The machine builder and installer has been working together with igus® for a number of years now. Many different products based company are installed in the machine tool and machining centres from Niles-Simmons. In addition to the custom made polymer energy chains, they use the "DryLin W", a linear guide with polymer gliding elements which are mounted in the machine space using movable rails. In addition igubal® spherical bearings are used, as well as hybrid linear bearings and polymer slewing ring bearings in various auxiliary movements. The igus igubal spherical plain bearings are also playing an increasingly important role in the new designs. The international company Niles-Simmons Industrieanlagen GmbH has concentrated its business activities in the field of research, development, production and sales of machine tools. According to Pierre Seildel, the marketing manager, the company’s product philosophy is that "Our goal is to manufacture and globally market products of the highest quality”. About 350 people are employed at the company headquarters in Chemnitz, but within the entire NSH Group, there are over 1,100 employees throughout the world.

Niles-Simmons has now started relying on "iglidur" polymer slewing ring bearings which need neither lubrication nor maintenance to move its control consoles. The cantilever arm system for the control consoles used to be delivered as a complete unit from one supplier. "However, we wanted to give our machines their own face," reports designer Jens Liebscher. "Therefore we decided on the design of our own control console which looks good with the machining centre it is used with." ." It needed to rotate easily and we wanted to make it possible to raise it as well. Two polymer slewing ring bearings installed as a complete unit are used in the newly designed control console. The polymer gliding elements are made from a material called "iglidur® J". In addition to its main purpose, freedom from maintenance and lubricants, the slewing ring bearings are highly wear resistant. They also have a low coefficient of friction which ensures little force is needed to swivel the console.

Another example for a tribologically optimized polymer solution is the innovative hybrid linear bearing from igus for the secure guiding of sliding doors. All machine tools or machining centres are equipped with sliding doors. The housings are completely removed for transport, including all the guides, and then reinstalled at the customer's site without a great deal of adjustment. "However, the customer does not want the sliding doors to move too easily. At the same time, too much force should not be needed to open them." For these subsidiary movements, hybrid linear bearings really show their strengths. They cannot twist, but remain free of both lubricants and maintenance.