Lubrication-free plain bearings in boat cranes: No maintenance despite salt water

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• What was needed: plain bearings made of the material iglidur P
• Requirements: corrosion-free, can be used underwater, lubrication-free, maintenance-free, resistant to UV radiation
• Industry: Boat industry
• Success for the customer: the corrosion-free polymer bearings made of iglidur P can be used permanently in salt water without maintenance. As they dispense with lubrication, they do not harm the environment. In boat cranes, they also support ships weighing up to 30t.

Quality Boat Lifts build boat cranes used in commercial and private marinas and by private boat owners to hoist boats out of the water. Based outside of Fort Myers, Florida, the company offers seven different boat crane systems. They include the "ALUM-A-VATOR", which has met the industry standard for 40 years, and the robust "Superlift" industrial version. The cranes previously used bearing blocks that required regular lubrication. This was often difficult and unsafe for customers since the maintenance routine required boat owners to climb to the top of the unit. The lubricant also contaminated the water, making it an environmentally damaging solution. Therefore, the company was looking for a completely lubrication-free alternative, one that had to be corrosion-resistant due to the salt water. The unit would be subjected to strong sunlight, so it was important for the new bearing solution to withstand UV radiation. And since boat cranes lift heavy loads, bearing points had to be very robust.

With polymer plain bearings made of the material iglidur P, Quality Boat Lifts can now rely on a durable and lubrication-free solution. Each boat crane of the brands "ALUM-A-VATOR" and "Superlift" contains between 10 and 20 iglidur plain bearings. Installed directly in the drive shaft of the cable winch, they allow for the stroke and lowering movement to lift the boats completely out of the water. Thanks to the low coefficient of friction and high load capacity of the bearings, they can easily absorb forces between 4,500 and 66,000 pounds in the ALUM-A-VATOR and Speedlift. iglidur P also withstands radial forces of 1,000 pounds that occur during the use of a boat lift.
Since the bearings allow for smooth and easy movement without any lubricants, they do not contaminate the environment. At the same time, Quality Boat Lifts can offer its customers a completely maintenance-free solution. Furthermore, the selected material iglidur P is permanently resistant to UV radiation. In contrast to its metal and bronze counterparts, the bearings do not corrode due to their components and are thus the ideal choice for use in seawater. Finally, Quality Boat Lifts relies specifically on iglidur P because of its particularly low moisture absorption.