The company uses plastic linear plain bearings on an automatic input/output port for tapes that are loaded into an automatic tape backup library. At first they tested linear ball bearings, but then decided against them due to cost reasons, because if the bearing blocks fall down at the end of the tracks, this would ruin the bearings. They looked for a more affordable bearing: one that would not stick and would be designed so that the bearing carriages could protrude over the end of the tracks, even if the metal connecting terminals are not exactly squarely aligned. The bearing carriages could slide out at the end of the track without getting damaged. Without additional friction, the motor has sufficient torque to manage the load. DryLin® W takes up little space, costs much less than a linear ball bearing and can be easily fitted. It can manage the 30-pound load without any problem and secures the input/output port with higher precision.
"The plastic bearings allowed the design department to fulfill the cost and reliability specifications for the design of the input/output port.