Emerson Bearing Blog

Cam followers and cam follower bearings are essential components in many industrial operations involving conveyors or process transfer lines. Used in a wide range of industries including power generation, metal processing, packaging, food processing, transportation, automation, and recreation, cam followers are able to be easily mounted and are well-suited for many cam or track roller applications with moderate loads and shock.

Proper use of cam follower bearings helps ensure optimized performance and longevity. Developed to replace the standard bearing and bolt configuration, this type of roller bearing is designed to be more efficient, more reliable, and considerably easier to maintain than their predecessors. At Emerson Bearing, we have the expertise to walk you through the process of choosing the right bearings for your specific needs.

Throughout the years, ball and roller bearings have seen significant reductions  in price while quality has improved. Several factors have played a role in this, but production process changes and material quality improvements have most significantly changed the face of the industry.

Bearing Basics

With a constant cross section, thin section bearings allow for significant space savings and overall system weight reduction — ideal advantages when designing sophisticated and critical-application products. The cross section, which is usually square, remains constant even in bearings with large bore diameters. Often used when space limitations or specific design configurations prevent the use of conventional bearings, thin section bearings allow for versatility in many applications and come in a range of contact angle designs, including radial contact, angular contact, and four-point contact.

At Emerson Bearing, we are pleased to announce that we now carry the new Super Precision product line, which includes both roller bearings and ball bearings. Comprised of over 200 bearings across nine different product lines, this is a truly exciting addition to our catalog.

Generally speaking, the majority of bearings, cam followers, and other rolling elements are manufactured from AISI 52100, a degassed low-alloy chrome steel blend with significant concentrations of chromium and carbon. AISI 52100 has high hardness ratings and excellent resistance to wear and deformation.

Almost every industry uses bearings, but sometimes designers need tough, heavy-duty units that operate reliably in the harshest environments. Type E bearings are a perfect fit for these conditions, rolling smoothly in spite of debris, dirt, water, chemicals, and high temperatures.

Bearings are fundamental to operating machinery across a diverse array of sectors, ranging from mining, electric motors, and machine tools to transportation, power generation, and robotics. Ensuring their longest possible service life is essential to preventing excessive wear; such wear can lead to system failures, often resulting in costly downtime to rebuild equipment.

Speed Changes Bring Fatigue

Like any industrial part, hardworking bearings are subject to fatigue from a number of different sources. One important factor to keep in mind for bearings is the effect of rapid speed changes on bearing service life.

An Important Factor in Bearing Maintenance

While bearings remain some of the most rugged and resilient components, they can still fall prey to the problems of wear.

When examining the factors that can affect the service life of bearings, it is important to remember environmental considerations. Bearing failure is rarely caused by bearing material or manufacturing problems; instead, it is frequently due to the effect of foreign substances on bearing functionality. The amount of dirt, debris, or other contaminants that bearings encounter plays a direct role in how long they remain functional and effective. Ignoring such wear can lead to breakage or even system failure if the environmental contaminations remain unaddressed.