Advanced Raceway Geometry and In-House Heat Treating Resolve Critical Skidding and Fatigue Issues in High-Cycle Mobility Equipment
WORCESTER, Mass., Feb. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Lutco, Inc., a leading American manufacturer of semi-precision bearings and custom-engineered metal components, is highlighting a recent engineering success within the medical mobility sector. A new case study released by the company illustrates how Lutco's design engineering team addressed a critical reliability failure in overhead patient lift systems, resulting in a customer-reported 10x increase in component service life.
The challenge concerned premature bearing failure in high-cycle patient lifts. The OEM reported that the original thrust bearings were reaching end-of-life after fewer than 1,000 cycles—well before the product warranty expired. This led to excessive service events and compromised the reliability of essential equipment used for patient and caregiver safety.
Lutco's engineering team engaged in a deep-dive analysis of the application, identifying the root cause as "skidding." This phenomenon occurs when rapid acceleration and frequent direction reversals cause rolling elements to slide rather than roll, creating localized heat and surface spalling.
"In high-stakes environments, we don't just provide a part; we provide a technical solution to fit whatever challenge they may be facing," said Dug Stowe, president of Lutco. "By leveraging our vertical integration—specifically our in-house heat treating and precision stamping—our engineers were able to fine-tune material hardness and raceway geometry to these specific, dynamic loads. It's something that sets us apart from your everyday component shop."
The Lutco engineering solution focused on three proprietary optimizations:
- Refined Raceway Geometry: Custom-designed to promote uniform load distribution and eliminate skidding-related stress.
- In-House Heat Treating: Precise metallurgical adjustment to maximize fatigue resistance for this specific application.
- Material Science Integration: Selection of alloys specifically capable of withstanding extreme reversing loads.
Following implementation of the custom-engineered design, the customer reported that the solution exceeded 10,000 lift cycles during internal validation testing—a tenfold improvement over the previous incumbent design. Crucially, Lutco's team engineered this as a "drop-in replacement," holding the same footprint and allowing the OEM to resolve the field issue immediately without a costly redesign of the entire lift assembly.
This success underscores the Lutco Engineering Group's capability to solve complex friction and wear challenges through collaborative design and total domestic manufacturing control. For more information on Lutco's custom engineering capabilities or to read the full case study, visit www.lutco.com.
About Lutco
Lutco, Inc. is a premier global manufacturer of semi-precision bearings, metal stampings, machined parts, and housed bearing assemblies. Headquartered in Worcester, Massachusetts, Lutco combines state-of-the-art technology with a workforce boasting an average of 20+ years of technical expertise. By bridging the gap between custom engineering and cost-effective production, Lutco serves as a critical partner to OEMs worldwide, delivering innovative component solutions that drive system performance across diversified global markets.
Media Contact
Bob Santoro, Lutco, Inc., 1 (508) 756-6296 220, [email protected], https://www.lutco.com/
SOURCE Lutco, Inc.
Share this article