Water, dust, dirt: plain bearings in farm loaders under extreme environmental conditions

From simple articulated loaders to telescopic and lifting loaders, Thaler GmbH & Co. KG supplies the agricultural industry with useful equipment. Today, the company manufactures up to 500 farm loaders per year, with the portfolio currently comprising around 25 vehicles, divided into four product lines. Thaler's farm loaders are made for agriculture; they drive with ease through uneven terrain and wet fields or push heavy snow masses in front of them. The changing environmental conditions, constant contact with water, dust, dirt and various chemicals as well as heavy impact loads pose a great challenge to the components installed inside the machine. The bearing points in agricultural vehicles are also subjected to heavy loads, while the farm loaders must always function perfectly in daily use. Experience with Thaler's agricultural machinery shows that metal components at the bearing points would find it difficult to withstand such conditions. Due to the constant contact with moisture, metal plain bearings rust quickly, which means that the bearing points have to be serviced regularly and faulty metal bushes have to be replaced. This not only leads to frequent maintenance downtimes, but also requires the regular availability of expensively manufactured spare parts. 
The assembly of the metal bushes originally used was very time-consuming. In addition, the bearings in Thaler's yard loaders caused the shafts to run in quickly. The search for a more robust and durable alternative was therefore obvious.

After igus® e-chain® has already been used in one of Thaler's telescopic loader models, the manufacturer now also relies on plastic instead of metal when it comes to plain bearings. The iglidur® G plain bearings offer a maintenance and lubrication-free solution that is insensitive to dust and dirt. The plain bearings do not have to be additionally lubricated or sealed, which simplifies cleaning of the device. As they are extremely robust suitable for diverse and changing environmental conditions. At the same time, the high load is reduced by the vibration-damping specification of the bearing. As a result, the service life of the bearings in the yard loaders could be extended. 
The iglidur® bearings are used in the bearing points of almost all models, with up to 18 bearings per loader. In addition to unfavourable environmental conditions, the bearings must withstand high edge loads. iglidur® bearings are particularly well suited here, as they are not only very corrosion-free, but also resistant to dirt and chemicals. Another advantage: Almost all metallic plain bearings can be easily replaced with igus® plain bearings.
The shaft and bearing depend on the right interaction, so the two components should always be considered as a unit. iglidur® plain bearings prove to be an optimal sliding partner, as they adapt significantly better to the shaft compared to metal bushings. This minimises the abrasion, whereby the shaft is less stressed. Finally, the yard loader manufacturer also saves time and money right from the production stage. While the bushings still had to be individually reground after painting, this work step is completely eliminated with iglidur® plain bearings.