Tandem bearings are primarily used when reliable support must be provided for high axial forces in a limited radial

design envelope. A typical application for tandem bearings is the distribution gear in twin screw extruders.

The power range found in twin screw extruders ranges from approx 2 kW and

16 MW. The back pressure forces are also quite high: they range from 2.5 to3,400 kN.

Due to the small center distance between the heavily loaded extruder shafts, a tandem bearing is often used in combination

with a thrust cylindrical roller bearing (series 894...) having the corresponding load carrying capacity.

The combination of two identical tandem bearings or two differing tandem bearings is also possible

depending on the design envelope and gear application.