In response to growing demand by Aerospace OEM and MRO customers, Pacamor Kubar Bearings in Troy, NY, is expanding its Class 10,000 Cleanroom Environment. Scheduled for completion in Q4 '09, the current ISO 9001:2000 and AS9100:2004 certified manufacturing cleanroom space will be dramatically increased, effectively doubling the size. It will be equipped to provide complete bearing assembly processes including component inspection, bearing assembly, lubrication, specialty inspection processes, secondary operations, testing and packaging capabilities.

New equipment for the expanded cleanroom will include a state of the art Running Torque Tester complete with tooling for every bearing size manufactured by PKB; a new heated vacuum impregnation chamber and a new high speed centrifuge for lubrication processes; a new nitrogen gas backfill system for specialized packaging processes; and many other specialty instruments and production tools. Also contained in the new cleanroom, an automated bearing wash system, numerous Class 100 laminar flow benches for ultra clean processing, numerous gages and precision inspection instruments.

The expanded system is designed to provide tight temperature, humidity, and particulate control. The cleanroom is regularly measured using particle counters to read the return air stream particulate level. The current PKB cleanroom regularly maintains cleanliness levels far superior to the Class 10,000 levels to surpass the 1,000 PPM rating on a consistent basis. PKB's ultra-clean Class 100 laminar flow benches regularly report single digit PPM cleanliness levels.

"Customer requests for cleanroom assembled and processed aerospace and medical bearings are on the rise as companies look to eliminate contamination and additional cleaning processes from their final assembly operations," says Ed Osta, Executive Vice President. "The stringent and comprehensive contamination control methods, along with some of the finest technology in the industry, will meet our customers' cleanliness requirements and help reduce their time to market."

This cleanroom expansion project is just another example of Pacamor Kubar Bearings (PKB) commitment to our customers and their needs. We will continue to advance our capabilities to meet and exceed future customer requirements. Pacamor Kubar Bearings manufactures high performance DFARS compliant miniature and instrument ball bearings for the aerospace, defense, medical, dental, industrial, and commercial industries. Customers include major aerospace manufacturers and key resellers as well as various national laboratories and prestigious government organizations such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). PKB provides these industries with precision ball bearings, including those with unique designs and materials used at sub-cryogenic temperatures.