CLEVELAND (April 7, 2013) – SKF has extended service further across the globe, with five new SKF Solution Factory facilities that opened in 2012. The global network of sites, which offer knowledge and resources from all SKF technology platforms, now stands at a total of 21, from Moscow (Russia), to Shanghai (China), to Cleveland (USA) to Perth (Australia).
“Our customers across almost every industry ask us for solutions to improve their productivity and reduce costs in a sustainable way. When they face new problems or challenges, or need help with a specific machine or require a life cycle management programme for operational assets, the SKF Solution Factory can create customised solutions that solve their issues”, says Vartan Vartanian, SKF President Industrial Market Regional Sales and Service.
By assembling a dedicated project team using experts from the company’s five technology platforms – bearings, seals, services, lubrication and mechatronics – the SKF Solution Factory works to devise a solution, which is then shared globally across the network of facilities. This expanding database of solutions helps customers to greater asset performance and reduced total cost of ownership.
SKF Solution Factory facilities have been enabling customers to make significant increases in efficiency across the globe. Belgium’s Argex, which mines and bakes clay for building supplies, needed to replace unreliable sliding bearings in support roller units. SKF supplied not just bearings, but also the support roller and shaft, housings and base plates, and an automated SKF lubrication system. This solution has reduced energy consumption of its rotary kiln by 10 percent, while also enhancing safety. Similarly, an SKF Solution Factory has helped Allied Mills, a major food miller in the UK, to develop strategy to improve reliability that minimizes unplanned downtime and maintains a consistent, high-quality product.
SKF is a global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems and services which include technical support, maintenance and reliability services, engineering consulting and training. SKF is represented in more than 130 countries and has around 15,000 distributor locations worldwide. Annual sales in 2012 were SEK 64,757 million and the number of employees was 46,775.