Igus has developed a new wear-resistant material for high-temperature applications that will help ensure reliable and durable operation, and will be especially beneficial for the food and packaging industries.

The new material, iglide AX500, is a long-lasting bearing that can stand up to friction, heat and electrostatic charges. Bearing points in food and packaging industry applications frequently experience high temperatures and speeds, and the new AX500 material functions reliably in such situations.

Dosing systems equipped with highly sensitive mechanisms can fill thousands of bags in no time. Slides and belts then move the products to a box. At these high speeds, all the packaging mechanisms, especially bearings, are subjected to wear.

Plain bearings made of the new iglide AX500 high-performance polymer help make bearing points maintenance-free and durable. The new material is electrostatically dissipative, ensuring that the bags do not stick to each other and employees do not receive electric shocks.

In very dusty environments such as flour processing, sparks can also lead to dust explosions. These sparks can take the form of small arcs that occur when moving machine parts do not have an electrically dissipative design.