Inside the PT Ecosystem

Bearings and lubricants front and center in Detroit this March

The Bearing Show North America 2025, colocated with Lubricant Expo North America 2025 takes place March 18–20 at Huntington Place in Detroit. The Bearing Show connects the evolving needs of bearings end-users with the latest technologies serving OEM development, maintenance professionals and R&D engineers.

In just its second year, The Bearing Show has firmly established itself as a key event on the North American industry calendar. This dynamic platform brings together a diverse range of stakeholders, including bearing manufacturers, OEMs, end users, and lubrication experts. Attendees have the unique opportunity to network, explore the latest solutions, and learn strategies to optimize bearing performance and mitigate failures.

“The show’s growth trajectory is remarkable,” said Tom Harris, event director. “The 2025 edition will feature twice as many bearing-related exhibitors compared to 2024, showcasing its rising prominence and industry appeal. Additionally, this year’s conference will host senior representatives from leading companies such as Nexteer Automotive, FEV, HF Sinclair, Ford, GM, NES, NSK, North America Bearing Company, Silverthin Bearing, Vibrac, and WD Bearings. Exhibitors and attendees are traveling from across the globe, including key markets like Turkey and China, further emphasizing the event’s international significance. Their participation underscores the show’s importance for both the bearing sector and the industries that rely on these critical components.”

The bearing market in 2025 faces several critical challenges as it adapts to evolving industry demands and global dynamics. Electrified drivetrains, for example, are reshaping mobility by operating at higher speeds and generating unique thermal and electrical conditions. Bearings in these systems must handle greater loads, faster speeds, and the risk of electrical discharge damage from stray currents.

Sustainability and energy efficiency also present opportunities and pressures, with manufacturers needing to create eco-friendly solutions that minimize friction and energy consumption while complying with stricter regulations.

Additionally, global supply chain disruptions and rising raw material costs are straining production and pricing, pushing companies to innovate and streamline operations to stay competitive.

This year, The Bearing Show will look at the latest developments in OEM bearing requirements, particularly with regards to future fuels and electrified drivetrains. On day one, companies including, Nexteer Automotive, FEV and HF Sinclair, Ford and GM will be presenting on evaluations of bearings within high-speed drivetrains and modern bearing challenges in automotive motion control. Ford and GM will be presenting on preferred OEM architectures and mechanical engineering challenges for hybrid vehicles. Meanwhile, on Day 3, leaders from bearing companies including, NES, NSK, North America Bearing Company, Silverthin Bearing, Vibrac and WD Bearings will present on a range of topics including:

• Bearings for High Performance Applications
• Bearings for Space and Low Orbit Applications
• The Role of AI in Optimizing Bearing Performance
• Preventing Bearing Failure
• Misconceptions of Rolling Element Bearing Performance
• Comparison of Lubricant Selection for NTN, Timken and SKF Bearings

Lubricant Expo

The Lubricant Expo is connecting lubricant solution providers with the full range of end-user buyers, as well as the entire chemical and equipment supply chain with thousands of engineers and executives in attendance. This year’s program will include expert-led conference sessions on topics such as:

Lubricant Analysis: Learn the ins and outs of lubricant analysis, a vital element for predicting equipment health and maximizing machine uptime.

Sustainability: Discover how the latest advancements in lubricants can improve equipment performance and longevity with sustainability.

Led by seasoned industry experts, these conference sessions will provide attendees with actionable insights they can immediately apply in their own work environments.

Every year, the event features keynote presentations from industry pioneers who provide insights on the latest trends, technologies, and challenges shaping the lubrication industry.

Booth Previews

Boca Bearing Company Booth #234

The reduction of rolling resistance and conservation of energy has been our company s hallmark since 1987. Boca Bearing Company stocks a full range of ceramic balls, full ceramic and ceramic hybrid replacement bearings for all industrial, medical, and specialty applications.

Ceramic balls are rolling, spherical elements that are used in check and ball valves, bearings, and other mechanical devices that provide rotary or linear motion. They are made from inorganic, nonmetallic materials that are processed at high temperatures. Many ceramic balls can achieve an extremely smooth surface finish to a high degree of tolerance. As a result Ceramic Balls have an extremely low coefficient of friction as compared to Metal Balls. Grinding removes cuts, scratches, scuffs, and other irregularities. Many ceramic balls exhibit much greater hardness than steel balls, resulting in longer life and improved reliability. Ceramic balls can also provide high stiffness, low thermal expansion, light weight, increased corrosion resistance, and electrical resistance. Boca Bearings has expanded their assortment of Silicon Nitride Ceramic Balls, Alumina Oxide Ceramic Balls and Zirconia Ceramic Balls.

Boca Bearings offers a line of ceramic balls, the C-HIP series. The C-HIP Ceramic Balls are made of the same material as the Si3N4 Ceramic Ball series, but these C-HIP balls are made by Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP). Because of the greater temperature and pressure that is used in the making of these C-HIP balls they have an even greater density and hardness than a standard ceramic ball. Ceramic balls are suitable for applications where high loads, high speeds and extreme temperatures are factors.

bocabearings.com

Klüber Lubrication Booth #613

Klüber Lubrication offers expert tribological solutions by supplying high-performance specialty lubricants directly to customers in almost all branches of industry and regional markets. Our customers include producers of components, modules, machines and systems as well as companies using this equipment for their own production or processing activities.

Klüber Lubrication offers tried-and-tested specialty lubricants and bearing greases for specific applications. An important way to optimize the efficiency of a lubricant is to adapt the base oil to the respective application. Customized base oil technologies for the specific application ensure that the lubricity is maintained over a wide temperature range and at variable speeds and vibrations.

In addition to efficiency, optimized ageing behavior and increased safety also play a decisive role in the development of next-generation lubricants, especially in highly stressed, safety-relevant areas. This is achieved through improved wear behavior, excellent shear stability and high load-carrying capacity.

klueber.com/uk/en/

Lubrizol Booth #405

Lubrizol, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is a specialty chemical company whose science delivers sustainable solutions to advance mobility, improve wellbeing and enhance modern life. Founded in 1928, Lubrizol owns and operates more than 100 manufacturing facilities, sales and technical offices around the world and has more than 8,000 employees.

Lubrizol CV9660 is engineered to meet the increasing demand for low-sulphated ash, phosphorous, and sulphur (SAPS) heavy duty lubricants whilst setting a new standard in the industry. With simplified formulation logistics and technology which exceeds the performance requirements in many key engine tests, such as the OM471, the latest Daimler durability test, Lubrizol CV9660 delivers top performance and meets exacting industry requirements.

lubrizol.com

Napoleon Engineering Services Booth #730

Napoleon Engineering Services (NES) is in Olean, NY, seventy miles south of Buffalo in the heart of the Allegany Mountains. Founded in 1997, NES is a one-stop shop for engineered bearing products and specializes in Custom Bearing Manufacturing, Bearing Testing, and Bearing Inspection, providing valuable products and services to many industries including aerospace, drivetrain, agriculture, oil and gas, electric motor, automotive and heavy equipment, to name a few.

nesbearings.com

SKF Booth #531

SKF’s lubrication division excels in both automatic and manual lubrication systems and equipment. They offer comprehensive solutions to reduce friction, which leads to improved performance, reduced downtime, better sustainability, and a safer workplace. The main challenge in the industry, according to is educating end users on the necessity of clean lubrication for optimal machine performance. The concept of delivering the proper lubricant to the right place, in the correct amount, at the proper interval is critical. Lack of proper lubrication leads to machine breakdowns resulting in downtime, expensive repairs, and reduced productivity.

The sector will increasingly depend on automation and wireless technology. Monitoring the performance of your machines through a mobile phone will become standard practice. The Internet of Things (IoT) will be integral to daily operations.

bearing-show.com