Quality Time

PRODUCT & SERVICE QUALITY ARE KEY DIFFERENTIATORS FOR INDIAN OEM USERS OF INDUSTRIAL BEARINGS, WHOSE VENDORS ARE GRAPPLING WITH WAYS TO KEEP SPURIOUS GOODS MAKERS AT BAY.

- Mitalee Kurdekar

RIGHT FROM HIGH-END AUTOMOBILES TO wind turbines, industrial bearings find use in a large number of applications. In short, these anti-friction components are seen wherever there are products with moving parts that require smooth performance, making them a unique component because of their universal relevance. Repetitive demand is yet another feature of the industrial bearings market. While most industrial bearing products are of a standard type, their lifespan depends upon actual wear and tear within the moving parts of the products in which they are used, and hence cannot be directly linked to the lifespan of products or machines. As a result, the market always generates a consistent after-sales or replacement demand. Such aftermarket demand is prevalent largely in the automotive and industrial segments, wherein one notices a large consumption of industrial bearings.

The Indian bearings industry, which comprises of large- and medium-scale manufacturers, is no exception to the above norm, in the sense that almost half its demand comes from the automotive segment. Also, after a slight slowdown, the recent spurt witnessed in the automotive industry’s growth has further escalated the demand for bearings. With an increase in general purchasing power and shift in middle- and lower-income group income levels, the demand for both two-wheelers and four-wheelers has been steadily rising in the past few years. Thus, this has helped the industrial bearings market demand immensely within India. With initiatives like Make in India and the overall special emphasis laid on the manufacturing sector by the Indian Government, the demand for bearings from the industrial segment is also large, and growing.