SKF has opened a Ceramic Process Laboratory at its research and development centre in Houten, the Netherlands, to investigate the production of advanced ceramic rolling elements for industrial bearings. Announced on 19 October 2026, the C-Pro Lab brings powder formulation, compaction, sintering and surface finishing into a connected research operation rather than treating each manufacturing stage separately.
The facility is intended to act as a global competence centre for ceramic technology within SKF’s research organisation. Researchers will develop material formulations, manufacture experimental components and study how processing conditions affect the mechanical and electrical properties required for hybrid bearings. SKF has not disclosed a capital cost, additional staffing figure or annual commercial production capacity for the laboratory.
Hybrid bearings combine conventional steel inner and outer rings with rolling elements made from a technical ceramic, commonly silicon nitride. Their characteristics differ from those of all-steel bearings because the rolling elements have lower density and different electrical and contact properties. Those differences can be useful in rotating equipment exposed to high speeds or challenging electrical conditions.
Industrial motors and generators can experience unwanted electrical currents through their bearings. In a variable-speed drive, switching behaviour and electrical conditions within the machine can generate voltage differences between a shaft and its surrounding structure. When current crosses a lubricated bearing contact, electrical discharges may damage the rolling surfaces.
Repeated discharges can produce surface pitting, changes in vibration and premature deterioration. Ceramic rolling elements provide an electrically insulating path between the rings, reducing the risk of particular forms of current damage. They do not, however, provide an unconditional guarantee against all electrical problems in the wider machine, which may contain other current paths.
The lower mass of silicon nitride rolling elements can also affect operation at high rotational speed. Centrifugal and inertial forces influence how rolling elements load the raceways, with the resulting contact conditions depending on speed, bearing geometry, applied forces and lubrication. Reducing rolling element density can make some bearing designs better suited to those duties.
SKF says hybrid ceramic bearings can reduce friction by up to 50% against conventional alternatives in suitable applications. That is a company performance claim subject to the bearing design and operating conditions, not a universal reduction across all motors or rotating machines. Frictional losses also depend on preload, lubricant behaviour, temperature and the surrounding mechanical arrangement.
The technical benefits rely on making ceramic components with tightly controlled properties. Silicon nitride rolling elements are produced from processed powders rather than being machined directly from conventional cast metal. Powder composition, particle characteristics and the distribution of additives influence how the material consolidates and develops its final structure.
During compaction, the prepared powder is formed into a component that can be handled and treated further. Uniformity at this stage is important because variations in density or composition can contribute to inconsistent shrinkage and other defects during later thermal processing.
Sintering exposes the formed material to controlled high temperatures so the particles consolidate into a dense ceramic structure. Time, temperature, atmosphere and the starting composition influence the resulting microstructure. The process also changes component dimensions, meaning the manufacturing plan must allow for shrinkage before final precision finishing.
A rolling element must meet close dimensional and surface requirements because it repeatedly contacts the bearing raceway under load. Surface finishing is therefore part of achieving the required bearing performance rather than a merely cosmetic operation. Its effectiveness depends on the hardness and microstructure established in the earlier manufacturing stages.
Bringing the stages together allows researchers to trace a change in final component performance back through the production process. If a new powder composition alters sintering behaviour, for instance, the laboratory can examine whether the effect arises from forming density, thermal treatment or the final finishing route.
Such work is needed before advanced ceramics can be manufactured consistently at larger volumes. A successful laboratory specimen demonstrates a set of material characteristics under defined conditions; repeatable industrial production also requires process control, inspection methods and acceptable yields across successive batches.
SKF expects the C-Pro Lab to support faster prototyping and optimisation of ceramic microstructures. It also intends to investigate production efficiency, with the longer-term aim of translating improved component designs into commercial hybrid bearing products. The announcement does not name a new production contract or state that additional factory output has already been commissioned.
Hybrid bearings serve several applications with different operating demands. High-speed industrial machinery may place emphasis on rolling element mass and contact behaviour, while motors connected to power electronic drives can benefit from the electrical resistance of ceramic components. Bearings used in aerospace or railway equipment must also satisfy the qualification and reliability requirements established for the individual installation.
Temperature resistance is another property associated with technical ceramics, but a complete bearing assembly includes steel rings and may use cages, seals and lubricants with different operating limits. A ceramic rolling element cannot determine the allowable temperature of the finished unit on its own.
The selection of a hybrid bearing therefore requires engineering assessment at system level. Shaft loads, speed, lubrication, mounting accuracy and expected contamination can all influence bearing life, regardless of the rolling element material. Using a ceramic component may address a particular failure mechanism while leaving other design requirements unchanged.
SKF chief technology officer and senior vice-president for technology development Annika Ölme identified end-to-end ceramic process control as the laboratory’s main contribution, linking materials research with industrialisation. Customers from the railway, aerospace and drives sectors attended the opening, alongside Sweden’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Julius Liljeström.
Contact between researchers and application engineers can help ensure that new materials are tested against relevant equipment duties. Improvements in ceramic properties have to be translated into bearing specifications, manufacturing controls and performance data before an industrial customer can assess their suitability for a machine.
The Houten opening establishes a research and process-development capability rather than a quantified expansion in commercial bearing output. Future milestones will be the components and production methods qualified through the laboratory, together with any subsequent manufacturing investment or product introductions supported by that work.
