Market Segments
Railway
NBC develops and supplies railway vehicles with a wide variety of bearings in wheel axles and traction motors. These bearings feature high performance, high reliability, and long periods of maintenance-free service to support rail companies in their mission to provide quick, safe, and dependable transport.
Railway bearings require heavy reliability, safety & durability. With decades of experience working with leading global railways, NBC has a deep understanding of the requirements and has the capability to manufacture a complete range of bearing products to meet these requirements.
Applications
- Locomotive
- Wagon Wheel
- Traction Motor
- Freight Carriers
- Suspension
Major Products
Roller Bearing and Axle Box
NBC has produced Axle Boxes for the railways since 1952. Over a million NBC bearings and axle boxes are in service with the Indian Railways. The development of completely indigenized axle boxes and bearings for the high speed Rajdhani Locomotive are the highlights of the design capabilities at NBC.
Cylindrical roller bearings are used mainly in locomotives (Diesel or Electric) for wheel application and traction motor application. These bearings are used with axle box housing and end fittings.
Traction Motor Bearings
Traction motors are a common means of powering a train, whether the energy required is carried on-board the train in the form of a diesel engine and its fuel or obtained from outside the train by connection with an external power supply carried by an overhead line
Spherical Roller Bearings
The manufacturing of spherical roller bearings was started in the year 1975 for fitment to broad gauge and meter gauge passenger coaches with designs, technology, machines and equipment procured from the collaborators.
Cartridge Tapered Roller Bearings
Cartridge taper roller bearings with technology from AmstedRail, USA, have the outstanding property of requiring no field lubrication. They are mainly used in various wagons like BOXN, BCN, BTPN, etc. designed by the Indian Railways. For fitment to these Wagons designed by the RDSO, NBC is the only manufacturer in India to indigenize these bearings under collaboration with BRENCO the largest manufacturer of these bearings in the world.
Traction motor suspension unit (MSU) Bearings
Traction motor suspension units (MSU) have been extensively used in locomotives to connect between frame‐mounted traction motors on and the wheels. Single row Tapered Roller Bearings are used as suspension bearings. These bearings are used with suspension tube housing and end fittings. For some special applications, cylindrical roller bearings are also used as suspension bearings (ABB Locomotive).
Benefits :
- Increases reliability
- Reduces radial clearance and maintenance costs
- Low starting torque
- Grease lubrication (no oil levels to maintain)
Insulated Traction Motor Bearings
NBC has successfully developed Insulated Traction Motor bearings. First time in history of Indian Railways, NBC make indigenous insulated bearings were fitted in both electric & diesel locomotive applications. Features:- Improves bearing life in electrical current passage
- Optimized coating with plasma spray process
- High insulation resistance
- High dimensional stability after coating
- Easy to mount
- Higher operational reliability
- Increased machine uptime
- Reduced overall operating costs
- Improves lubricant life
- Insulation over wide range of operating temperature
Download Railways Catalogue
Our Offerings
NBC manufactures over 200 million bearings each year offered in 2300+ variants to serve the customers in Automotive, Railway, Aerospace and Industrial segments. Product range includes ball bearings, taper roller bearings, cylindrical bearings, spherical roller bearings, needle roller bearings, railway axle boxes and other special products.Latest Articles Updated Daily
Insight And Trends
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Frequently Asked Questions — Railway Bearings
NBC manufactures a complete range of railway bearings including axlebox bearings, traction motor bearings, suspension bearings, and gearbox bearings for mainline, diesel, electric, and metro rail applications. Developed at India's largest R&D center for bearings, NBC's railway portfolio covers both broad-gauge freight wagons and high-speed passenger coaches, ensuring system-level compatibility across rolling stock types.
Yes. NBC bearings are approved and actively supplied to Indian Railways — one of the world's largest rail networks. NBC has a long-standing supply relationship with Indian Railways for axlebox and traction motor applications, with products validated to RDSO specifications. This deep domestic approval history makes NBC the benchmark choice for Indian rail procurement programmes.
India's rail network presents unique challenges — extreme temperature ranges, heavy axle loads, variable track quality, and monsoon humidity. NBC's R&D center, the largest dedicated bearing research facility in India, engineers railway bearings specifically for these conditions. Material selection, sealing systems, and grease specifications are all validated against Indian Railways' operational data, not generic international catalogues.
Yes. NBC supplies bearings for metro rail applications including traction motors, axleboxes, and auxiliary systems. As India's urban rail network expands rapidly across cities, NBC brings both Indian Railways heritage and global export experience — with products shipped to 30+ countries — to meet the precision, low-noise, and high-cycle-life demands of metro rolling stock.
