BOWER

The history of NTN-Bower began in 1904 when R.F. Bower from Dayton, Ohio, patented his new thrust-regulating roller bearing. The new Bower bearing proved to be extremely successful in solving the problem of wheel loss in horse-drawn carriages when turning at high speeds. As a result, in 1907, several businessmen from Dayton, Ohio, became interested in the new product and organized the Bower Roller Bearing Company with a capital of $100,000 to manufacture it.

Shortly after production began, the popularity of the automobile increased sharply, and many new companies were established for its mass production. In an effort to take a more active part in this new industry, the Bower Roller Bearing Company moved to Detroit, and in 1910 a Michigan corporation was created with an authorized capital of $225,000. The company occupied its new plant in Detroit in 1911.

The Bower Roller Bearing Company grew rapidly as the automobile business expanded, attracting the best engineers and skilled technicians in the region. Production of the popular tapered roller bearing was added in 1926. Based on the success achieved in the development and manufacturing of improved tapered roller bearings, many customers requested the addition of cylindrical roller bearings to the product line. Production of cylindrical roller bearings began in 1934 to better serve the industry.

In 1955, the Bower Roller Bearing Company merged with Federal-Mogul Corporation as a result of close working relationships between the companies. These relations were built on the success of Federal-Mogul Corporation’s service division in promoting the Bower roller bearing line. After the merger, ever-growing customer demand required increased production capacity. The desire to locate new manufacturing facilities as conveniently as possible for Midwest markets led to the construction of a plant in Macomb, Illinois in 1965, and a plant in Hamilton, Alabama in 1973.

In 1985, Federal-Mogul Corporation entered into an agreement with NTN-Toyo Bearing Company, Ltd. of Osaka, Japan, to establish a corporation engaged in domestic production of precision roller bearings. This agreement, signed by the two companies on December 11, led to the formation of NTN-Bower Corporation, which included manufacturing facilities and a technical center. In 1987, NTN acquired 100% of the company’s shares.

The corporate headquarters of NTN-Bower Corporation were moved from Bingham Farms, Michigan, to Macomb, Illinois, in 1993. To provide full technical support for all NTN operations in North America, the NTN Technical Center (U.S.A.), Inc. was established, combining the testing equipment of NTN-Bower Corporation and NTN Bearing Corporation of America at an expanded center in Ann Arbor. To accelerate research and development, a global computer communications network connects the Technical Center to manufacturing facilities and sales offices.

For over 100 years, NTN-Bower roller bearings have been recognized as superior products in terms of precision and performance. Over this time, new bearing designs have been introduced, manufacturing technologies improved, and new materials adopted to enhance product quality. Important “firsts” in the development of cylindrical and tapered roller bearings include:

• Honed raceways
• Spherical ends for tapered roller bearings
• Crowned cylindrical and tapered rollers
• Cold-stamped rings for tapered roller bearings
• Electron-beam welded one-piece steel cages for cylindrical roller bearings
• Two-piece phenolic cages, ultrasonically welded, for cylindrical roller bearings
• Hot-forged bearing components from powdered metal
• Hot-pressed silicon nitride cylindrical roller bearings
• Proprietary bearings

These “firsts” enable modern automobiles, industrial and agricultural machinery to operate longer, smoother, and more reliably.

NTN-Bower Corporation continues to uphold the tradition of product excellence established by the founders of the Bower Roller Bearing Company. We are focused on serving our customers in the transportation, construction, and agricultural machinery markets, while also meeting the needs of other industrial customers, which have provided a good niche for our precision bearings.

Today, with the continued support of NTN Corporation, NTN-Bower Corporation is one of the largest manufacturers of precision roller bearings in North America. We continue to expand and improve the quality of our products to meet our customers’ requirements. In addition to bearings, NTN-Bower Corporation has recently expanded its product range to include fan housings, HUB and HUR assemblies, counterweights, and other bearing-related products.