New bearings extend service life, improve reliability

CANTON, Ohio: March 5, 2009 — Applying its in-depth knowledge of friction management, The Timken Company (NYSE: TKR) has redesigned its precision bearings to create a longer-lasting dental bearing for high-speed hand-held tools.

“The combined reliability and extended service life of this optimized bearing directly translates to increased value for dental professionals. It enables them to keep their tools operating for a longer period of time and reduces maintenance,” said Rob Stiffler, product manager, miniature assembly. “This is only the first in a series of dental bearing improvements that we plan to deliver this year, each continuing to build upon reliability and keeping dental products turning for longer.”

In controlled Timken laboratory testing, the optimized dental bearings outlasted a common non-relubricated dental bearing more than three times.

The optimized bearing is available in multiple bearing configurations, including smooth and flanged, which provides considerable flexibility for use in a wide array of hand-held dental tools.

Timken designed the optimized series of bearings to meet ISO P4 and ABEC 7 precision tolerances. To reduce internal friction, vibration and torque Timken employed high-quality Grade-3 ball bearings housed in an advanced polymer cage to resist wear and harsh sterilization environments, while improving stability and lubricant flow. Timken also chose 440 stainless steel for the bearing’s outer rings to further resist corrosion.

Timken precision bearings are manufactured to standards established by the Annular Bearing Engineers Committee (ABEC) and the standards set by the International Standards Organization (ISO). ABEC rates bearings using an odd-numbered scale ranging from 1 to 9. A higher number represents greater manufactured precision of the bearing.