Japan's 4 billion yen increase in production of wind power bearings

Seiko Co., Ltd. will increase production of bearings for wind power generators, and plans to invest approximately JPY 4 billion in two years to set up core equipment, that is, production equipment for bearings such as speed increasers. At present, the demand for bearings for wind turbines continues to expand, and suppliers, including the company, have only around five globally. The company will increase its supply capacity by enhancing production equipment and strive to increase its global share from the current 10% to 30% in 2011.

Wind turbines use a speed increaser to increase the rotational speed of the blades and pass them to the SKF bearing motor to generate electricity. In the field of gearbox bearings, the company ranked third in the world after SKF, the largest manufacturer in the bearing sector, and Schaeffler, the second-largest manufacturer in the world. Currently, there are only five companies that can meet quality requirements in terms of durability, including NTN. In the case of customers requesting increased production, Japan Seiko decided to take reinforcement measures.

Seiko will set up production facilities for wind turbines at the Fujisawa plant in Fujisawa, Kanagawa, and Fujisawa’s second plant, which was launched at various locations in Fujisawa in January 2008. By strengthening the machine, it will also begin to formally produce main bearings with a diameter of nearly 1 meter, which is arranged in the main part of the blade. With the establishment of a comprehensive supply of bearings for wind turbines to attract more orders.