industry?
1 Monitor adjustment in the cabin
... with curved, lubrication-free rail guide in the tractor cabin.
2 Wear protection couplings
... with lubrication-free insert on the trailer coupling.
3 Cable guide for field sprayers
... with robust energy chain for safe guidance of media in dusty and dirty environments.
This saves Huppenkothen 220 maintenance cycles per mini excavator per year.
Just four bearing points at the connection between the arm and the excavator bucket, which are being converted to lubrication-free polymer bearings, save the user 220 maintenance cycles and 36.7 hours of maintenance time per machine per year.
Huppenkothen GmbH
... is a supplier of compact excavators, mini excavators and other small equipment and construction vehicles.
The problem
On excavators, the bearing points between the stick and the excavator bucket are exposed to high forces and harsh environmental conditions. Steel sockets are often still used here, which must be lubricated daily to ensure smooth and low-wear operation.
The solution
Four lubrication-free bearings made of high-performance polymer replace the metal bearings at the connection between the arm and the bucket. This not only saves 220 maintenance operations per year, but also saves the user high costs for lubricating grease. The risk of insufficient or incorrect lubrication is also reduced.
What if...
... every excavator in Germany was converted to lubrication-free bearing technology?*
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€1,610,400
Lubricant cost saved
person
€14,607,520
Personnel costs saved
access_time
671,610 hours
Maintenance time saved
public
116,189kg
CO2 equivalent saved
local_drink
2,600,000 litres
Fresh water less contaminated due to pollutants
nature
19,268 hectares
Soil less contaminated due to pollutant discharge
What other potential for lubrication-free operation exists in construction machinery?
1 Bearings in the arm system
... e.g. with iglidur G polymer bearings for lubrication-free arm movement.
2 Bearing points in the chassis
... with completely lubrication-free and maintenance-free heavy-duty bearings made of fibre composite material.
3 Cable guide in the seat
... with robust and corrosion-free polymer energy chain for safe guide of media.
This enables Heineken Brazil to save up to 28 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year.
By replacing 600 radial bearings in the conveyor technology of a single Heineken branch, the group is already saving 180kg of CO2 equivalent per year.
Heineken Brazil
... is the Brazilian branch of a total of 160 branches of the world-famous Heineken brewery brand.
The problem
Modern bottling plants can fill up to 70,000 bottles per hour. This process requires a large number of moving parts, such as in conveyor technology. Until now, Heineken Brazil had to regularly check and re-grease 600 radial bearings in the conveyor belts.
The solution
Polymer bearings are now used in the conveyor technology. In future, these will no longer need to be lubricated or serviced during maintenance work. Heineken Brasil is thus saving 1,560 hours of maintenance time per year and €2,815.49 in costs for the lubricants alone.
What if ...
... every Heineken branch used lubrication-free bearing technology in its conveyor technology?*
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€450,478
Lubricant cost saved
person
€5,428,800
Personnel costs saved
access_time
249,600 hours
Maintenance time saved
public
28,814kg
CO2 equivalent saved
local_drink
75,000,000 litres
Fresh water less contaminated due to pollutants
nature
546,500 hectares
Soil less contaminated due to pollutant discharge
What other potential applications are there for lubrication-free technology in beverage engineering?
1 Roller bearing
... with xiros conveyor rollers for lubrication-free conveyor belts.
2 Belt bearings
... with maintenance-free igubal flange mounted bearings for dry operation.
3 Lane adjustment
... with modular and economical Apiro gearboxes.
*Assumptions for scaling:
Agricultural engineering
- Approximately 37,500 machines and devices for soil cultivation and maintenance are produced annually in Germany, >20% of which are cultivators
- Assuming a service life of 15 years and an annual production of 500 cultivators with plain bearings
- Average labour costs for employees in Germany: €45,240 at 2,080 hours per year
Construction machinery
- Approx. 91,500 excavators in the EU, >20% in Germany, >18,300 excavators with radial bearings
- Assumption of approx. 80.52 tonnes of lubricant
- Average labour costs for employees in Germany: €45,240 at 2,080 hours per year
Beverage technology
- More than 160 Heineken locations worldwide using conveyor belts, saving approx. 20 tonnes of lubricant
- Average labour costs per employee in Germany: €45,240 at 2,080 hours per year