Based on VICTREX® PEEK™ Polymer, VICOTE Coatings outperform traditional coating materials such as copper and silver plating, enabling higher performance and longer life cycle of needle roller bearings

November 1, 2007, Taipei –Victrex plc, a leading manufacturer of high performance materials, including VICTREX ® PEEK™ polymer, VICOTE® Coatings and APTIV™ Film, today announced that its VICOTE Coating has been selected by Needle Roller Bearings Co. Ltd (Taiwan), the leading manufacturer of needle roller, as needle roller bearings targeted for use in motorcycle engines, outboard motors and other high rotational speed engines. VICOTE 804 Blk was chosen to replace the current coating made of copper and silver plating for its excellent wear and abrasion resistance. VICOTE Coating is believed to reduce the wear on the outer surface of the roller bearing, and thus can enable longer life of the actual cage.

Needle roller bearings are manufactured predominantly for commercial markets including automotive and industrial, but are used in virtually every sector where high speed rotational equipment is utilized. Traditionally, the outer surfaces of the bearing cage are plated with an expensive copper and silver layers to reduce wear, following tests under which the bearing was subjected to rotational speeds of 9000 rpm for over 100 hours, the current copper and silver layers wore off, causing damage to the cage and possible premature failure of the bearing; however, the same test was conducted on a bearing coated with VICOTE 804 Blk and the bearing cage showed no signs of wear at the end of the test.

“We are excited about VICOTE Coatings as a new solution to enhance the design and performance of our needle roller bearings; it does not only bring higher performance and longer life cycle of the needle roller bearings but also reduce the overall system costs. We have now adopted this solution based upon VICOTE Coating – a further advantage of the VICOTE Coating solution is that the process for applying the coating is simpler and less damaging to the bearing cage, than applying the traditional Copper/Silver plating – as the process for applying the Copper/Silver plating to the bearing cage can cause hydrogen embrittlement of the bearing cage, which can also lead to premature, catastrophic, bearing failure.” said Louis Hsueh, Plant Manager, NRB Taiwan.

“Current solutions are expensive and do not provide adequate wear resistance relative to the demands of the application,” said Gary Li, Country Manager of Victrex Taiwan. “VICOTE Coatings are well-suited for use in this application based on their excellent wear and durability, and their ability to withstand the extreme conditions of this application. This exceptional wear performance was achieved with a VICOTE coating 50% thinner than the traditional Copper/Silver plating. With over 30 million needle roller bearings produced and consumed annually across the globe – predominantly in motorcycles and outboard motors - this VICOTE Coatings technology should offer significant benefits to OEMs in these markets and others.”

VICOTE Coatings are available in aqueous based liquid dispersions and powder form and exhibit the inherent performance characteristics of VICTREX PEEK polymer, including, exceptional wear, scratch and abrasion resistance, high temperature performance, ease of processing, very good barrier properties and outstanding chemical resistance. VICOTE 804 Blk is one of the new F-grades of VICOTE Coatings which are specially formulated by Victrex to solve the problem of flash rusting that can occur when water-based coatings are applied directly to ferrous metals such as mild steel.

About Needle Roller Bearings Co. Ltd
NRB Taiwan, also known as FRB, is the premium connecting rod bearing brand in Taiwan, China and worldwide market with a reputation for producing high quality, cost effective needle bearings that are comparable to the leading Japanese or European manufacturers. Besides customers in other industries, NRB supplies needle bearings to a large number of Motorcycle, Out Door Power Tool, Industrial Sewing Machine, Automotive and Gear Box OEM customers. Our customers are household names in Europe, USA, and the Asia/Pacific region.

About Victrex
Victrex plc is an innovative leading manufacturer of high performance materials, including VICTREX® PEEK™ polymer, VICOTE® Coatings and APTIV™ film. These materials are used in a variety of markets and offer an exceptional combination of properties to help processors and end users reach new levels of cost savings, quality, and performance.