Motion plastics company Igus has released a new series of guide rollers which it claims are light and durable – saving over 60 per cent in weight compared with other stainless steel solutions.
Under the brand name of Xiros, the system uses tube and polymer ball bearings, which are now also available in a light and FDA-compliant design.
The rollers have a blue PVC tube with two flange ball bearings at the ends, which are made of wear-resistant Xirodur B180.
There is no risk of contamination with the lubricant-free bearings, and the guide rollers are FDA-compliant.
The plastic tube weighs only about one third of other stainless steel tubes, according to Igus. Also, the dry-operating Xiros polymer ball bearings achieve less friction than lubricated ball bearings made of metal since the balls do not have to overcome the resistance of the lubricant.
The system solution is offered in two installation sizes, with outer diameters of 50 and 63 millimetres respectively, and lengths of 100 to 1000 millimetres.
