In an effort to make pivot maintenance easier for growers, Reinke Manufacturing, a global leader in irrigation systems and technology, introduces the industry’s first Maintenance-Free Bearing to the North American market.
Due to the nature of bearing grease, annual maintenance has been needed to ensure that the center pivot rotational movement was not interrupted. With Reinke’s patent pending Maintenance-Free Bearing, the need to do all that work is done.
“We’re always looking for ways to lower ownership costs for our growers,” says Chris Roth, president of Reinke. “This is the first of its kind on the market. Our team has designed a better bearing assembly that requires zero maintenance along with superior structural expectations and durability. This will also save growers time that they can use to complete other important work on their operation.”
The key benefits for growers are:
• Saves time – no need to grease the pivot center before the season starts
• Maintenance-free – growers have peace of mind that it will work without interruption
• Eliminates grease spill-out on and around the pivot
• Increases rotational efficiency for greater system longevity – product trials showed a 40% decrease in strain on the bearing over the previous version
“We tested the bearing with more than a quarter of a million revolutions without issue,” says Roth. “When we see testing results like this, we get excited knowing that we’ve got a high-load, low-friction product on our hands.”
The Maintenance-Free Bearing is designed to last the lifetime of the system, using the same high-quality specifications of all Reinke’s products. The product is available on new Reinke irrigation systems using an 8″ pivot bearing. But it can also be retrofitted onto existing 8″ Electrogator II center pivots.
