With their tribological properties, our polymer plain bearings fulfil the highest requirements for a long service life without additional lubrication. To achieve this quality, we carry out over 135 trillion test movements per year in our plain bearing test laboratory spread over 250m². We test and develop materials and plain bearings under real conditions with the goal of providing you with the best solution made of polymer for your application. igus® bearings are optimised for use in motion and open up new possibilities in design with their specifications. Base polymers, solid lubricants and reinforcing materials are combined in such a way that the plain bearing specifications required for the application are completely achieved. Focus of the tests are push/pull forces, low coefficient of friction, wear, abrasion and driving forces at various speeds and bearing loads.
In the iglidur and igubal test area, bearings and materials are tested for stress, wear and friction properties. Other parameters such as high and low temperatures, high loads, and speed are adjusted as the test requires. There are around 50 test systems in the test laboratory, where more than 300 tests are carried out at the same time. We also perform around 11,300 tribological tests on around 250 newly developed plastic compounds every year. To ensure that the new formulations are effective in later use, they are exposed not only to external influences, but also to different movement directions and loads: rotating, pivoting, linear motion, and tumbling.
In addition, we test our components for effects in the event of dirt, different weather conditions and even with shock and impacts.
