igus decided to develop these products after research revealed that high-temperature-resistant ball bearings are not generally available ex-stock, and usually have to be ordered specially at a high price. Aand, although several companies offer plastic bearings, most use standard plastics and are expensive.

For their inner and outer races, the new bearings use the lightweight iglidur A500 polymer, which is corrosive-resistant and can withstand temperatures up to 150°C. For applications where maximum corrosion-resistance is needed, igus is offering bearings that use glass balls and a Peek cage.

The company is also planning lower-cost steel-and-polymer bearings for use at lower temperatures.

For the first time, igus is also offering its high-performance plastics materials in the form of stock bars that customers can machine to create their own products, such as gears, pulleys or wheels, or to create components in part sizes not offered by igus. There is a choice of two materials in 60mm diameter solid rods.