EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

0.1 A bearing is a simple looking product. It is manufactured from

appropriate materials, closely specified, to ensure long life, ma-
chined to meet high precision standards, and finished to give
minimal friction. Depending on its applications, a bearing may
have to withstand prolonged use, high speed rotation, varied
temperatures or even a corrosive environment.
For bearings within the normal popular range, the choice of
materials is determined by the operating environment and the
size, weight or strength required. Sometimes, bearings can be
manufactured from a wide range of metals, plastics, ceramics
and composite materials.
The machine element - bearing - to which such an importance is
attributed, both technically and economically, is mostly found
concealed in housings of machines and equipment. As a matter
of fact this invisible component can be found in almost any
equipment that rotates. Therefore, the bearing as an inter de-
pendent machine element, has a far reaching implication on the
efficiency of the machine.

Generally, bearings have been standardised internationally i.e.

the boundary dimensions of the product have been laid down.
However, with moderate modifications in the standardised designs,
bearings have been manufactured and used for various applications
the world over.
0.2 The manufacturing activity in the country started in the late 40's,
with the production of small and standard bearings. The Indian
industry today manufactures small and medium bearings mainly
in five categories, i.e. ball bearings, cylindrical roller bearings,
taper roller bearings, spherical roller bearings and needle roller
bearings. The popular size range is generally restricted to 140
mm OD, though larger sizes are also manufactured by some
units. The industry generally does not manufacture special
bearings/high precision bearings. Some small scale units also
manufacture bearings, but these generally cannot compare in
quality or volume with those from the organised sector though a
few do make some special designs. The organised sector
manufacturers have generally imported the technology from
internationally renowned manufacturers. The rolling bearing
manufacturers in India mostly manufacture bearings based on
the original design and specifications obtained from their
collaborators. Generally there is a limited facility available with
the bearing manufacturers for research or development of new
bearings of indigenous designs. However, commendable efforts
have been made by some units to design and develop bearings,
particularly larger diameter ball and roller bearings, to suit
specific customer requirements. There are also small scale units
producing bearings in small quantities from imported components
by assembling them. The following are the major manufacturers
of bearings in India:

1. Associated Bearing Company Ltd., Pune (Maharashtra)

2. Asian Bearings Company Ltd., Hosur (Tamil Nadu)
3. Karnataka Ball Bearing Corporation Ltd., Mysore
(Karnataka)
4. HMT Ltd., Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh)
5. Tata Iron and Steel Company Ltd., (Bearings Division)
Kharagpur (West Bengal)
6. Shriram Bearings Ltd., Ranchi (Bihar)
7. National Engineering Industries Ltd., Jaipur (Rajasthan)
8. FAG Precision Bearings Ltd., Vadodara (Gujarat)
9. Antifriction Bearing Company Ltd. Bharuch (Gujarat)
Lonavala (Maharashtra)
10. Union Bearings Manufacturing Co., Porbunder (Gujarat)
11. Needle Roller Bearing Co. Ltd., Thana/Jalna (Maharashtra)
12. Shriram Needle Industries Ltd., Ranchi (Bihar)
13. Deepak Insulated Cables Ltd., Mysore (Karnataka) (Needle
Bearings Division)
14. Austin Engg Co., Gujarat
15. Karnataka Ball Bearing Co Ltd., Mysore
16. Mysore Kirloskar Ltd, Harihar (Karnataka)
17. Needle Roller Bearings Ltd, Thane
18. Needle Roller Bearings Ltd., Waluj
19. Ruby Bearings Pvt Ltd., Rajkot

The approved capacity of the industry during 1989 was 82.62

millions nos. The total installed capacity is estimated at 77
 million nos per annum in 1989. Of the 19 units, three are
engaged in the manufacture of needle roller bearings including
their variants like bushes, cages as well as components. Apart
from manufacturers of bearings, there are few independent units
manufacturing steel balls also.

0.3 The following are the major types of bearing.

a. Ball bearing
b. Cylindrical roller bearing
c. Taper roller bearing
d. Needle roller bearing
Further classification of these major categories is given below :
i. Single row deep groove ball bearings
ii. Maximum capacity type ball bearings
iii. Single row angular contact ball bearings
Radial iv. Duplex angular contact ball bearings
Ball — v. Double row angular contact ball bearings
Bearings vi. Four point contact ball bearings
vii. Self aligning ball bearings
Ball
Bearings
i. Single direction thrust ball bearings with flat
back face
Thrust ii. Single direction thrust ball bearings with seating
Ball Ball — ring
and Bearings iii. Double direction thrust ball bearings with
Roller flat back face
Bear- iv. Double direction thrust ball bearings with
ings seating ring
v. Double direction angular contact thrust ball
bearings

I. Single row cylindrical roller bearings

Radial ii. Double row cylindrical roller bearings
1 " Roller — iii. Single row tapered roller bearings
Bearings iv. Double row tapered roller bearings
1 V. Spherical roller bearings
Roller
Bearings
i. Cylindrical roller thrust bearings
Thrust ii. Needle roller thrust bearings
Roller in. Tapered roller thrust bearings
Bearings iv. Spherical roller thrust bearings
 Depending upon the magnitude and direction of load envisaged
in an application, a specific bearing type is selected. The standar-
disation of bearings universally has facilitated interchangeabil-
ity, and employment of mass production techniques, thereby
achieving economies in scale of operations.

0.4 Bearings of various types and sizes are used for different appli-
cations. The major applications are as follows :
Automobiles
Railways
Electrical Motors
Electric Fans
Diesel Engines
Pumps
Machine Tools
Textile machinery, etc.
Other heavy industries
The demand for bearings comprises of Original Equipment
demand (OE) and Replacement demand. In July 1986 Govern-
ment constituted a Development Panel under the DGTD, Ministry
of Industry to look into the various problems affecting the roller
bearings industry. The Panel has assessed the demand for rolling
bearings by 1990, 1995 and 2000 as under.

1990 - 110 millions

1995 - 150 millions
2000 - 190 millions
Considering the new capacity, mostly by way of expansion of
existing units that is likely to materialise in the future, the
demand and supply situation for ball as well as roller bearings
has been estimated as follows.
 Year Total Demand Total Supply
(Million nos.) (Million Nos.)
1991-92 122.90 100.00
1996-97 163.05 100.00
0.5 From the inception of the industry, bearing manufacturing in the
country is dependent on foreign technology. The organised sector
of the industry has imported know-how from various internation-
ally leading manufacturers of bearings. The import of technology
is generally restricted to small and standard bearings. Technol-
ogy borrowing specifically for special bearings has not taken
place so far.
There could be about 40000 different types and sizes of bearings
in demand in the market. The Indian industry at present is
catering to only about 1000 types and sizes. Total investment in
fixed assets in the rolling bearing industry by the end of 1988 has
been estimated as over Rs.300 crores.
0.6 The bearing technology transfer within the industry is discouraging
and whatever transfer does take place, is incidental to changing
ofjobs by personnel within the industry. The manufacturers have
generally either re-entered into agreement with the same
collaborator or have obtained extensions. At times, collaborators
have also been changed by a few organisations. Presumably, this
has been done with a view to having access to the latest
development at the international level and achieving upgradation
of technology though it appears doubtful if such of an option or
choice was really available

The heavy dependence on borrowed technology indicates that

continuous efforts towards development have not yielded the
desired results. Moreover, in spite of collaborations the Indian
industry generally has not achieved standards of quality close to
international levels. Research and Development appears con-
spicuous more by its absence, in this industry. The industry
undertakes routine development programmes from time to time,
in terms of additional bearing sizes or increased production.
0.7 The various reasons that have been put forward for selection of
a foreign collaborator are as follows :
— The advantages associated with an internationally re-
nowned name.
— Favourable terms and conditions of collaboration.
— Quality of product.

— Assured access to latest developments at the international

level.
Almost all the companies have collaboration of a technical nature
and financial participation is rare. It is necessary, to mention,
that none of the manufacturers had much of a choice while
selecting a particular collaborator.
Generally the restrictive clauses pertain to the export of product,
transfer of technology to other manufacturers, and use of the
brand name.

As regards exports, most of the collaborators have prohibited

Indian manufacturers from exporting to such countries where
they have licencees operating.

0.8 Support for carrying out 'Research' as such, is generally not

available. However, help for solving routine problems, and typical
technical problems has been extended by the collaborator.
Training facilities are offered to Indian personnel abroad, i.e. at
the collaborator's plant. Similarly, experts from the collaborator
are deputed to train people in the Indian company. The period of
training generally varies between 3 to 6 months.

Research and Development activity either original or applied,

appears to be very limited. The reasons for this are as follows.
The need for R & D is not felt seriously as the market for
bearings is not large enough and also is restricted to small
and standard bearings only.
 — The investment involved in R & D is very high, but the
returns on this, in the Indian environment, are very low.

— The rare needs that may arise are fulfilled by the collabo-
rator at a price.

— Lack of complete knowledge about the latest international

developments.

The efforts made are of a very general nature in areas of product

range expansion, process modification and other routine prob-
lems.

0.9 Since the activity is not undertaken on an exclusive basis,

expenditure for R & D cannot be earmarked and estimated
separately, either for the industry or for individual organisations.

0.10 LATEST DEVELOPMENTS AT INTERNATIONAL LEVEL

The international manufacturers have directed the thrust to

higher precision, coupled with high productivity. Their efforts are
concentrated on improving the quality of the bearings to the
highest levels possible. Thus, the life of bearings would be
improved, they would carry higher loads and the noise levels
would be reduced to the minimum.

Though bearing sizes and nomenclature have been standardised,

design modifications do take place continually in order to im-
prove the overall performance of the product. New products as
such, may not be a significant area of concentration. With the
onslaught of excellent quality volume production by the Japa-
nese manufacturers, some bearing manufacturers have moved
towards bearings with special applications, including ready
assmeblies that carry rolling bearings integrated into them.
Newer materials such as plastics and even ceramics have been
experimented with and developed for special applications. Other
manufacutrers have reorganised to bring in economy of large
volumes, experimented and developed, such as use of plastics
and even ceramics.
 The pace and achievement of the above mentioned goals in
bearing manufacture can directly be linked to innovations in
machine tools, process technology and material properties. In
machine tools, the stress is constantly on improving the precision
levels and productivity. Automation at every stage is most com-
mon. This is done within the machine and in transfer from
machine to machine into line manufacture, to achieve close
control on operations and monitor the pre-process corrections.
0.11 TECHNOLOGY ABSORPTION AND UPGRADATION EFFORTS

The research laboratories and institutions at the national level

have not made any significant contribution to the bearing indus-
try by way of R & D.

Most of the existing manufacturers of rolling bearings in India are

manufacturing bearings based upon the designs obtained from
their collaborators. Some of the bearing manufacturers have
been upgrading the designs on the basis of improvements carried
out by their collaborators, one of the limiting factor being the
equipment technology available with the indigenous manufac-
turers. Some of the bearing manufacturers have also evolved
their own design capabilities and have designed bearings suc-
cessfully, particularly, of large diameters for applicaion in strate-
gic industries.

The most common material used in the manufacture of bearing

rings, balls and rollers is Alloy steel conforming to specifications
SAE 52100. This material has become standard material for the
industry all over the world. While the basic meterial remains the
same, the steel manufacturers all over the world have been
improving this material in order to improve the life span and
quality of the bearing. The Indian steel manufacturers although
manufacturing steel to specifications SAE 52100, are not able to
meet the requirement of the bearing manufacturers in so far as
purity and oxygen content is concerned. Therefore, the industry
has to make do with the material available indigenously which is
not of the required quality resulting in poor quality bearing with
high scrap percentage.

8
 The bearing manufacturers have been adopting the equipment
technology suitable for low volume production. This was essen-
tially due to the demand pattern of rolling bearings in the country
being made up of a large diversified range of bearings in small
quantities. In view of the very high cost of bearing equipment,
most of the bearing manufacturers did not venture to change
their equipment technology in favour of large batch production or
line production. That apart, there has been considerable upgra-
dation in the production technology itself generated by the re-
quirements of the user sector of higher accuracy bearings. This
is evident from the fact that a normal level of accuracy for the
standard ball bearing in the world today is P-5 or P-6, whereas in
India the Bearing Units are still to equip themselves for manufac-
turing bearings of such accuracies.

0.12 INTERACTION WITH THE USER INDUSTRY

It is not as if efforts are not made to improve quality but even when
the desired quality is not produced, it is still taken by the market.

Of late the situation has started changing rapidly with the entry
of the Japanese in the Indian engineering industry. The demand
for quality has started growing in the bearing manufacturing
industry. Customer support service is assuming importance. On
a routine basis, seminars, dealers conferences, and trouble
shooting sessions, are undertaken by the manufacturers.

0.13 SMALL SCALE INDUSTRY

The small scale industry in bearing manufacture is operating on

the basis of its own experience, and services from technical
experts, whenever required.

The industry makes standard bearings, odd-size bearings, and to

some extent, large-size bearings. In some cases the manufactur-
ing activity is merely restricted to assembly operations of compo-
nents generally imported.

Small scale units that cannot afford the high investment machin-
ery and therefore, cannot produce quality or volume, generally
cater to the replacement market or low quality demand section.
 Thesmall scale units operate more in the realm of trading culture
than in manufacturing.

0.14 ANCILLARY LINKAGES

Ancillary development for major components of bearings has not

been significant. For the rolling element viz. spherical balls, only-
one supplier is in existence. Cage-making is generally in-house,
rolling elements such as spherical, cylindrical and taper rollers
are also produced in-house. Forged rings, which are being
increasingly used for making medium and large size bearings,
have now become a critical component for ancillary development.
The industry is making all round efforts to develop consistent
suppliers. However, the quantity and quality of forged rings are
not available, though some of the bearing manufacturers have
themselves put up facilities to produce formed rings. Vendors for
supplying seals and shields have been developed.

0.15 COMPARISON OF TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Since the product is standardised internationally, the designs

followed by the industry are more or less, the same. Technical
specifications are restricted to basic parameters. Quality specifi-
cations adopted from the collaborator's specifications, vary usually.

0.16 MODERNISATION

With increasing international quality demand, modernisation is

naturally a need of the bearig industry today. This is becoming
increasingly costlier with the needed imported machines. As it is,
the bearing industry is highly capital intensive as the investment
required in machines is very high. The industry has been making
continuous efforts to improve upon the quality parameters either
with the help of collaborators or by installing the latest machines.
If the pace of modernisation is not what it should be, it is bacause
it is not easily viable due to factors such as :

— Scale of investment
— Market constraints
— Limited scope for automation.

10
 Some of the plants visited have carried out planned modernisa-
tion. These are SKF Bearings India Ltd., Tata Iron and Steel Co.
Ltd. (Bearing Division).

0.17 TECHNOLOGY GAPS

The reflections of technological achievement are seen in the

quality of the product. The bearings manufactured by the Indian
industry have to improve considerably to meet international
standards.

If the roots of the problem are to be identified, one comes to the

following conclusions:

Machine Tools - precision, productivity

Materials - quality, consistency
Operations - process mastery, assembly, quality control
Skill

These broad areas can be indentified as "Technology Gaps" in

bearing manufacture. Although considerable efforts have been
made in these directions, the gaps have not yet been bridged.

0.18 THRUST AREAS FOR TECHNOLOGY

The thrust areas for indigenous technology would include :

Development of indigenous machine tools and equipment

for testing, equivalent to international standards of preci-
sion. The suitability of these machines in the Indian
working environment would be the critical factor.

Materials are available indigenously. However, the quality

of tubes in particular, is not to the satisfaction of the
industry. Moreover, consistency in supplies is also not
experienced. Cleanliness of material needs to be improved
to a great extent to enable the industry to take basic
advantage of quality raw material. As regards forged rings,
suppliers meeting sufficient quality standards need to be
encouraged.

11
 Operational expertise of a very high calibre has to be achieved.
Maximum precision in the process, minimum handling damages,
and maximum cleanliness should be observed to get the desired
quality of bearings.

0.19 CONCLUSIONS
i. The Indian bearing industry commonly manufactures
bearings upto 140 mm OD. The product range manufac-
tured by individual units is by and large, common.
ii. The industry has been dependent on borrowed technology
and has laid emphasis on high volume of production for
which the technology is more suited. The industry does not
manufacture bearings for special applications mainly
owing to smaller market requirements, resulting into
uneconomic batch quantites for production.

iii. Work of an original nature towards development of new

products and improvement in machine tools, process
technology, etc., is generally not carried out. In the event
of major problems, the tendency seems to be to refer to the
collaborator reflecting the heavy dependence on the latter.
This also relfects on the level of support offered and
technology parted with by the collaborator.

The national institutions have not been associated with

any such developmental or research work.

iv. The bearing industry is capital intensive. The evolution in

machine tool technology - precision and productivity - has
pushed the cost of investment to a very high level.

The dependence on imported machines, the costs of which

are continually increasing due to high inflation rates in the
oveseas countries, the rapidly changing exchange rates
and import duties, have all aggravated the situation,
reducing the pace of modernisation and making it prohibi-
tive even for new ventures to be competitive.

v. Moreover, the cost of raw materials, particularly tubes

available indigenously, is very high, as also the cost of

12
 imported tubes due to heavy import duties. Besides, the
quality of basic steel available indigenously is not to the
satisfaction of the industry. The high cost of tubes has
affected the industry quite adversely. The cost structure
has been upset on account of the high proportion of raw
material costs and this affects the profitabiliy of at least
some units.

vi. Further, the market, even if growing, cannot support such

fragmentation as results from the same range/category of
manufacture by so many units, many of which cannot
achieve the economies of scale that are necessary to
sustain the nature of technology and high investments.

vii. As regards the absorption of technology, this is reflected in

the quality of the end product attained by the industry. As
the situation stands today, the quality of bearings manu-
factured by the industry is not comparable with interna-
tional standards. Nevertheless the user industry is by and
large using the bearings as are supplied by the manufac-
turers.
viii. Automation has its own advantages - precision, productiv-
ity, and consistent quality. It may not be feasible for
individual units in the industry to go for automation owing
to a number of constraints. However, partial automation
has been attempted by the industry. The importance of
controls on operations such as on assembly operations,
not always obvious but necessary, do not appear to be fully
appreciated.
ix. Apart from the problems associated with costs and in spite
of the import of technology and machinery, the obvious
difference in quality and productivity is reflective of the lag
in technology absorption.

x. The spurt in prices of the important raw material-steel

tubes, has compelled the industry to look for an alternative
form of material, which has been seen in forged/formed
rings. But even here, supplies of these in adequate quan-
tities and to the desired specifications have not been made.
Outside the bearing industry itself only one manufacturer

13
 of balls is able to supply balls that meet bearing quality
which itself needs upgrading. With only four/five major
components in a bearing, ancillary industry generally has
no major role to play in the manufacure of bearings.
xi. Application engineering or customer support service, not
much in evidence earlier, has started receiving serious
attention from the bearing industry. Recently, increasing
Japanese association with the user industry may have
induced this change and could be expected to influence it
in future. The same can be said, of quality awareness.

xii. Some small scale units are operating. Some of these units
make bearings to special designs or categories not covered
by the organised sector. None, however, could be expected
to produce quality bearings and generally cater to the
replacement market. Units that assemble bearings from
imported components are also reported.
xiii. Exports of bearings are negligible for obvious reasons i.e.
quality and price competitiveness. There is considerable
import, mostly in special types and sizes not covered by the
Indian industry. But even in this range, import is reported
to be adversely affecting Indian manufacturers.
xiv. Internationally, the accent is on achieving higher and
higher quality levels of bearings. Higher precision, mini-
mum handling damages and maximum cleanliness are the
thrust areas for development. Individual units have their
own grading of quality. SKF, for example, designates it, as
Q77, Q66, Q55, where Q66 is reported as the prevalent
level and Q55 as the level aimed at.

International manufacturers are moving towards special

bearings, and sub assemblies involving bearings, where
production of small batch quantities becomes more attrac-
tive.

xv. High rates and consistency of productivity have been

achieved by the manufacturers abroad by line manufac-

14
 ture. The market demands there, permit mass production
techniques and thereby bring in economies in production.

xvi. Machine tool technology for the SPMs involved, is continu-

ously upgraded to achieve precision coupled with produc-
tivity, at the international level. This is not only in increas-
ing the output rates of critical machines but also through
incorporation of sophistication for precision in perform-
ance.

xvii. As regards materials, closer grade and specification rat-

ings are emphasised.
xviii. Upgrading of technology has generally come not from
within or from market forces but usually from the collabo-
rator's insistence, if the latter has stakes, either financial
or through its name.
0.20 RECOMMENDATIONS
i The technology available with the industry is more suited
to high volume production. It is essential to study the
market for such bearing types as are essentially required,
but in small volumes, maintaining good quality. Therefore,
technology specifically suitable for small batch produc-
tion, while maintaining manufacturing economy and pro-
ducing good quality needs to be explored to supplement
the present situation where a major share of the large
volume types is taken by 2 or 3 established units and the
balance market is fragmented among the remaining
manufacturers which has impact on economies of their
operations.

A scrutiny in terms of selection of product mix to suit the

overall Indian market demand and selection of appropri-
ate technology to suit that kind of mix appears advisable.
Where special bearings are required in a market, these too
need to be looked into for development.

ii. It is imperative to encourage the local steel manufacturers

to produce basic 'ball bearing grade' steel which would

15
 match the increasingly stringent international standards.
In particular the cleanliness of the steel needs to be
improved.

iii. The availability, quality and econmies related to indi-

genously manufactured tubes must receive serious atten-
tion. In the absence of availability of good quality tube
locally import duties levied on import of tubes may need
to be reviewed.

iv At the same time, serious efforts should be made to

develop indigenous manufacturers having the potential to
manufacture quality seamless tubes for bearings, and
make commercial supplies. While it is essential to encour-
age and support any existing suppliers to improve the
delivery to desired quality, it is necessary that, in the
process, imports of tubes should not be banned prema-
turely, which has been one disturbing factor in the indus-
try.
v As the tube prices have soared the turning of races from
formed blanks has started to be a more economic alterna-
tive. Inspite of the apparent glut of capacity on paper for
making formed rings, the recent spurt in demand has not
been met by the makers of formed rings for one or the other
reason. Also too much material is required to be turned off
from whatever is offered. It is necesary to explore and
encourage supply of formed rings, through local know-
how not involving the high investment machinery, custom-
arily used.

vi There are no suppliers specialising in the manufacture of

rolling elements outside the bearing industry, except one
for balls who has begun to deliver balls of a quality
acceptable to many bearing manufacturers. Balls contrib-
ute to a great extent to the quality of bearings and
continuous efforts towards upgrading of their quality are
called for. Units could be encouraged to specialise in ball
manufacturing.

vii. Cage or retainer manufacturing has been an in-house

activity. It involves press work and can be off loaded to

16
 press shops, encouraged to specialise in the work. If it
were possible to rationalise cage designs, this would
facilitate reduced tooling costs and economy of higher
volumes. This of course has to be done without sacrificing
quality or specialities of individual designs.

viii. Alternative economical methods of making some opera-

tions on simple but special purpose machines need to be
re-explored and these machines developed, even if such
machines were manufactured and tried by the industry,
but could not satisfy the performance needs of the indus-
try earlier.
The industry is on the look-out for machines for turning
formed rings/blanks that could chuck ring blanks with
large dimensional variations, requiring cosiderable stock
removal all around. The material economy today has tilted
heavily in favour of formed rings, creating the need to
develop simple but special purpose machines. Such
machines can probably also serve the purpose of convert-
ing the end pieces of bars/tubes into usable rings.

ix. Multispindle automats are highly expensive machines and

high utilisation levels are essential. While the industry has
been moving towards shortening cycle times and turning
more rings per cycle, the availability of fast, simple second
operation machines for turning corner radii, undercuts,
small grooves, etc. would help better utilisation of
multispindles. Development of such fast but simple sec-
ond operation machines specifically for the purpose, needs
to be explored.

x. More understanding of the specific features required in

designing equipment for heat treatment seems necessary
by the users and the manufacturers.
xi. Grinding is the most critical operation involved in bearing
manufacture. Most machines used are special purpose
machines and have to be imported. The international
manufacturers make continuous and specific efforts to
 develop grinding machines incorporating a high degreeof
sophistication.
It may not be realistic to seek indigenisation of all these
machines incorporating these features. However, an effort
to develop machines that would satisfy the demands of
quality of the bearing industry for one or two specific
operations, needs to be initiated and supported. Such a
development may also be undertaken with the help of a
renowned international manufacturer established in
manufacturng these machines for the bearing industry.

xii. A programme for full development of grinding machines

for industry cannot be advocated. However such manufac-
turers, as HMT who had a tie-up with M/s. WMW (E.Ger)
and PMT Machine Tools, Pune who have a tie-up with
Voumard (W. Germany) maybe encouraged to acquire the
necessary technology for selected operations, progres-
sively.

An alternative to multispindle machines, suitable for

plung cutting in turning bearing races for turning formed
rings is needed and certainly is within the capability of
Indian Machine Tool Industry. Selected inspection and
quality control equipment, feeding and material transfer
from machine to machine, in process gauging and controls
are areas where development could be indigenised.

xiii. Grinding wheels of satisfactory quality have not yet been

developed indigenously. Continuous efforts by grinding
wheel manufacturers in concurrence with the bearing
industry need to be pursued.

xiv. It is felt that the importance and relevance of certain

assembly operations in controlling surface damages and
equipment such as washing machines for controlling
cleanliness, is not fully appreciated. Selective automation
could be gainfully employed in handling and transfer.
Utmost care needs to be taken while selecting the level of
automation, which would suit the relevant volumes and
batch sizes. Automation should be introduced initially in
such areas where conspicuous gains in quality (e.g.: some

18
 reference surface/dimension through operations) and high
machine productivity can be attained rather than mere
saving in manpower. Development and manufacture of
standardised transfer equipment specifically developed
for bearing manufacturing operations should be encour-
aged.

It would not be realistic to develop sophisticated inspec-

tion equipment used in checking certain quality parame-
ters. However, uniformity in the method of measurements
and specified limits of various parameters can be intro-
duced.

xv. If indeed serious efforts towards upgrading quality are to

be made, it would seem necessary to monitor the quality of
bearings produced by Indian manufacturers and compare
the same with that of the international manufacturers. It
would be desirable if an impartial central authority were to
be established to carry out quality audit, assigning targets
of achievement within feasible time spans.

xvi. Research and development activity has had little atten-

tion. Some of the manufacturers within the industry have
the potential to undertake useful work in the area. These
units could jointly take up R & D activities suitable to
Indian needs.

xvii. Technical services and application engineering have also

not been given the deserved priority. The situation is
changing demanding careful understanding of user's
requirements. An approach similar to R & D should be
adopted for imparting technical services and dealing with
application engineering.

xviii. The upgradation has come from the force of compulsion by

outside agencies and normally, the collaborator. Therefore,
evolving a basic policy on the nature of collaboration that
would ensure continuous and open support from the
collaborator and close scrutiny by the government becomes
a highly imperative factor in upgrading the technology.

19
xix. Tractor manufacturers in India require special bearings,
many of them are being imported. Import substitution can
be achieved by bearing manufacturers if they can get as-
sured consumption from Indian tractor industry. Total
annual requirement of tractor industry can be found out
by Ball and Roller Bearing Manufacturers Association of
India from Tractor Manufacturers Association of India.

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