When a well-known industrial pump manufacturer needed four fully finished vertical pump bearings within three days to meet an urgent delivery deadline, Canada-based Thordon Bearings’ customer service team orchestrated a solution to deliver the 6in (152.3mm) diameter water-lubricated SXL bearings on time.

The US-based company, a major customer for the non-metallic bearing specialist, had a last call requirement to replace the bearings in a cooling water pump for a thermal power plant in Mexico. However, the lead time from another supplier to replace the original rubber bearings in the size required exceeded the company’s contractual delivery schedule.

Arturo Selvas, sales director with Rotary Parts, Thordon Bearings’ Mexico-based distributor, established to exclusively serve OEM requirements, said: “We have created an excellent rapport with this company over the past several years, providing frequent service support. Thordon’s technology was highly recommended for this cooling water pump.”

To support quick delivery, Thordon and its distributors carry inventory of many different sizes. Keith Brand, Thordon Bearings’ strategic account manager – vertical pumps, said: “An order was placed on 3 July last year. Two days later Rotary Parts received the bearings and set about the machining and finishing process. The customer received all four SXL bearings within the very tight deadline and was able to have the critically important cooling water pumps back in operation on time.”

Mr Selvas continued: “Few companies have the capability, flexibility and adaptability to turn an urgent order around so quickl — once we received them, Rotary Parts had them machined, measurements checked and successfully delivered them to the thermal power plant.”

Axel Swanson, Thordon Bearings business development manager, said: “If a customer requires a quick turnround for bearings, our customer service team is dedicated to finding the best solution. The success of this project is testament to the professionalism and commitment of Thordon’s customer service, manufacturing and engineering teams globally in meeting customers’ needs.”

The SXL grade, the market leader in grease-free vertical pump bearings, is manufactured from Thordon’s proprietary elastomeric polymer and is the industry’s preferred choice for pump applications requiring a dry start. With a lower dry coefficient of friction typically 0.10-0.20, the SXL bearing has a working pressure to 10MPa (1,450psi) and is highly resistant to abrasion, shock loading and vibration.

Mr Swanson concluded: “Wear life is the biggest advantage to using Thordon non-metallic materials, but also offers ease of use. We have a bearing sizing calculation program that makes it easy to determine correct sizing, and they are easy to machine. There is no harmful dust when machining Thordon polymers which is a big advantage over phenolic bearings, and then when it comes to installation, we can freeze fit, press fit or bond fit, so there are other options there too.”