Change Language :

Maintenance-free heavy-duty and fibre composite plain bearings

Large coiled pipe and construction machines on a site with igus logo, TX2 and KMI for the virtual trade fair.

Developed for very high loads

Composite bearings are a combination of different materials. For this purpose, e.g. mineral materials (glass, coal) are woven, combined with synthetic resins and other additives and sometimes pressed together under high temperatures and pressure.

With our igutex plain bearings, a robust fibreglass fabric serves as the outer shell, while an inner layer optimised for sliding properties reduces friction on the shaft.

The combination of these materials results in high-strength composite fibre plain bearings that are primarily used in agricultural, construction and mining machinery. Since our igutex composite bearings contain solid lubricants, they do not require any maintenance or additional lubrication. Incidentally, this also applies to our iglidur heavy-duty plain bearings. These also eliminate the need for regular lubrication, making your bearing points maintenance-free.

What you will find on this page

That’s why you benefit from igutex composite bearings and iglidur plain bearings

Save time and money

✅ No costs for lubricants
✅ No failures due to insufficient lubrication
✅ Time and money saved on daily maintenance

No loss lubrication

✅ No release of lubricant into the environment
✅ No loss lubrication for wear protection
✅ No centralised lubrication necessary

Developed for high loads

Extremely robust and wear-resistant
✅ Tested under real operating conditions
✅ Predictable service life thanks to test database

Our high-strength igutex fibre composite plain bearings

igus plain bearing bushing made of igutex with removed background.

igutex TX1

Robust all-rounder material

Data sheetigutex TX1 in the online shop
igus TX3 plain bearing made of plastic.

igutex TX3

For continuous operation with very high loads

Data sheetigutex TX3 in the online shop

What is special about igutex fibre composite plain bearings?

Igutex plain bearing structure with numbered detail views in front of a dump truck.

Where injection-moulded plain bearings cannot be used due to excessive mechanical loads, wound igutex fibre composite plain bearings play to their strength. They consist of two layers:

1 Gliding layer

The gliding layer consists of a filament fabric with solid lubricants, making the composite plain bearings self-lubricating and maintenance-free with particularly low coefficients of friction.

2 Base layer

The outer layer of igutex slide bearings is made of particularly hard-wearing filament fabrics and serves to protect the tribologically optimised inner layer.

igutex fibre composite plain bearings are used here

Pulsating loads? No problem.

Brunner Spezialwerkstatt AG uses plain bearings from igus in its slurry spreading systems in order to operate 28 bearing points without lubrication and corrosion. Enormous pulsating forces act on some of the bearing points - an ideal environment for TX1 plain bearings, which can withstand surface pressures of up to 200MPa.

More on the application
iglidur components on an agricultural trailer with spreader system.

Costs minimised

Thanks to the self-lubricating igutex TX1 fibre composite bearings, crane manufacturer Tan Cang Gantry has been able to reduce costs for its customers without reducing the service life. In addition, maintenance has been reduced to a minimum so that insufficient lubrication no longer poses a risk.

More on the application
RTG crane in the container terminal at dusk with lit booms and stacked containers.

Reliable despite dirt and grime 

The track vehicle from Kässbohrer Geländefahrzeug AG relies on wound igutex heavy-duty plain bearings in the oscillating and tensioning axles. Even in mud, slush, and bog, igutex plain bearings remain reliable.

More on the application
Tracked off-road vehicle transports a blue container over uneven ground.

20 tons load and salt water

The Ship & Yacht Engineering Ltd. A-frame can lift loads of up to 20 tons. Therefore, heavy-duty plain bearings that are suitable for high loads were required. For use on the high seas, they also needed to be weatherproof.

More on the application
A-frame crane lifts heavy ship parts in the harbor.

White paper on the topic of plain bearings in heavy-duty applications

Heavy Duty brochure with cover, machine photo, and a spread with infographic.

Plastic bearing and heavy duty

Find out more about the following topics:

  • Discussions with our development experts
  • Material overview with heavy-duty plain bearings
  • How iglidur and igutex materials work
  • Lubrication – a challenge for industry
  • Sustainable product developments
  • Test results of various plain bearing types
  • practical application examples
Download now for free (PDF)
Whitepaper on plain bearings and lubrication-free bearing points with pages and product examples.

Lubrication-free bearing points in construction machinery

Download our free white paper "Important success factors for lubrication-free bearing positions in construction machinery".
These topics await you:

  • Important functions of lubrication in plain bearings
  • Reasons for switching to lubrication-free plain bearings
  • Differentiation: lubrication-free iglidur plain bearings vs. lubricated metallic bearings
  • How self-lubricating plain bearings work
  • This must be taken into account when changing to dry-running plain bearings
Download now for free (PDF)

Our strong iglidur injection moulding plain bearings

Cylindrical iglidur plastic plain bearing.

iglidur Q3E - High-load plain bearing for large quantities

iglidur Q3E is our heavy-duty plain bearing made from two components with excellent tribological specifications. The sliding surface consists of iglidur Q3 and is surrounded by a high-strength jacket. The combination of both materials ensures high mechanical resilience with low wear at the same time.

More information
Plastic plain bearing bushing.

iglidur SG03 plain bearing with felt seal

The iglidur SG03 plain bearing seals bearing points with its felt seal. This prevents dust and dirt from penetrating the bearing point and damaging it. In laboratory tests, the use of the felt seal increased the service life of the plain bearing by up to 50 times.

More information
iglidur Q2 plain bearing cut out on a white background.

iglidur Q2 plain bearing for high load carrying capacity

iglidur Q2 plain bearings represent high load capacities and good abrasion resistance at high loads. The plain bearing offers excellent value for money. Solid lubricants in the plain bearing material lower the coefficient of friction and reduce wear. Q2 plain bearings are specially developed for heavy-duty pivoting applications.

More information

What is special about iglidur plain bearings?

igutex Q3E bearing for construction machines in soil, with a highlighted detail.

iglidur plain bearings are developed from highly wear-resistant plastics that have very low coefficient of friction. Over 60 different iglidur materials are available and are each developed for special applications. All contain solid lubricants and are therefore suitable for use without additional lubrication and maintenance.

In addition to polymers, iglidur plain bearings for heavy-duty applications contain fibres and fillers, which give them their high wear resistance. This makes them suitable for high forces and edge loads.

Thanks to a large database of test results, the service life can also be determined for various operating conditions.

A tractor loads soil into a trailer, with a cylindrical pipe part in the foreground.

Maintenance-free in wind and weather

A customised wear insert made of iglidur material makes lubrication superfluous and thus prevents high costs for the regeneration of the coupling. In addition, no lubricant is released into the environment.

More on the application
The track system of a vehicle is heavily covered in mud.

Extended service life in crawler track system

Load with a lot of dirt and moisture. Slyagri Ltd. approached igus with these requirements when they were looking for plain bearings for a crawler track system. Conventional bronze bearings wear out too quickly, so a more durable alternative was needed. Since then, iglidur plain bearings have been successfully in use.

More on the application
Excavator with special crane lifts a bucket on a construction site.

No problem with high loads

The Ets Payant pulley module transports soil from a depth of up to 65 metres to the surface and can lift up to 5 tons of material. This is no problem for the iglidur two hole flange bearings and thrust washers used.

More on the application
Lemken Karat 9 tillage machine working in a field.

Maintenance time saved

Thanks to the self-lubricating iglidur plain bearings, one hour of maintenance time is saved daily at the bearing points of the Lemken cultivator. Due to their stability, the iglidur plain bearings also significantly increase the reliability.

More on the application

Consulting

I look forward to answering your questions

Hennlich doo Beograd+381 11 63 098 17Write e-mail

Shipping and consultation

In person:

Monday to Friday from 7 am - 8 pm.
Saturdays from 8 am- 12 pm.


Online:
24h

WhatsApp-Service:
Montag – Freitag: 8 – 16 Uhr