Large-size tapered roller bearing from Schweinfurt. (Image courtesy SKF.)

Bearing and seal manufacturing company SKF (Svenska Kullagerfabriken AB) recently announced an investment of SEK 145 million (USD$16.3 million) into its operations in Schweinfurt, Germany this week.

This investment is the third in a series of significant funding announcements made by SKF in relation to its Schweinfurt facility in the last three months, totalling SEK 297 million ($33.3 million).

The planned investment promises to modernise its cylindrical roller bearing (CRB) production through several innovations. Firstly, a new hard-machining channel will be installed at the company’s Bavarian location, as well as a new heat treatment process and the latest in connectivity solutions.

Hard Machining is an economic method of producing bearing parts using hardened steels in which geometrically defined cutting edges are used to ensure precision. SKF plans to implement this process in combination with greater connectivity; shorter reset times and flexibility of batch sizes will become possible for the Schweinfurt plant. This will allow SKF to increase its competitiveness in large-size bearing production in Germany.