drylin® R on wooden shafts in desks

What was needed: igus® Plain bearings
Requirements: Bearing must withstand high pressure and speed and be adjusted 4 times a day for 10 years, without lubricant and low coefficient of friction
Industry: Furniture
Success for the customer: Sustainable and lubrication-free desks, which are also height-adjustable

With a purely mechanical adjustment mechanism, it is particularly important to achieve a very low coefficient of friction on the Dexter wooden desk from Furnature, as otherwise it is no longer comfortable to use. Although a force can always be equalised with a transmission ratio, a user does not want to crank forever. Another challenge was the limited installation space available for the bearing. Partly it was for aesthetic reasons to choose narrow bearings, but partly it was also necessary to avoid pinch points. A flange was important for each bearing to prevent high friction between axial and side-by-side components. Above all, Furnature wanted sustainable bearing solutions, including in particular CO2 emissions, durability, recyclability or a small amount of material. The bearings also had to be user-friendly.

To ensure that Furnature's desk can withstand its challenges, the company opted for compact and smooth-running bearings made of high-performance plastics from igus®. For this purpose, drylin® R was used and tested on wooden shafts. The application and requirements were also included in the current drylin® study. Which of the igus® polymers are best suited to different types of wood. The results showed that the determined coefficients of friction differed only slightly from the results on steel or aluminium. The wear results for bearings and shafts are also very promising. The linear plain bearings of the drylin® R series on wooden shafts are above all very robust and durable and offer excellent sliding properties without any lubrication. In addition, the sliding foils made from iglidur® J4 have a high regranulate content (up to 97 %) and therefore a footprint that is reduced by up to 60 %.

The Dexter desk from Furnature received a major international award for its outstanding design. It was honoured as the winner of the Iconic Award 2023 in the category "Innovative Interior"