The Quad Industries Story
Somewhere inside a hydro turbine, a rolling mill, or a ship’s stern tube, a shaft is turning under a load most equipment would not survive. What stands between that shaft and the housing is a plain bearing — a soft metal surface engineered to take the punishment, wear predictably, and be replaced on schedule rather than catastrophically.
Quad Industries manufactures those bearings in Bradford, Tennessee. The heavy wall line is centrifugally cast in Babbitt over aluminum, brass, bronze, or steel substrates, in bore diameters from 1″ to 20″ and wall thicknesses from .175″ to an inch or more. The centrifugal process is what makes the difference: it distributes the Babbitt uniformly across the bearing surface, which is what determines load-carrying capacity and how long the bearing lasts between service intervals.
The thin wall line covers the lighter side of the same problem — tin Babbitt on precision steel or aluminum, 3/4″ to 4-1/2″ bore, thicknesses up to .187″ — for pumps, gearboxes, and textile machinery where the loads are moderate but the tolerances are not.
Customers find Quad’s products under a lot of names: French bearings, centrifugal bearings, white metal bearings, journal bearings, thrust washers. The applications are just as varied — steam and hydro turbines, generators, condensers, pumps, gear boxes, marine engines, propeller shafts, stern tubes, rolling mills, paper mills, textile machinery, and stamping equipment. What they share is a demand for metallurgical consistency and dimensional precision, because a bearing that is close is a bearing that fails early.
Quad is expanding the line with tilt pads and bushings from 1″ to 12″ OD in steel, copper, or stainless with Babbitt or white metal overlay. Everything is manufactured in the USA.
We look to acquire family-owned businesses [FOBs] with a legacy of success. If you’re the owner of a values-driven company looking to sell your business, Snell Ventures can safeguard your legacy by combining purpose with profits.
Life at Quad Industries
Since joining Snell Ventures, Quad Industries has expanded employee benefits, invested in new product development including tilt pads and bushings, and grown its commercial reach through trade shows and a renewed marketing effort.
Our Experts are Ready to Help
When planning to sell your business, you want to partner with a company that cares. Snell Ventures is dedicated to the long-term success of every company we acquire. We take steps to protect employees, extending that care to the community by finding ways to give back. We stay true to your mission and keep any new processes and policies value-aligned.
Interested in learning more? We’d love to hear from you.