Anyone can see CO2 footprint of lubrication-free iglidur plain bearings at a glance
06/12/2022
Quick indication of carbon footprint of iglidur bearings at igus online shop simplifies CO2 balancing for customers
How much CO2 is released into the atmosphere in the production of a plastic plain bearing? For the first time, igus has published accurate CO2 reductions for a large number of its lubrication- and maintenance-free iglidur polymer plain bearings. And users can include these values in Scope 3 emissions when calculating the carbon footprint of climate-neutral products.
Manufacturers and their customers are increasingly questioned about how sustainable the products they make and use are. There is specific focus is on CO2 emissions, and companies can balance, reduce and compensate for the so-called Scope 1 emissions that occur at their site through, for example, the operation of company vehicles and machines. The same applies to both Scope 2 emissions, the indirect emissions from purchased energy, and Scope 3 emissions from suppliers. “In many cases, however, accounting beyond the company’s own boundaries is a real challenge,” says Rob Dumayne, director of drytech® products at igus UK. “For example, when machines are composed of hundreds of components from different manufacturers.”
He adds, “To simplify this task for customers, we can show the CO2 footprints for 16 materials in the iglidur plain bearing series in the igus online shop. Users can see at a glance how much carbon dioxide emissions the production of a plastic plain bearing creates.”
Ambitious goal: Production at igus to be CO2 neutral by 2025
igus not only strives for transparency in terms of environmental balance, but also for the continuous reduction of CO2 in its own production processes.
In 2021, the company succeeded in reducing CO2 emissions by 31.2% compared to the previous year – primarily by switching its power source to green electricity and climate-neutral gas. In addition, the motion plastics specialist is gradually investing in more injection moulding machines that require 40% less energy than older models. The ambitious goal is that by 2025, the production of high-performance plastic components should be CO2-neutral.
Plastic beats metal: More than 250,000 customers rely on iglidur
The iglidur plain bearing series is one of igus’ most established products. More than 250,000 companies worldwide rely on plastic plain bearings from igus, including automobile manufacturers, bicycle manufacturers, the aircraft industry and machine builders. And they all extend the life cycle of their products by switching from classic metal bearings to polymer bearings, for several reasons. Firstly, plastic plain bearings are only a fraction of the weight of metal bearings, a saving that reduces the required drive energy. In addition, users can dispense with lubricants. Microscopically small solid lubricants are integrated into the iglidur materials, which are released during operation and enable low friction and environmentally-friendly dry running. Rob Dumayne adds: “Some of our plain bearings, for example, are available for just 20 pence,.– directly from stock. At these prices, customers quickly reduce their costs, increase the service life and eliminate additional lubricants – big plus for your wallet and the environment.”
