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"Bart G. Bartholomew, Bart Bartholomew, Bartholomew bart, bart bartholomew, Vice President, SKF, skf, Reliability Systems, bart g. bartholomew, sustainability, going green, environmentally friendly programs, International Trade Association, ITA, ita, trade association, manufactured products, non-polluting, conserve energy, safe employees, communities, consumers, proactive sustainability, sustainability programs, safeguard natural resources, reduced carbon dioxide emissions, co2 emissions, chemical management, enhanced equipment reliability, BeyondZero, beyond zero, lubricant consumption, plant machinery, electric motors, gearboxes, fans, pumps, compressors, tools, robotics" />
"No "one size fits all" blueprint exists to universally chart the course of sustainability programs."
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Bart G. Bartholomew is Vice President, SKF® Reliability
Systems North America, a business division of SKF USA, Inc. In his 20 years with SKF, he
has served in a variety of successive positions, ranging from sales and business
development, to distribution management and new product launches. Among other key current
responsibilities, Bartholomew assists customers in developing and implementing tailored
sustainability programs supported by specialized expertise and enabling technologies. He
can be contacted at "mailto:bart.g.bartholomew@skf.com">bart.g.bartholomew@skf.com.

"No "one size fits all" blueprint exists to universally chart the course of sustainability programs." - Bart G. Bartholomew

Q: Sustainability may be perceived as a rather broad term. What is
SKF's definition of sustainability and the advantages associated with
successful programs?

A: As the concept of sustainability gains traction in the industry, many
manufacturers will narrowly correlate sustainability with "going
green" and the subsequent development and implementation of environmentally
friendly programs.

While positive impact on the environment is certainly a primary objective of any
sustainability effort, the influence of a successful sustainability program will extend
much further, and can present newfound opportunities, not simply relating to
environmental goals.

Sustainability is defined by the International Trade Association (ITA) as
"the creation of manufactured products using processes that are
non-polluting, conserve energy, and safe for employees, communities, and
consumers."

Proactive sustainability programs will inherently provide opportunities to support
strategic decision-making, sharpen the competitive edge, and safeguard natural
resources.

Specific and highly practical benefits can further be realized in terms of reduced
operating costs, increased productivity and profitability, measurable energy savings and
reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, improved waste and chemical management, enhanced
equipment reliability, and better health and safety working conditions.

For the maintenance function alone, the road to sustainability can lead to more effective
strategic directions and more efficient approaches.

In our case, sustainability involves developing and offering new environmentally sound,
energy-efficient products and services, as well as introducing effective energy
conservation programs. We further encourage employees to take individual responsibility
for active contributions to sustainability at work and in their private lives.

Our commitment extends to suppliers, too, with the message that a positive track record
for sustainability makes a big difference to us.

Q: How has SKF organized its own sustainability efforts for
implementation?

A: We have purposely structured our sustainability program worldwide
under four cornerstones founded upon the theme of "SKF
Cares:" Business Care, Environment Care, Employee Care, and Community
Care.

In Business Care, a key mission is to partner with customers to develop environmentally
and economically sound solutions for industry challenges. Under Environment Care, our
daily job is to minimize negative impact, exceed goals, and set a shining example. Our
Employee Care approach seeks to encourage pride, loyalty, dedication, and full potential.
For the global Community Care, our mandate is to serve as a "good
neighbor" around the world.

Of course, no "one size fits all" blueprint exists to
universally chart the course of sustainability programs. How a particular sustainability
effort is devised and implemented will depend on factors ranging from an
organization's culture to its capabilities and ongoing
commitment.

Q: How does the SKF BeyondZero™ initiative fit within the
environmental objectives of sustainability, and how has the rollout of the concept fared
so far?

A: BeyondZero™ was launched in 2005 with the mission
to achieve an overall positive net impact on the environment above and beyond
"reductions." The aim (for us and our customers) is to
reduce our "footprint," and add even more positive
contributions. Our toolbox has been equipped with specialized technologies, products, and
services for the job.

Among noteworthy examples where sustainability and BeyondZero principles have been
intertwined, a customer facility reduced lubricant consumption for plant machinery by 18
percent and, in turn, reduced the time and money previously spent for associated
lubrication-related maintenance. Even more dramatically, overall production eventually
rose by 30 percent. This was accomplished by repositioning equipment maintenance
practices to reliability-centered paradigms driven by condition monitoring technology.
Recurring and costly unscheduled downtime for machinery virtually vanished.

In another operation, simply by changing maintenance practices, four percent in energy
reduction opportunities were identified for a plant's
compressors.

Another customer installed a heat-recovery system on a factory's roof
to recover excess heat from the exhaust air heating the building. This has reduced CO2
emissions by about 380 tons a year, and amounted to millions of kilowatt-hours (kWh) in
savings by capping the traditional reliance on expensive purchased energy.

For another manufacturer, energy efficiency increased due to a variety of
sustainability-oriented projects, including the introduction of frequency-controlled
pumps, heat recovery from the production of compressed air, installation of new lighting
in factories and warehouses, and roof insulation.

SKF set a goal in 2002 to reduce our collective CO2 emissions worldwide by 10 percent in
2007. This target was achieved well ahead of schedule in 2005 and new targets have been
posted (and so far met) every year.

Q: With the industrial market a high consumer of energy, what are some of the
newer technologies available to help promote energy efficiency, and where can these be
applied in a plant operation?

A: The targets of opportunity for sustainability improvements,
especially relating to energy efficiency, can be found in virtually every piece of
equipment and among all applications and processes within industry.

For example, rolling bearings in rotating equipment traditionally function to reduce
friction with rolling elements, support shaft loads, and provide system rigidity and
shaft location. From the perspective of sustainability, significant improvements in
design and engineering have enabled bearings to contribute so much more, whether in
electric motors, gearboxes, fans, pumps, compressors, tools, robotics, or other
equipment. In particular, bearings offering the capability to work with less energy have
moved from the drawing board to production.

By their very nature, rolling bearings reduce the amount of energy that machinery
requires. Even though less than one percent of the energy consumption in motor-driven
equipment is associated with the bearing, savings in small amounts can add up, especially
over time.

A new family of SKF energy-efficient bearings benefits from proprietary optimized
internal geometry, unique polymer cage design, innovative manufacturing techniques, and
high-performance grease to exhibit significantly less friction, or friction loss,
compared with conventional bearing types. Their introduction can reduce friction loss by
at least 30 percent, depending on bearing size and application conditions, which
ultimately yields reductions in power loss and energy consumption.

Offering a completely different approach in supporting rotating equipment, magnetic
bearings incorporate electromagnet technology and, without rolling elements, these
represent a "non-contacting technology." In sustainability
terms, this translates to negligible friction loss (consuming less energy) and absence of
lubrication (eliminating a need for oil replenishment and disposal). These bearings
ideally suit processes sensitive to contamination, such as the vacuum chambers for
semiconductor manufacturing, and also can be applied to turbo compressors, machine tools,
and other equipment where their operating principle would prove advantageous.

Another dominant trend pertaining to sustainability is a transition from fluid-dependent
hydraulics and cumbersome pneumatics to cleaner, more environmentally friendly, and
simplified electromechanical actuation systems.
"Mechatronics" technology is at the forefront of
solutions.

The infrastructure required for hydraulic systems necessitates a hydraulic unit, tank for
oil, and filter systems, among other components; pneumatic-driven systems must rely upon
air compressors, compressed air filters, and filter systems. In contrast, mechatronic
systems require only power and control wires to perform.

Mechatronics presents motion and control in one package integrating mechanical and
electronic technologies with application-specific software. Compared with hydraulic or
pneumatic systems, mechatronics can make the grade for sustainability where motion will
come into play, such as robotics applications.

Q: What tips would you give manufacturers as basic first steps in starting a
sustainability initiative?

A: A top-to-bottom energy and environment analysis typically serves as a
starting point. Such an analysis can identify areas of high energy consumption, and be
engaged to evaluate chemical treatments, lubrication use, and other operating processes
to determine environmental risk. Then, improvements linked to opportunities can be
introduced, based on remedial action recommendations. Analyses additionally provide
benchmarking data for arriving at realistic objectives and measuring subsequent results,
based on established goals and targets.

Practices aimed at improving and enhancing the reliability and efficiency of assets can
pay big dividends in striving toward sustainability success. Regularly monitored and
well-maintained equipment can save energy, increase uptime, drive profitability, and
advance core sustainability objectives.

Data is "king" for documenting and quantifying
sustainability efforts and should be managed effectively. Customized web-based EHS
(environmental, health, and safety) information management systems offer solutions to
electronically automate key EHS functions, including sustainability metrics. This can
drastically reduce time and money usually spent in collecting, analyzing, re-formatting,
and preparing data. Capabilities expand with live CO2 footprint tracking and performance
tracking and measurement.

Above all, employees organization-wide should be encouraged in their efforts to become
active partners on this road to sustainability, because we all have a stake in the
ultimate outcome.